The Shifting Sands

The drive through Al Ain with Jebel Harfeet in the background The next of the big UAE bike climbs is Jebel Harfeet.  It also located next to the the Oman border at   Al Ain and is is shorter and steeper than Jebel Jais.  It is a 767 metre climb up to a height of 1033 metres over 12.5 km at an average grade of 6.1% but with with a steepest 1km section of 11.3 %. The climb flattens a little at the top, past a hotel, then you ride along the ridge before the final viewing car park at the end of the road The start point with Green Mubazzarah, a hot spring and park, in the foreground Some of the switchbacks leading uphill The start is a 90 minute drive from Dubai and it has the added benefit of being adjacent to Wadi Adventures, the white water kayaking/rafting and surf pool operation.  This means I can get in an early ride then head to the Wadi Adventures to cool off in my kayak Looking back along the summi...

While the Al Qudra cycling track is easy to access and has great facilities, after some time you get a little tired of the terrain and you wish for something a little more. While most of the UAE is flat, the border region with Oman provide some smooth and wide roads to the mountain tops on the border. The car park at Jebel Jais with a shelter shed and clean toilets. Impressive! My first outing was to Jebel Jais, on the western edge of the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, about 120 km north of Dubai.   For this little adventure, I convinced Paddy, my running buddy and neighbour, to dust off his bike and join me for one last adventure before he and his family relocate back to the UK. We set off at 0430 hrs under a starlit ski and no wind but by the time we passed through Sharjah, 20 minutes to the north, everything had changed. The scene would have done George Miller proud,   Sharjah was doing its best impersonation of a apocalyptic wasteland.   Winds ...

Biking in the UAE couldn't be any more different than India or Kathmandu.  Aside from the obvious differences between the desert, the tropics or the mountains it is the the biking facilities that make the UAE amazing. They say you should never get the photographers shadow in a photo! A 10 minute drive from where I live is the Al Qudra cycle path.  A dedicated, butter smooth 85 km bike path shaped like a lollipop with a 18 km stick and a 49 km loop at the top of the stick. At the bottom of the stick there is a car park, showers and change room and at the intersection between the stick and the loop is another large car park, change rooms, first aid facilities, coffee shop and bike store! The terrain is pretty flat through the desert but the nature of the desert changes from sand dunes to rockier areas.  There are shaded rest stations every 10 km for those who get a little weary but at this time of year it is cool enough for long time residents to don cold wea...