For the first 40 km after Weldiya, the railway runs through rugged terrain at the eastern escarpment of the Ethiopian Highland at an elevation between 1400 and 1830 meters.

After 115 km, a hilly and deserted landscape appears that leads to Meisha station in the Megale woreda.

Nevertheless, Meisha railway station is possibly the most interesting along the route, as the station (which is almost at the lowest point of the entire railway, at 1,235 meters) provides relatively easy access to the Danakil depression, one of the hottest places on earth with several well-known volcanoes like Erta Ale and other tourist destinations.

Meisha station also offers access to Abala (or Shiket), one of the Afar capital towns.

The railway has an almost constant slope of 2.5% here - over 35 km - with many tunnels (up to 3,662 meters long) and bridges - and also with the passing loop station of Adi Gudem in the middle.

However, a few things (like the maximum slope) were adapted to the special conditions in the mountainous area.