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Star Dunes – Northern Ad-Dahna
The natural stars of Riyadh Province
When thinking about Saudi Arabia the first image that comes to mind may well be sand dunes.
Although the country has much more to offer than just stereotypical landscape it remains one of the main attractions and a trip through the vast sandy deserts of Arabia guarantees an unforgettable experience.
Sunset on the Star Dunes (photo: Florent Egal)
Indeed, the view of the vast extend of desert land where the waving lines and curved shades designed by the massive and yet elegant mound of sand is a unique display of sheer nature, especially when the sun is setting on it.
One of the most famous sand dune deserts around Riyadh, the capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is named Ad-Dahna. This desert is in fact a great arc of reddish sandy terrain, extending about 1 300 kilometers from north to south, linking the two greatest deserts of the Arabian Peninsula, from the northeastern edge of the Nefud-al-Kebir to the northwestern borders of the Rub al-Khali (the Empty Quarter).
Ad-Dahna desert is formed of sand dune ranges spreading laterally which are called veins ('Irq in Arabic: عرق), mostly red in color since the sand contains Iron Oxides.
View from the top of a Star Dune (photo: Florent Egal)
The dunes of Ad-Dahna that are found just 80 kilometers east of Riyadh along the Dammam highway are about 30 meters high, although the part of Ad-Dahna desert which is 200 kilometers north of Riyadh hosts some of the most impressive dunes in the Riyadh Province. Indeed, along the ranges (veins) of 'Urayq As-Siru Al-Aswat, the 'Urayq As_Siru Al-Gharbi, and the 'Irq Al-Kannasiyah are some massive star-shaped dunes that peak at up to 100 meters. The fact those dunes stand in a flat plain emphasizes their mountain-like massive shapes.
On top of a Star Dune (photo: Florent Egal)
A climb to the top of one of these giants guarantees one of the most dramatic viewpoints one can have over a sand dune desert. Indeed, from the top of one of the Star Dunes can be admired the other mountain-like dunes of the surrounding plain.
In addition to the landscape, the Star Dunes offer some great sand driving with all kinds of difficulties from the easy sandy track to the impassable mountains of sands. Thanks to the tracks created by the local Bedouins it is relatively easy to progress along the ranges of Star Dunes but once engaged in one of the "corridors" between two ranges of dunes the only way to change direction is to come back on one's tracks.
How to go to the Star Dunes?
By yourself
The Star Dunes area is definitely for experienced sand dunes drivers only, and requires complete sand recovery equipment, not only because of the difficulties inherent to the sandy terrain but also because the area is quite remote, therefore drivers need to be independent in case of issues.
With one of our tour guides
The safest option is to rely on our guides that can ensure that all requirements for such trip is met.
Horizons Tours
The Horizons Tours "Saudi Desert Wanderers", certified by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Heritage (SCTH), specializes in unraveling the[...]
The natural stars of Riyadh Province (author: Florent Egal)
Jibal Mussala Ibrahim – Sheda
Al-Baha's village in the sky
People who think that Saudi Arabia is only flat desert and sand dunes are surprised to discover that on the western part of the country are many mountainous massifs. Then they are amazed while admiring the majestic kilometer-high cliffs of the Sarawat Mountains in the southwest of Saudi Arabia, from Taif to Abha. And if they explore a bit deeper they would find an even more surprising relief, the Jibal Mussala Ibrahim (جبال مصلى إبراهيم), a granite mountain located in Al-Bahah Province, 50 kilometers from the famous marble-hill village of Zee Al-Ayn.
Unlike other mountain-like areas one can find in the west of Saudi Arabia, the Jibal Mussala Ibrahim has the shape of an alpine mountain with a difference in height of 1 700 meters from its base to its summit, that peaks at 2 222 meters. Actually its altitude is exactly the same as the Cliffs of the Sarawat just 20 kilometers to the east, making the Jibal Mussala Ibrahim look like a challenge to the erosion that has already leveled the surrounding landscape.
The Jibal Mussala Ibrahim is visible from the road that runs along the bottom of the cliffs which passes to the eastern side of the massif.
From afar, the Jibal Mussala Ibrahim reveals its imposing silhouette with its sharp granite summit pointing at the sky, and the view from the nearby Wadi Suqamah is simply majestic.
Jibal Mussala Ibrahim (photo: Alan Morrissey)
But it is possible to get much closer as a small road leads to the hidden treasure of that place: a village perched half way to the top (above 1 600 meters) whose name is Sheda (شدا).
Jibal Mussala Ibrahim (photo: Alan Morrissey)
The road meandering along the sides of the Jibal Mussala Ibrahim to the village of Sheda offers absolutely stunning viewpoints of the faraway Sarawat cliffs, the surrounding green hills and wadis, the terrace cultivations, and, of course, the gigantic shape of the Jibal Mussala Ibrahim.
Village on the way to Sheda (photo: Alan Morrissey)
Some other charming villages are found on the way and also some fancy stone constructions where local Bedouins probably used to live.
Stone made house on the way to Sheda (photo: Alan Morrissey)
Florent Egal visiting one of the stone made house on the way to Sheda (photo: Alan Morrissey)
A driver going up the mountain to the village of Sheda experiences of a big change of climate in a short period of time as the weather is much cooler and slightly dryer at the top than at the bottom where the weather can be incredibly hot and humid, especially in summer.
These specific conditions have even allowed some rare plants and trees to grow around the village of Sheda, such as the elegant while flower Capparis Cartilaginea and the wide-trunk tree Dendrosicyos that is also found in the remote island of Soqotra, off Yemen.
Capparis Cartilaginea (photo: Alan Morrissey)
Dendrosicyos (photo: Alan Morrissey)
How to visit Sheda?
The location of Sheda is available on GoogeMaps (under its Arabic name شدا) and, as said earlier, there is a road that leads to the village which is indicated as "Jibal Sheda Al-A'la".
But the path has been damaged at some parts by the rain and it is overall really steep with some parts showing a staggering 16 % incline!
Therefore it is highly recommended not to take that road when raining (or when rain is forecasted) and despite the presence of tarmac a 4X4 (even a basic one) would make the drive safer and definitely more comfortable.
Tour operators organizing trips to Sheda
Horizons Tours
The Horizons Tours "Saudi Desert Wanderers", certified by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Heritage (SCTH), specializes in unraveling the[...]
The village in the sky of Al-Bahah (author: Florent Egal)
Musayqirah – Graffiti Rock 1
The rich past carved into rock
When two petroglyph sites in Ha'il Province - Jubbah and Shuwaymis - were listed as UNESCO World Heritage in 2015, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was finally recognized among countries hosting major pieces of ancient rock art. What is still to be acknowledged is that the country is home of hundreds of thousands of old carvings, including in the Province of Riyadh.
Two sites are particularly famous close to the capital that expatriates have simply named Graffiti Rock 1 and Graffiti Rock 2. The first one is visible from the Makkah Highway, just an hour's drive from Riyadh, close to the settlement of Musayqirah that gave it a local name. There is even a third name, as it is sometimes mentioned under the Arabic Qaryat Al-Asba.
The site is a sandstone rock standing just 200 meters from the main escarpment called Khasm Musayqirah. This escarpment spreads along a north-south axis, creates a natural dam that blocks the flow of water coming from the west and probably contributed to the formation of a lake when the climate of the Arabian Peninsula was more humid. Thus, Musayqirah invites visitors to use their imagination to figure out how this arid place once looked when populated with several species that today are extinct.
Carvings site of Musayqirah (photo: Florent Egal)
The study of Saudi Arabian rock art is quite recent therefore the date of the carvings is still debated and many questions are yet to be answered (the reason why I remain cautious with the information provided in this article). But it appears quite clearly that Graffiti Rock 1 saw people carving on its walls through a wide span of time, probably from the Neolithic era (10 000 to 3 000 BCE) until recent times.
"Lyre-shaped horns" buffalo (photo: F. Egal)
The rock of Musayqirah is one of the very rare known places in Riyadh Province where carvings of water-buffaloes (also called aurochs) can be found, attesting to the previous humid climate of the Arabian Peninsula. They are on the eastern side of the main rock.
Water buffalo (photo: Florent Egal)
They are typically represented with lyre-shaped horns, sometimes of disproportionate size. Such representations are much more common in Ha'il Province, especially at the sites of Jubbah and Shuwaymis.
If some species such as the water buffalo that used to graze on the plain surrounding the ancient lake probably disappeared some 6 000 years ago, other animals like ostriches or gazelles were still found in the Arabian Peninsula at the beginning of the 20th century CE. Lions and ibexes were also present in Saudi Arabia until the Islamic era.
It is interesting to notice that even among the earliest carvings found at Musayqirah humans are represented often in interacting with animals, especially cattle.
Writing is also found in Musayqirah with some Thamudic inscriptions on the southern wall, testifying to human presence at the time of the caravan trade through the Arabian Peninsula that reached its highest intensity during the second part of the 1st millennium BCE.
Battle scenes that are also represented on the site are probably among the most recent ones as they involve domestication of horse and include metallic weapons.
A large panel on the western side of Musayqirah is particularly famous because of the great amount of carvings and variety of representations it carries. There are found ostriches, ibexes, dogs, lions, camels, but also hunters, warriors, a human skeleton, horsemen, and even Thamudic inscriptions, just to mention the most identifiable ones.
Musayqirah's great panel (photo: Florent Egal)
How to visit Musayqirah?
The location of Musayqirah (in Arabic: مصيقرة) is indicated on Google Maps, and the location of the carvings, on the southeast of the settlement, appear under the name "Rock Art". There is an exit from the Makkah highway that allows visitors to get close by hardtop, but the last 700 meters have to be done on tracks that can be covered by sand, and for this reason it is still advisable to drive there with a proper 4X4.
The main rock is fenced off but the gate is open most of the time.
Musayqirah – Graffiti Rock 1: the rich past of Riyadh’s region carved in the rock (author: Florent Egal)
Ushaiger Heritage Village
The iconic Najdi Village
Ushaiger is a heritage village located 200 kilometers northwest of Riyadh in the heart of the Najd, the central plateau of the Arabian Peninsula. The village lays on the Al-Washim plain few kilometers west of a narrow range of red sand dunes called ‘Urayq Al-Bildan that extend towards the north that, 100 kilometers further on, become the massive dunes of Zulfi that ultimately connect to the immense Nefoud Al-Kebir.
Ushaiger that means the “Small Blonde” was named after the color of a small hill that lays at the north of the Village. Although it is made of red rock, locals say the Arabic word for red could be used also for blonde in the old days.
Ushaiger is surrounded by a thick wall with massive towers and wide doors made of ithal (tamarisk) wood that visitors have to go through to enter the heart of the historical village.
The village is organized into seven districts and has many palm groves and orchards that are beautifully integrated to the maze of pathways.
Gates of Ushaiger (photo: Florent Egal)
Pathway meandering through Ushaiger's houses and palmgroves (photo: Florent Egal)
Visiting Ushaiger heritage village offers a pleasant opportunity to walk along the shaded and charming pathways that meander between the 400 mud houses and 25 mosques the village hosts. Some of the houses that still today carry the name of the family that lived in them were renovated and are open to visitors.
The doors are decorated with brandings of circles, disks and other traditional geometric designs.
Decorated door (photo: Florent Egal)
Ushaiger prides itself on producing several prominent historical figures including the renowned religious preacher Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahab, Islamic scholar Sheikh Al-Othaimeen, and many poets and thinkers that allow residents of Ushaiger to refer to their village as “Najd’s Womb”.
Today the historical village of Ushaiger belongs to the Tamim tribe and one of the Tamim governor’s houses can be visited. Other tribes lived there as well, such as Al-Sheikh (The family of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahab) and Al-Thani (rulers of the State of Qatar).
The traditions and the rich history of Ushaiger are exhibited in its museum that welcomes visitors as the first major building they encounter after passing through the village’s gates.
Ushaiger Al-Salem Museum (photo: Florent Egal)
How to visit the historical village of Ushaiger?
The village entrance is conveniently at the side of the road, clearly announced by a panel at its entrance, and its location is available on Google Maps. Therefore it can be visited within the opening hours.
Road entrance of Ushaiger Heritage Village (photo: Florent Egal)
How to visit Ushaiger
If you wish to benefit from the knowledge of our tour guides here are the ones that can arrange private visits of the historical village of Ushaiger.
Horizons Tours
The Horizons Tours "Saudi Desert Wanderers", certified by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Heritage (SCTH), specializes in unraveling the[...]
Ushaiger Heritage Village: the iconic Najdi Village (author: Florent Egal)