‘Rann’ means ‘desert’ in Hindi, and the Little Rann is just one part of a much greater whole, stretching for thousands of miles across northern Gujarat, along the border with Pakistan. It’s a desert of flat, parched, saline mud flats – once at the bottom of the Arabian Sea, now cracking in the sun like crazy paving. The only landmarks are bets: scattered outcrops that become wildlife-rich islands when the desert floods during monsoon.

If the Rann is on your radar at all, it’s almost certainly for its wildlife. This is the last home of the endangered Asiatic wild ass: sleeker and sandier than the common donkey – and, clocking in at 70-80 kph, much speedier – they can easily outrun your Jeep. Safaris roam the desert in search of them, plus Indian wolves, desert foxes, hyenas and nilgai. There are also over 250 species of resident and migratory birds to be spied, including massive flocks of flamingoes between October and March.

Though wildlife is the draw, the Rann has a surprising amount of history and culture for a place so apparently empty. This region has been inhabited since the Indus Valley Civilisation, more than four thousand years ago, and is still scattered with the ruins of early towns. It even pops up in ancient Greek travelogues, and was described by Alexander the Great as a huge lake – though it’s now been cut off from the sea for centuries.

In more recent history, the Rann saw Gandhi’s Salt Marches, protesting the British monopoly on the salt trade. Indigenous Agariya people still harvest salt here today, toiling with wooden rakes and hand-drawn rollers to supply over 70% of India’s salt. It’s a remarkable process to witness. Our local partners are working hard to grow responsible local tourism as an alternative source of income for the Agariyas, and offer visitors a human dimension to a region usually only thought of as a wildlife sanctuary.