Conquering Mountains Near Dubai

I’m always up for an adventure, and the idea of conquering a mountain was very appealing to me-especially this mountain in the middle of the desert in the Middle East. It’s just outside of Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates.  Jabel Hafeet is known by a select few enthusiasts around the world as one of the top 10.  Never heard of it?  That’s because unlike other well known mountains, this one is not known for being climbed on foot. Jabel Hafeet is known as one of the best mountains to conquer with a car!

Yes, the road up Jabel Hafeet is known as one of the best driving roads in the world.  I was skeptical, but willing to take the 2-hour drive out there from Dubai to see for myself.

Last week I ended up with a partial day off, so off I went with a friend to see for ourselves. After our long drive we saw the mountain in the distance—well, it was closer to what we would call a big hill back in Canada. [1200 meters, so nothing as tall as the Cariboos back in British Columbia.]

We arrive at the bottom and my friend pulls over and says, “Here you go.”  Who was I to argue?  He slid over and I got in the driver’s seat, and away we went up the 12 km road.  After about two minutes I was a believer. This was the best road I’d ever driven: well built, challenging and you are essentially constantly turning the entire way up: left, right, left, long rrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiigggggggghhhhhhhttttt, llllleeeeeefffffffffftttttttt, and then a little straightaway before starting all over again.  It seemed like some of the corners went forever. What a thrill!  We got out at the top to enjoy the view, laughing like schoolgirls.

Five minutes later we were trying the downhill course, which was just as exciting.  Then, of course, back up again as this road deserves more than one pass.  Even better the next time as I had a better chance of lining up the corners. Amazing.

We stop at the hotel at the top for a coffee and relax a bit. Finally time to go and give the mountain one last scrubbing before heading back to town. What a trip, and definitely worth the drive.