This is was my second desert trek. Asfar lake is an hour and a half drive away. There is an Oasis in the town of Al Hasa. There is too much water coming from the aquifer so the water is channeled away through culverts forming the lake. Water is scarce in Saudi Arabia so it was unbelievable to see so much flowing water.
Three vehicles took the trip. Kerry was the leader. He has satellite navigation and sets the route through the desert. Majority of the trip was without marked roads or cell phone coverage or any sign of civilization.
This is a picture of the terrain with part of the lake visible in the distance.
Large distances are kept between vehicles while traveling through the desert. The lead vehicle is setting the route and doesn’t know the terrain. In case lead gets stuck, other cars need to be far enough back to be able to rescue stuck cars. Of course you come across camels in the desert.
Helping a local with a flat tire. One of the tricks of traveling through sand is to deflate the tires down to 15 psi. Everybody carries air compressors in the cars to re inflate the tires.
The goal of the trip was to make it to the top of the sand dune in the distance which overlooks the lake.
This is the view from the top of the dune.
At the top of the dune I met the local Jeep club. I exchanged information with them so I can become a member of the Pro Jeepers club. I need to get a giant flag to put on my Jeep. Our group was having a hard time finding a route to the top of this dune until we saw these flags, then continued to follow these Jeeps up to the top.
At the top we set up for a picnic lunch to enjoy the view before heading home.
Matthew of Arabia 