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Caravans of thousands of camels carried salt to Timbuktu

By The Salt AlmanacPublished November 8, 2026

The Azalai caravan hauled slabs of rock salt from the Taoudenni mines in the Sahara to Timbuktu, setting out in November and again in March. French officials counted 20,000 camels on the 1906 caravan. For centuries, caravans had carried West African gold north and brought Saharan salt back south. Trucks have now replaced most of the camels.

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The Salt Almanac. (2026, November 8). Caravans of thousands of camels carried salt to timbuktu. https://saltalmanac.com/did-you-know/timbuktu-salt-caravans

Original sources

  1. Wikipedia. Azalai. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azalai
  2. World History Encyclopedia. The Salt Trade of Ancient West Africa. https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1342/the-salt-trade-of-ancient-west-africa