Hajar mountains. Jabal al-Hajar mountains
Most of the territory of the emirate of Fujairah is occupied by the Jabal Al Hajjar mountain range (Jibal Al Hajjar, which means “Stone Mountains” or Omani Mountains in Arabic).
Even the name of the emirate is associated with the name mountain spring fajara (fujaira - “to overflow, gush, beat with a key”).
The Hajar Mountains stretch for a distance of 450 kilometers in a crescent in the east of the Arabian Peninsula, in the direction from northwest to southeast, from the border of Oman with the UAE and to the coast of the Indian Ocean (in the Gulf of Oman).
They separate the fertile, humid maritime coastal plain of Al-Batin from the arid hinterland of Oman.
Jabal al-Hajar is one of the youngest mountain ranges on our planet. It was formed in the era of Alpine orogeny (Alpine Orogeny) and is a layered formation of great interest for geology.
These mountains are of volcanic origin and arose on the spot where the ocean floor was in prehistoric times.
At the same time, due to the same circumstance, these mountains are practically devoid of vegetation. In striking contrast to the bare rocks are wadi valleys densely overgrown with palm trees, shrubs and marsh grasses.
The age of the Stone Mountains is 200 million years. This is the only place in the world where such a geological formation is not covered with vegetation, which attracts researchers here.
Most high peaks reach 2000 m, but they are already located on the territory of Oman. In the Hatta region, mountains reach 600-800 m in height.
Of particular interest are "layered" mountains - massifs composed of rocks of different colors. This unique geological phenomenon is best observed in the afternoon when long shadows appear.
Here, as well as in the oases, dates, vegetables and citrus fruits ripen, for which the local falaj artificial irrigation system has been used for centuries.
The slopes of the Hajar mountains are sheer and form canyons and cliffs up to 1000 meters high. From the sea coast inland mountain range the wadi valleys leave, among which are the Tiwi, Shaab (from the northeast coast) and Bani Khalid (from the south), in which rivers flow, filling with water in winter.
The mountain streams Shaab and Bani Khalid form real freshwater lakes, which can be reached even by traveling through their valleys on foot.
In addition to them, other wadis cross the mountains, which are filled with water during the rainy season.
Thanks to the mountains of Jabal al-Hajar, which occupy most of the emirate, the climate of Fujairah is different from other emirates.
If on the coast the climate is humid and hot, then in the interior of the country it is arid. Winter in the UAE is short and warm, while the rest of the year is very hot.
In this regard, the Omani mountains are a pleasant exception - the climate here is mountainous, with cold winters and warm summers, and with abundant, regular rains.
Nights can get really cold, but frost is rare - usually at altitudes above 2000 meters.
Yes, giant supermarkets, skyscrapers and ubiquitous high-tech are the “face” of the Emirates. But if the desert is the “soul” of the Arabian country, then the Hajjar Mountains are its heart. They were before the "big oil" and will remain after it. And if a tourist from all over the world seeks to Dubai, then the Arabs themselves run from the "dubai" to the Hajjar mountains on the weekend. Let's look at them.
The ridge of the Hajar Mountains, stretching in the United Arab Emirates parallel to the coast of the Indian Ocean, has not yet become a tourist "Mecca" of the region. Although the eastern tip of the ridge, abutting the Strait of Hormuz (separates the United Arab Emirates and Iran), called Musandam, has already become place of worship for divers and wealthy vacationers who do not like the hustle and bustle of expensive, but “promoted” resorts.
There are no excursions to Hadzhary: as the local guides explained to us, “this is a specific request, the broad masses are not interested in it.” We do not pretend to be “broad masses”, therefore we learned the beauty of these mountains on our own: where by car, where - on foot.
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We crossed the mountain range in the afternoon; play of light and shadow, stone brown, gray and red…
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Far away, over the Strait of Hormuz - clouds:
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Where 30 years ago there were only caravan trails laid along the dry channels of seasonal mountain streams, today first-class asphalt spreads:
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The close proximity of mountain streams and the moisture available in them is a good help for growing in separate ravines of palm groves:
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The vegetation of the Hajar Mountains - where it is - looks like this:
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Traditional for us, a trip to nature with a family or a company (“to kebabs”) in the UAE looks like this:
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If you look closely, in the next picture you can see places for a fire over a dry river - wadi; as a rule, they go to such places for the whole day, they cook food here:
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and so this place looks “life-size”, from a mountain plateau above the wadi:
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The mountains are literally dotted with drying mountain streams - wadis. The most beautiful thing, we heard from the locals, is to walk along the wadi. But this requires a guide who knows the surroundings and an all-wheel drive “jeep”: another car according to mountain roads it won’t pass, and you won’t walk much with your feet in the “bald” mountains, hot from the sun.
View of the wadi:
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Such an inscription (“Only for families”) is designed to restrict entry to the recreation area for non-family couples, noisy companies. All for the benefit of the unshakable traditions of the Muslim family.
There should be no temptations for the eyes of devout Muslims even on vacation. In case of misunderstandings with foreigners, the police will immediately come to the rescue.
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Maybe because we crossed the Khodjar mountains on Friday (a day off), we met a lot of such companies:
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And the sun is getting lower
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At the entrance to Dibba - an ancient port on the shores of the Gulf of Oman:
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The difference in the lighting of the mountains is clearly visible in the next two shots, taken in almost the same place on both sides of the road. On the left - mountains in a bluish haze:
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to the right of the road - the same mountain range, but very "rusted":
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In the bays, where the mountains “came” close to Indian Ocean like mushrooms grow after the rain hotel complexes. To the left you look - the mountains and the ocean:
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And to the right - the ocean:
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The crisis here also suspended construction for some time. But there is no doubt - in the near future world brands of hotel fashion will appear:
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In the meantime, it remains only to guess who this stadium is intended for in this not very populated place?
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It is unlikely that in this “village” there will be a football team:
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Tourists on rented cars with tents settled for the night right under the rock:
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And traces of rubber on the pavement remained, most likely, after the “rides” local residents. Well, Arabs love, love speed! .. Once we witnessed how two young Arabs drove their brand new Lexuses along sandy beach on the ocean; how much delight was in their eyes!
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It is difficult in a hot climate for plants to survive in hot mountains. But we came across a whole plantation of these trees, which, according to the guide, are the very “gaf” trees that the UAE President Sheikh Al Nahyan personally proclaimed “national protection” and his own patronage as the green friends of people:
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The gaff tree is very prickly, but the shadow from it is flawless - solid:
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I'm not sure that the green growth will also buoy in the hot summer. But we managed to catch the flowering time of these mountain plants:
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And now imagine that until recently, life was seething in thousands and thousands of gorges of these mountains. The mountain ravines were (and still are) divided by tribes. Seasonal villages in the mountains were usually located near the wadis. seasonal because summer period the inhabitants went to the sea, were engaged in fishing and searching for pearls, and also in the pirate robbery of merchant ships - since the hot mountains were unsuitable for life in the summer heat. But in winter, when there was more moisture in the mountains, the genera "migrated" to the mountains, where in places it was possible to feed small herds of goats, grow plantings of date palms. And in general, to hide from enemies, which, presumably, the robber pirates had a lot.
Houses built of wild stone in mountain ravines have survived to this day, and if a dwelling is not locked, this does not mean that it is ownerless. As a rule, there is always an owner (heir) of this specific property, he remembers about the house in the mountains and visits it regularly. These "shepherd's" houses are small, because their size depended on the size of the roof. The roof was covered palm leaves; there were so many leaves, so big was the house. He served not only as a shelter, but also as an aid for all kinds of intimate matters: to conceive a baby, give birth here, nurse him in the first days of his birth, etc. The rest of the family members settled in the area around the house - there was not enough limited living space for everyone ...
Today, the citizens of these places have a place to conceive children, and there are no enemies from which it is worth hiding in the mountains. And the mountains are deserted...
But apparently not for long. Five-star health resorts are already being built in the ascetic, but still beautiful Hajar mountains. Two are already operating: in one in the highlands, people with respiratory problems are undergoing treatment; in the other, in complete seclusion, patients with skin problems.
Once in the UAE, try to find at least a day for a trip to Hajar - a stronghold of stingy, discreet beauty. For the present not taken by the person in "frame" of a civilization.
Where to go in a sandstorm? That's right, the mountains. So we did. Visibility on the highway was 10 meters, everything was covered with sand. We drove to the observation deck, which Sanya spotted on the map.
I have seen many mountains, but few of them will never be. Each mountain range is special and unlike the others. The line that better than mountains, I will not quote, and so everyone knows it too well. The Khadzhar mountains surprised with their unusualness. By the way, the translation of the name is banal, just Stone Mountains.
On the way we stopped to look at the camels. There is a fence along the roadsides so that camels do not go out onto the road (there is a huge fine for a downed camel, about 600 thousand rubles), and so that people do not drive into the desert (it is too easy to disappear there).
A harsh selfie, the wind blows hot sand into your face.
Landscapes are just complete ashes. And how comels are not bored here?
Many camels have rope on their feet to prevent them from climbing over the fence. With care for the one-humped, in general.
They are cute and curious.
We drove to the observation point on the map, as soon as we turned off the road, a hellish country road began, on which we almost broke through the bottom of our NON-SUV. But suddenly the only road was blocked by closed gates. Not far from them, Pakistanis were picnicking and SUDDENLY speaking English. They explained that the observation tower was only being built (by them), the passage there was forbidden, we were dragging something, the passage too. But we are Russians, so we decided to walk. They put the wheelbarrow a little further away, and they themselves went around the gate at the bottom of the road.
Around the bend, they climbed back onto the road and followed it. Judging by the map, it was necessary to go no more than a kilometer.
It's so beautiful.
By the way, the name of the peak could not be found out. We found only its height (moreover, on a paper map, and not on the Internet) - 1043 meters.
We rise a little, still joyful.
Someday they will make a normal road here and put up fences.
But so far, the observation deck somehow does not appear because of the turn.
Do you know what the problem is?
We forgot to take water. We thought we would get there quickly.
Photodrochers.
But the lookout still doesn't show up.
But we will be the first to be there. Except workers. We've been visiting the lookout before it was mainstream!
We stomped, stomped... We got sick of it.
One kilometer turned into five, because the road zigzags.
Turn and there...
Further road, that's what there!
But we can't get there.
Well, at least there is no storm here.
But there is fog. Or is it clouds?
I want to drink badly. We are resting.
As we walked, we remembered what we saw on the map. At the top there should be artificially planted palm trees (only a place with greenery is considered cool), which means, perhaps, water for their irrigation.
One more turn and...
I go first. I see tanks with industrial water. I come closer and notice about one bottle, I lift it, and it is sealed. It has water from the store, clean and tasty. Dima, who was following, said that it looked strange from the side: I go to the tanks with a poker face, it is not clear where I take a bottle and drink. As if it were such a quest: climb 1043 meters above the ground and there and there you will find a bottle of drink! :)
Someday it will be beautiful here, but for now only desperate stubborn Russians go here.
Meanwhile, it is already evening.
The views are gorgeous. I have never seen such mountains.
At the very top of the mast, once there was something there (perhaps a flag-pole, Arabs love to hang flags).
The boys were upset that they didn’t hang their flag, then they discussed in the hotel that they should have at least wound a sock for the match :)
From the bottom left, you can see the platform under the observation deck.
Everything is hazy.
Windy at the top, almost blown away.
We go down in the dark.
The sunset colors the already slightly reddish mountains in crimson.
Mount Jebel Hafeet is another interesting attraction of the UAE, located in Abu Dhabi, on the outskirts of Al Ain. Jebel Hafeet stretches along both sides of the border with Oman. Tourists have chosen this place for a long time and for good reason - wonderful views of the nearby surroundings open from here. natural conditions made this mountain an attractive and modern tourist center, and the free wind in Abu Dhabi created extensive natural caves in these places.
Briefly about Mount Jebel Hafeet
This wonderful and majestic natural monument rises alone above the emirate of Abu Dhabi and its city of Al Ain. Many mistakenly consider Jebel Hafeet the most high mountain in the United Arab Emirates (1163 meters), but in fact it takes second place, giving way to the "gold" mountain Jebel Yibir (or Jebal Yibir), whose height reaches 1527 meters.
Interestingly, Jebel Hafeet is listed by UNESCO as a candidate for natural wonders Sveta.
Jebel Hafeet Museum
In the nearby city of Al Ain, a special museum is equipped, which presents very remarkable exhibits. During excavations at Jebel Hafeet, archaeologists discovered women's jewelry, local tools and clay utensils, the age of which is approaching a rather large figure.
Historians claim that these finds were made more than 5 thousand years ago. This means that the population on the territory of the mountain settled in ancient times. By the way, at the foot of Jebel Hafeet you can also see burial mounds, the age of which is just approaching five thousand years.
There is an opinion that 700 million years ago there was a sea on the site of the current attraction. A similar version appeared thanks to interesting finds. During the laying of a special road to the observation deck at the top of the mountain, workers discovered fish skeletons, petrified crab claws, corals and shells.
Pastime and relaxation on the mountain Jebel Hafeet
Jebel Hafeet has the luxurious Mercure Hotel at the top. It is there that the magnificent Observation deck with an amazing view. It is already worth getting to these places just for the sake of the beautiful nature and the surroundings from a bird's eye view. In addition to the site, the hotel has a wonderful restaurant where you can have a great lunch.
At the foot of the mountain lies a green oasis, tourist centre called "Green Mubazarrah" is a very interesting tourist attraction. There are indoor pools with hot springs, in which visitors like to splash so much - such a vacation has a very beneficial effect on health, and besides, such procedures are very pleasant.
There are also mini golf courses, luxurious jacuzzis and waterslides for adults and children. In these places there is an opportunity to ride the most beautiful Arabian horses in the mountains - beginners will be taught how to ride, and regular competitions are held in Al Ain for professionals.
Mount Jebel Hafeet: how to get there
Rise to majestic mountain possible at any time of the year.
The top of the mountain can be reached by taking advantage of the winding track, which is 11 meters wide and 1,220 meters high. This route is favorite place avid cyclists; every year in January there is even a bike race. It ends in a parking lot that belongs to a hotel called the Mercure Grand. It is located near the palace of the current ruler of the UAE.