Trip No: x
When: 23 April 2010
Where: Dammam/Khobar, Saudi Arabia
GPS Coordinate:
Kambing Rating: 9/10
Total Trip Time: 2 days 1 night
Our adventure activities continues. This time known with co-branded name "Jom Redah", we aimed to fulfill yet another one of our 34 places/activities target while in Saudi, Desert Rose Hunting.
Desert Rose, while sound like a kind of flower is actually a rosette like shape rocks/minerals formed undergrounds due to the interactions of the sands and sea water which evaporated; eventually causing salt deposition and crystal formation. To find Desert Roses we must dig down one to three feet into the wet sand in the areas known as Sabkhas. One of the known areas is near to Khobar/Dammam and that is our target.
Altogether 7 families in 5 4x4 cars took the challenge:
1. Bro. Khairul Effendy & Sis. Rufina
2. Bro. Fazli & Sis. Husna
3. Bro. Azman & Sis. Nora
4. Bro.Hisham & Sis. Ila
5. Bro. Harun & Sis. Ida
6. Bro. Fariz and Sis. Diana
7. Ourselves.
Loading stuff into our car
We assembled as early as 5.15 am in front of our hotel in Khobar. After making final preparation; loading stuff and foods/drinks into the car, we moved from the hotel at 5.30 am. The road was very calm and quiet at that time.
Reached the excavation/digging site at about 6.45 am, immediately having all the fun searching, looking and digging for the 'precious' desert roses. We made a supposedly a short break for breakfast before continuing our hunting at 9.00am, but we were caught and forced to leave the site by a heavy sandstorm hastily.
Experiencing the sandstorm in the middle of the desert was another interesting experience for us. With the visibility of just 5-10 meters, strong howling winds bringing the sands and dusts onto the car's windows, while at the same time we need to carefully steering thru the thick soft sands and rocky road to ensure we didn't get stuck or hitting any camels ;-).. Wah, what an experience.
Alhamdulillah, we managed to go thru the sandstorm and the whole trip safely and reached the hotel at about 10.40am. Each families has been rewarded handsomely with box(es) and/or bag(s) of desert roses found in the desert, yet the most importantly were the chances to know new friends, and experience and a moment spent together with families and friends.. – th
For more pictures : Jom Redah: Desert Rose
More information: Preparations and planning for the trip
More information about Desert Rose.
