Words : Baiju N Nair
Photos : © Jamesh Kottakkal

Dune Bashing
              ...a combat with the dunes

We were all ready and cheerful, having no inkling about the horror that we were about to experience. The travel agency had informed us that they would be picking us up for a trip at 3o’clock from our hotel at Sharjah. We waited at the hotel lobby in high spirits, looking forward to that picnic in the desert, yes, that was what we thought.

At sharp 3, a 2003 model Land Cruiser with the imposing look of a magnificent elephant arrived and stopped in front of the hotel lobby. A tall Arab youth got down from the driver’s seat and approached us. A man of pleasing manners, he introduced himself as Ahmed and led us to the vehicle in all modesty.

' Bit of a wimp by nature, I eyed my companions. None of them seemed to have any idea about the danger we were up to, and were chatting on merrily. Let God save us, I prayed silently 'I sensed danger the moment I stepped into the vehicle. The car was fitted inside with a thick steel frame as in a rally car! It was a measure taken to secure the safety of the travelers where the chances for a mishap are more or less certain. The next thing that caught my eyes was the GPRS placed above the dash board – a system which helps in detecting the right direction if one loses it. So, I became sure of two things – the possibility of the vehicle getting overturned and of losing the way in the desert. Bit of a wimp by nature, I eyed my companions. None of them seemed to have any idea about the danger we were up to, and were chatting on merrily. Let God save us, I prayed silently.

Terror creeps in

Our vehicle left the city of Sharjah, and was now racing through the desert. There were only sand dunes all around us and after about an hour, the car turned to a small road. A typical off-roader, the Land Cruiser was now running smoother on that difficult rough path! After a while, Ahmed looked back towards us and stopped the vehicle to the side of the road. Put your seat-belts on, Ahmed tells us. On our left, there was a trench that was some 50 ft. deep and in a minute, the Cruiser slid down that ditch. Our boisterous group went wild-eyed with terror. After getting down, the Cruiser went up a small sand hill ahead that had thorny bushes all over it. There we found14 more Land Cruisers parked.

"Here is our base camp", announced Ahmed. The actual safari was supposed to start from there, we were told. Ahmed prepared for the oncoming event and let some air out from the tyres. The pressure has to be lower for the vehicle to get a grip in the sands, we were informed. The Land Cruiser was otherwise perfectly fit for desert travel as it possessed adjustable height control system that enabled it to increase or decrease its height. We were about to start and it was silent inside the vehicle as all of us had already got an idea of what was awaiting us.

Ego bashing in full swing

The Land Cruisers went down the base camp hill and sped through the desert. Suddenly, right in front of us, there appeared a sand hill that was some100 ft. high. I wondered whether Ahmed would take us up that. I was not wrong. His hand extended to the over-drive gear and the Cruiser went swiftly up that hill which was made exclusively of sand grains. While the front portion of the vehicle strived to conquer the dune, its rear was skidding backwards. Through some magical trick at the steering wheel Ahmed was pulling the rear and taking it along the rest of the vehicle. We sat in that vehicle screaming and cursing our helplessness.

The cruiser reached the top of the dune and stood there proudly as if it had conquered the Everest. What next? There was no other way to get down other than rushing the vehicle down the steep slope. Yes, that was exactly what happened. Carrying with it four numb people, Ahmed’s Cruiser dived down the 100 ft. deep slope. Nothing untoward happened and it landed down safe and secure. But there was to be no relief as there appeared another dune right in front of us barring our way. There was no stopping for Ahmed or his Cruiser. The vehicle rushed screeching to the top of that towering sand dune too.

By this time, all except me had regained their courage. Ahmed realized it and began to engage in more dangerous acrobatics. He was enjoying himself in activities such as staying still for a moment at the pin-point top of a hill and then taking off to the sky suddenly, and scaring us to death by swirling to the right after giving the impression of turning to the left and catapulting off the sides of dunes at stomach-churning speed.

The safari vehicles that were moving ahead provided us with some moments of fun. Filled with screaming tourists they were careening wildly up and down the sand dunes. They went up the huge dunes like centipedes and then slithered down them like snakes, spraying the sand all over. The fourteen vehicles traveled in a convoy and we heard screams from some of the nearer ones.

After living through acrobatics for one hour, we reached another camp. All of us got down from the vehicle. Everybody exchanged eye-witness accounts of scary stories. Meanwhile some Arabs arrived on strange, ugly-looking desert bikes and were going hither and thither hoping to inspire awe in us by wheeling their four-wheeled bikes on two tyres.

Half an hour of rest and then again to the vast expands of sands. The twists and twirls didn’t scare us any more as we had acquired enough strength to face anything by this time. But the admiration that I felt towards Ahmed kept on increasing minute by minute. I, who had never driven except on safe roads, had credited myself as a good driver. There could have been no comparison between myself and Ahmed who was taking risk with so many lives.

A desert picnic with dance, barbecues and sheesha

The Cruiser left the hills behind and entered a plain. We were damned tired as if we had spent an entire day on a roller-coaster. Then, in the middle of the desert, amidst some palm trees, we spotted a light. As we got nearer to that light strains of an Arab song fell clearer in our ears.

Our safari group reached the spot. It was a Bedouin campsite, an Arab village recreated after those of Bedouins or badu Arabs. There were palm barastis (huts) and shamianas. A traditionally attired Arab welcomed us into the camp. The tents strewn with rugs gave off an Arab ambience and offered food, drinks, hookahs, henna and handicrafts. There were spaces to relax in with beds and pillows spread out and Arabian carpets adorned the floor.

We wolfed down barbecued fish and chicken with hot North Indian roti and Arab kuboos to our heart’s content. We were lying down staring at stars when the lights suddenly went out. It was time for the belly dancer show and a Lebanese damsel appeared with vivacious Arab steps. She swayed and swiveled around as we sampled on another bit of barbecue and sheesha. The mist, stars, the smell of barbecue, dance… the hair-raising moments of the safari were wiped out from our minds. By 10 in the night we started on our return journey to Sharjah.

Scary but splendid!

The desert experience was rich. The dune drive was scary as it was but inside the steel frames of the sturdy and stable Land Cruiser we felt somewhat secure and confident. Accidents were minimal with such reliable vehicles and experienced and expert drivers, we were told. Even when it had occurred travelers had always come out safe.

The horizon moved constantly as we went up and down those huge dunes, presenting us with many facets of the desert, and the view of the sun setting over the sand dunes was fabulous. That laidback experience which followed the drive was quite another thing with a completely natural desert setting. With these safaris and camps the great scary desert terrain turns into something of an amusement park where the tourists take to for fun, for a sumptuous treat of barbecues and flavoured sheesha or for a ride on camels.

Viva, Dune Bashing!

© travelbird