Walking the Wadi Behind Town
An afternoon in the mountains, starting from the back of Asilah and needing nothing but water and shoes.
Dahab is a coast town with a desert behind it, and most visitors never turn around. The wadi that starts behind Asilah is a two-hour walk in and a two-hour walk out, and you do not need a guide for the first part of it.
The walk
Follow the dry riverbed inland. It narrows after forty minutes into a proper canyon, with walls that go orange in the late sun and pools that hold water for weeks after the rare rain. Turn back when the canyon forks; the left branch needs scrambling and a guide who has done it.
When
Late afternoon, leaving by four in winter and five in summer, so you walk the canyon in the good light and come out at dusk. Never in the middle of the day and never — this is the one rule that matters — if there has been rain anywhere in the mountains. A dry wadi floods fast.
What to take
- Two litres of water a person, more in summer
- Shoes with a sole, not sandals
- A torch, because coming out in the dark is normal
Going further
The longer trips — Three Pools, the Coloured Canyon, a night under the stars with the Bedouin — need a guide and a jeep, both of which are easy to arrange the day before.
