DANA TO PETRA AND ON TO WADI RUM
Named ‘one of the world’s top treks’ by National Geographic, the Dana to Petra section passes through wild country to reach Petra, one of the new seven wonders of the world. The five-day trek from Petra to the ruins of Roman Humeima is one of the wildest parts. You may see a few Bedouin with camels, but that’s about it, and there is little water beyond Petra. The final day up the Aheimir Canyon to Humeima is superb. Then it’s a two-day desert trek to reach the World Heritage Site of Wadi Rum.
WADI RUM TO THE DEAD SEA 6 days, 112Km
This section winds through a delightful maze of domes in the orange desert and then over the granite and basalt Aqaba Mountains. There’s one little village along the route called Titin. They were unused to tourism until three years ago. They know about the trail now and are happy that people are passing by. From the final pass in the granite mountains, you see the Red Sea and dash down for a refreshing swim over the coral.
Words: Tony Howard, Di Taylor and Sarah Stirling.
Tony Howard was one of the founders of Troll climbing. The brand was sold in 1995, and he and Di, who also worked in design at Troll, retired to continue a life of exploring, trekking and climbing. Tony is also the author of a catalogue of books – many about Jordan, plus several BMC guides and the award-winning Troll Wall.
FIND OUT MORE
R The mysterious and narrow road from Wadi Rakiya to Humeima: part of the Jordan Trail.
Tony & Di’s site:
www.nomadstravel.co.uk The Jordan Trail:
www.jordantrail.org Experience Jordan:
experiencejordan.com Explore Jordan:
www.explorejo.com Tropical Deserts:
td-adventures.com Visit Jordan:
uk.visitjordan.com
Bedouin feast of rice and meat with a goat or sheep’s head grinning in the centre.”
ANCIENT TOWNS AND VILLAGES
From Greek and Roman ruins to hilltop castles and the mosaic floor of one of the world’s oldest Byzantine churches, there is plenty of interest. Jordan is home to a melange
of cultures and religions. In Rmemeen, for example, you’ll find a neighbouring church spire and minaret. Beyond it, a narrow winding agricultural valley climbs past the Ahliyya University to the Christian village of Fuheis and the nearby Carakale Brewery: Jordan’s first microbrewery.
In small towns, you may find a café serving hummus,
falafel, olives and delicious taboun bread – hot and fresh from the oven. Some ancient cliff-top villages like Ma’tan, now abandoned, have been converted into homestays with wonderful views. When Tony and Di first visited Jordan in the 80s, Dana was like this: barely clinging on as a cliff-top village, surviving on orchards, olive groves and sheep grazing.
However, Dana is now part of a big nature reserve and there are three hotels. Dana is quite busy nowadays, and the 15km walk from there to a new award- winning Eco Lodge in Wadi Araba, a part of the Rift Valley, is very popular.
Homestays give walkers a chance to meet the local people, discover something of village life in Jordan and eat
the local food which, it has to be said is superb. All of this, of course, benefits the local people.
There are also small hotels or tourist camps near archaeological sites such as Um Qais, Pella, Ajloun, Iraq el Amir, Madaba, Karak, Ma’tan, Dana, Petra, Rum and, of course, by the Red Sea. Elsewhere there is camping.
SUMMIT#90 | SUMMER 2018 | 41
PHOTO: TONY HOWARD/DI TAYLOR.
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