Tag - Desert

WADI RUM (وادي رم)

We drove to the Wadi Rum Protected Area (included in Jordan Pass) to the village of Rum, where the paved road ends. And, like in other destinations in Jordan, forget what is written in the books; most establishments also went bankrupt due to COVID-19. So, some private drivers of old pick...

QASR USAYKIM (قصر أصيخم)

This small Roman fort, built from basalt in the 3rd century over the ruins of a 1st-century Nabataean building, is between Azraq and Safawi. We do not know why, but the 10km access road stops about 1km from the hilltop fort. The graded track thereafter is not passable by car. Anyway, the...

BIR ZEKREET (زكريت)

We spent one day off-roading around the Broog Peninsula. Qatar has little altitude, which only exaggerates the tiny limestone escarpment of Bir Zekreet, on the northwestern coast of the peninsula, near Dukhan. The wind has carved away softer sedimentary rock, exposing pillars and a giant...

MOREEB DUNE (تل مرعب ليوا)

The paved road brought us through the desert scenery to the Moreeb Dune (Tal Moreeb). This is the edge of the beautiful but fearsome Rub Al Khali, and undulating, orange sand-dune fields rim both sides of the road along the route. The bitumen runs out at the foot of Tal Moreeb (the name...

LIWA OASIS (وَاحَـة لِـيْـوَا)

We drove around a 150 km arc of villages and farms for two days. The Liwa Oasis hugs the edge of the Rub Al Khali (Empty Quarter) desert – an endless landscape of undulating dunes shimmering in shades of gold, apricot, and pink. We stopped next to a few fortresses scattered throughout the...

CAMEL CAMP

Today, our friend Sultan arranged to visit a “Camel Camp” in the desert. So his friend took his luxurious Range Rover and drove three of us, Sultan and a secret police officer, around 100 kilometers east of Najran. We had a great afternoon in the desert playing with camels...

TAGHIT (ﺗﺎﻏﻴﺖ)

Our last and also one of the best destinations during our trip was Taghit. It is one of the most beautiful oasis in the entire Sahara, situated in the far west of the Grand Erg Occidental around 95 km south of Bechar. At the last check-point before the town, we got again Gendarmerie...

KSAR GHILANE (قصر غيلان)

We drove through death salt lake Chott El Djerid to Douz, and since it was already late afternoon, we have decided to stop over there on the way to Ksar Ghilane. The camp next to the main road was empty and quiet (7 TND / person). In the morning we have finally arrived in the Sahara...

CHOTT EL DJERID (شط الجريد)

We drove three hours through death salt lake Chott el Djerid to Douz. It is the largest salt pan of the Sahara Desert, with a surface area of over 7,000 km2. It has a typical hot desert climate. Due to the harsh climate with an average annual rainfall of 100 mm and daytime temperatures...