Day 63
Sleeping location: Rocky ground amongst the switchbacks of the Kerak Highway, Jordan
Distance (km today/total): 38 / 5647
Estimated climb (m today/total): 800 / 48500
Flies shooed: a million
Day in three words: Dead Sea shenanigans
As the tent doors were open the flies woke us up bright and early by landing on our faces.To avoid being constantly annoyed it’s easier to eventually submit to them, and allow them everywhere except your face and food. Their little tickles on your legs is almost soothing after a while. We had a nice breakfast of labneh* and pomegranate with pitta bread and jam, then set off towards the Wadi we’d camped near. You could go canyoning and although it was expensive we decided to give it a go, and it was amazing fun. Splashing around in the water, climbing up rocks and waterfalls, with the canyon’s enormous red walls either side. The route was mostly unsupervised and just had a bunch of random ropes at the technical bits, and there seemed to be a general disregard for health and safety, but this probably made it more fun as you had to figure everything out yourself. At the end of the main route there was a massive impassable waterfall and you had to go back down the canyon, which was also fun as you could slide down some of the waterfalls and serenely float down the flat bits. It was great to lie on your back and stare up at the sky through a tiny crack as you were carried downstream.
We set off in our wet clothes, which dried out remarkably quickly in the sun. We had lost most of the morning to the canyoning and it was getting hot by now. We stopped at a sign saying “tea coffee juice” but the building looked like it had been abandoned no more than a few days ago, and the only remaining inhabitants were a mangy dog and its litter of puppies. Rebecca was so distraught by their plight that she forgot her valuables and had to do a mad dash back after a km or so. As we knew there was a mega climb coming up we stopped to rest and get supplies in a weird town where nobody was friendly. Some children threatened/attempted to throw soup on the bikes but Rebecca managed to repel them. At a coffee shop the man tried to rampantly overcharge us for two coffees, but when I gave him an appropriate amount and acted as if the matter was closed he seemed satisfied. This negotiation technique might need to be tested further.
We set off a little after 3pm to go up to Kerak, which lies at about 1000m. Usually this means a maximum of 1000m of climb, but since the Dead Sea lies at minus 360m it was a bit more of a task, and we knew we wouldn’t make it up in the 3hrs we had. The initial stages were very hot and I was drenched in sweat when we stopped at a petrol station after 5km. The guys here were very friendly and happy for me to essentially shower in their toilet, and then gave us seemingly infinite sweet tea, which was great to restore flagging spirits and energy. After this the climb pitched up through a dramatic dry canyon via a series of switchbacks. This was hard work even though it was getting cooler, and the flies were a nuisance at any speed below about 10kph (ie all the time). It was also a bit dispiriting getting to the sign for sea level after a solid hour of climbing.
As we climbed up through the canyon the views got better and better and we found a great camp spot down a rutted track with about an hour of daylight left. As last night, it was semi visible but far away and inaccessible to prying eyes. The view back down the canyon to the Dead Sea as the sun set was incredible. The flies were still hanging around and were very interested in my feet by this point, but thankfully they went to bed again when darkness fell. The view continued to be amazing after the darkness fell as you could see the twinkling lights of Israel in the distance. Based on google maps we may even have been able to see Bethlehem some 100km away. The moon and stars were bright enough to cook a tasty spicy vegetable stew without a torch, and we even saw a few shooting stars. As camp spots go it was right up there with the canyon in Turkey. We initially tried to sleep outside but were forced to retreat to the tent by some mini mosquito things which chewed my forearms up within an hour. Oh well, at least we will be safe from the flies in the morning.
*A sort of thick yoghurt
Distance (km today/total): 38 / 5647
Estimated climb (m today/total): 800 / 48500
Flies shooed: a million
Day in three words: Dead Sea shenanigans
As the tent doors were open the flies woke us up bright and early by landing on our faces.To avoid being constantly annoyed it’s easier to eventually submit to them, and allow them everywhere except your face and food. Their little tickles on your legs is almost soothing after a while. We had a nice breakfast of labneh* and pomegranate with pitta bread and jam, then set off towards the Wadi we’d camped near. You could go canyoning and although it was expensive we decided to give it a go, and it was amazing fun. Splashing around in the water, climbing up rocks and waterfalls, with the canyon’s enormous red walls either side. The route was mostly unsupervised and just had a bunch of random ropes at the technical bits, and there seemed to be a general disregard for health and safety, but this probably made it more fun as you had to figure everything out yourself. At the end of the main route there was a massive impassable waterfall and you had to go back down the canyon, which was also fun as you could slide down some of the waterfalls and serenely float down the flat bits. It was great to lie on your back and stare up at the sky through a tiny crack as you were carried downstream.
We set off in our wet clothes, which dried out remarkably quickly in the sun. We had lost most of the morning to the canyoning and it was getting hot by now. We stopped at a sign saying “tea coffee juice” but the building looked like it had been abandoned no more than a few days ago, and the only remaining inhabitants were a mangy dog and its litter of puppies. Rebecca was so distraught by their plight that she forgot her valuables and had to do a mad dash back after a km or so. As we knew there was a mega climb coming up we stopped to rest and get supplies in a weird town where nobody was friendly. Some children threatened/attempted to throw soup on the bikes but Rebecca managed to repel them. At a coffee shop the man tried to rampantly overcharge us for two coffees, but when I gave him an appropriate amount and acted as if the matter was closed he seemed satisfied. This negotiation technique might need to be tested further.
We set off a little after 3pm to go up to Kerak, which lies at about 1000m. Usually this means a maximum of 1000m of climb, but since the Dead Sea lies at minus 360m it was a bit more of a task, and we knew we wouldn’t make it up in the 3hrs we had. The initial stages were very hot and I was drenched in sweat when we stopped at a petrol station after 5km. The guys here were very friendly and happy for me to essentially shower in their toilet, and then gave us seemingly infinite sweet tea, which was great to restore flagging spirits and energy. After this the climb pitched up through a dramatic dry canyon via a series of switchbacks. This was hard work even though it was getting cooler, and the flies were a nuisance at any speed below about 10kph (ie all the time). It was also a bit dispiriting getting to the sign for sea level after a solid hour of climbing.
As we climbed up through the canyon the views got better and better and we found a great camp spot down a rutted track with about an hour of daylight left. As last night, it was semi visible but far away and inaccessible to prying eyes. The view back down the canyon to the Dead Sea as the sun set was incredible. The flies were still hanging around and were very interested in my feet by this point, but thankfully they went to bed again when darkness fell. The view continued to be amazing after the darkness fell as you could see the twinkling lights of Israel in the distance. Based on google maps we may even have been able to see Bethlehem some 100km away. The moon and stars were bright enough to cook a tasty spicy vegetable stew without a torch, and we even saw a few shooting stars. As camp spots go it was right up there with the canyon in Turkey. We initially tried to sleep outside but were forced to retreat to the tent by some mini mosquito things which chewed my forearms up within an hour. Oh well, at least we will be safe from the flies in the morning.
*A sort of thick yoghurt
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