Adventure in the Wadi Mujib in Jordan
November 12, 2015
Dramatic canyons, fast flowing rivers and stunning waterfalls, hiking the Wadi Mujib in Jordan is a true adventure. It’s not just hiking: it’s climbing rocks, wading through fast flowing water and swimming. And sometimes we use waterfalls as a waterslide.
Wadi Mujib is more than 200 kilometres of wadis, canyons and mountains at the shore of the Dead Sea. For centuries this area was Bedouin hunting ground. Now it’s a nature reserve. The variety is immense: in only hiking one hour, you leave the sea behind and enter the desert. Over 300 species of plants, 10 species of carnivores and numerous species of permanent and migratory birds have been recorded.
All hikes starts at the Mujib Bridge on the Dead Sea Highway. The first part of the track runs parallel to the Dead Sea. We are walking with the deep blue of the Dead Sea in the back and mountainchains in front. We enter an area with creamy white hills and darker mountains on the horizon. We decend into the Wadi Mujib river, a fast flowing river. The hike continues upstream. We are hiking for hours already. Sometimes we wade in knee-deep water, other parts we have to swim. The Mujib is a harsh river; at several points, robes are anchored to the walls so we can hold on to them to counter the flow of the water. It’s exhausting but rewarding to follow the Siq and find a big waterfall. The last part of the hike we see the more gentil side of the Mujib. And looking back from the way we came; the Mujib looks impenetrable! A hike in the Mujib is a great water adventure.
