Visitors marvel at rare snow in the Sahara

ALGIERS — On the usually sun-kissed sand dunes of the Sahara desert, a rare blanket of snow allowed Algerians the chance to try out some icy sliding.

WATCH: Snow reaches the Sahara, the hottest desert in the world https://t.co/pJfF6mVMy3 via @ReutersTV pic.twitter.com/athANCIsbc

— Reuters Top News (@Reuters) January 9, 2018

With temperatures touching 1 degree Celsius (33.8 Fahrenheit), residents in the northern Algerian town of Ain Sefra enjoyed sliding down the small sections of dunes on Sunday morning before the snow melted away.

View of snow in the Sahara, Ain Sefra, Algeria, January 7, 2018 in this picture obtained from social media. Hamouda Ben Jerad/via REUTERS

Ain Sefra is known as the gateway to the Sahara desert, where temperatures regularly reach 35 degrees Celsius in July and August.

Freezing conditions, however, are not uncommon in the area which lies between the desert and the Atlas mountains. Snow also fell in the region in December, 2016 for the first time in many years. — Reuters