Asia

[Visited: December 2021]

When your experienced Socotra-bases guide tells you that you are on the way to his favourite part of the island, you know it is going to be something special. We drive along the coast with our faces glued to the windows; even before reaching the sand dunes of Arher, the landscape looks beautiful enough. And then, there it is. The first sand dune rises high above us. It leans against the mountains that rise sharply above us. We drive through sand, through brooks, and when we reach a part with deeper water, our cars park and we get some wet feet before we reach our encampment. The day is nearing its end, and we have just enough time for a walk on the beach to enjoy sunset. One of the good things of staying here: there is a natural stream of water where we can wash ourselves - undoubtedly the best shower we will have anywhere on the island of Socotra.
The next morning, we are off in our cars when it is still pitch dark. After a short drive, we get out and start walking on the cold sand. We soon take off our sandals and flipflops, and walk up the dunes from behind. In the distance, we see the lid of darkness slowly lifting. The contours of the dunes stand out always clearer now. When we reach the upper ridge, there is enough light for us to see the shoreline, to see the huge caves in the mountains above us, to see small fishing boats plough through the sea far below us. We sit right on the ridge of the dune, and wait - our eyes glued to the east, where the light gets more intense every second. Ah - the anticipation of sunrise! The more light there is, the clearer the ribs of the sand dunes. The colour of the sand gets warmer and more intense until, finally, the first rays of sunlight shine straight on the dunes.
We soak in the views, until it is time to go down. I try to run as fast as I can, pretending this is snow and I can slalom down. When I look up to see my zig-zag track, I realise I lost my flip-flops, so I walk up as fast as I can to recover them. Later, I walk from the encampment towards the west, for some spectacular views from the white sand beach on the huge sand dunes that reach up to 200 metres. After lunch, it is time for a walk towards the west, and get some more views from the sand dunes from a distance. We watch sunset at the easternmost point of Socotra, and the next morning, I am up early for a last climb up the sand dune right above the encampment. Apart from the views, the advantage is to feel the rush of speed again when I slalom dow the sand dune to have a last breakfast on the beach before we leave this spectacular landscape behind us to head west again.

Around the World in 80 Clicks

inspiring you to travel

Arher sand dunes (Yemen)

Arher sand dunes > Yemen > Asia

[Visited: December 2021]

Around the World in 80 Clicks