art you would be correct. There is an area of high mountains with ample amounts of rain that provides a great deal of the Kingdoms fruits and vegtables. When I think of the desert, I think of sand dunes. To be sure there are ample sand dunes here. However, this weekend I went hiking with a local walking/social club called a Hash. The area we went to is on a large plateau. In fact there is an escarpement that features a shear wall that drops in the order of 1,500'. It may be higher in fact, but let's just say your last step off of that cliff would be your last step.....
The hiking club is a highly organized group of expats who live i
n the community. They meet every weekend at different locations and go on 'walks'. Actually there are three seperate treks that you can take. There is a run that goes on longer distances and you move for speed. There is a long walk which moves relativly briskly over a long distance and there is a shorter, more leisurely walk. The club charges a nominal fee for walking and you have to sign in and out so that you don't get lost in the desert. To become a member you must particpate in 10 hikes and be a hare for one. A hare goes out ahead of time with a bucket of flower and you mark the trail with the flower so that people know where to go. The different trails have different marking systems so it really is quite an important job. Prior to the walks everyone gathers in a circle and there are proclomations, awards for making milestone walks and hare's, & introduction of guests. After all of that is done, there is then a cerimony for those who have breeched some form of etiquette like letting someone see you pee or you (or your guest) wore a new pair of shoes. If you have been selected, you kneel on a piece of foam while the group sings to you and you are then doused with a bucket of water. A mild form of hazing to be sure but done in good fun.
n the community. They meet every weekend at different locations and go on 'walks'. Actually there are three seperate treks that you can take. There is a run that goes on longer distances and you move for speed. There is a long walk which moves relativly briskly over a long distance and there is a shorter, more leisurely walk. The club charges a nominal fee for walking and you have to sign in and out so that you don't get lost in the desert. To become a member you must particpate in 10 hikes and be a hare for one. A hare goes out ahead of time with a bucket of flower and you mark the trail with the flower so that people know where to go. The different trails have different marking systems so it really is quite an important job. Prior to the walks everyone gathers in a circle and there are proclomations, awards for making milestone walks and hare's, & introduction of guests. After all of that is done, there is then a cerimony for those who have breeched some form of etiquette like letting someone see you pee or you (or your guest) wore a new pair of shoes. If you have been selected, you kneel on a piece of foam while the group sings to you and you are then doused with a bucket of water. A mild form of hazing to be sure but done in good fun.I chose to go on the long walk. The walk took around 1:30 minutes and we walked along down into a wadi. A wadi is a dry river bed that is now a canyon (immagine the Grand Ganyon with no water-a wadi). During the hike you could see evidence of why Saudi Arabia is an oil producer extrodinare. There was fossilzed coral all over the place. You could see pores in the rocks as well. The area we are in has no oil but you certainly
can see where it wouldn't be difficult to find it elsewhere in the kingdom. I was fancinated by the rocks, the whirlpools that have been left dry, the shear power of how nature made this canyon....and yet there has been no water here for millions of years. To be honest, I was exploring and walking less. You could find me near the back of the group because 
I would stop and look at the rocks or just take in the view while looking up the canyon walls. There was a sweeper who is always at the back to make sure that noone would get lost and I stayed forward of them but behind the main body of the group. At the water break I just sat and stared at the landscape thinking about where I was and what I was doing. I thought a lot about my Dad and how much he would have enjoyed being there and seeing what I did. Though I would have loved to have a talk with him about the landscape, I am not sure that I needed to. I realized that there was no place I would rather have been at that time of day. Being outside and really observing nature was something that he taught me how to do. It took me 25 years to learn how to enjoy it.At the end of the walk everyone signed in and there are barbques and people drink their homemade drinks. We didn't stay long and left about an hour after the Hash ended. There are campouts in certain areas and I think that when Christelle and the kids get here we are going to have to get a 4 wheel drive vehicle. The desert is going to be our playground and we just couldn't access it otherwise. I look forward to going again and can't wait for the kids and Chris to get here. Though.........she might want to get her brand new hiking boots broken in first. I don't want to get wet!!
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