Day 5 – May 17, 2022
Little Petra
Only 15 kilometers from Petra is “Little Petra,” an old caravan stop for those going to the large city of Petra. This short canyon filled with multiple carved buildings is worth an hour-long stop to explore. 20 to 30 people would sleep in these carved-out rooms to or from Petra. At the far end of this archaeological site was a narrow canyon staircase that led to a beautiful viewpoint of the canyon below. Little Petra is a perfect add-on to a visit to this area.
Wadi Rum
Wadi Rum is an area further south in the desert. It is a popular out-of-this-world dessert for popular films such as several Star Wars movies. While there, we saw a film crew gathered on a rock in the distance doing some filming. Our bus dropped us off at a designated place on the road where 3 pickup trucks were waiting. We each grabbed a day bag we had packed before leaving our hotel in the morning and hopped into the back of a truck, which took us a few miles into the desert. There were no roads, but our drivers knew where we were going. Within 30 minutes, we were at our Bedouin Camp, which was not even visible from anywhere around. It was tucked down a steep slope against a large rock that protected it from the desert sandstorms and, at times of the day, from the sun.
Following a lunch break and a rest, we headed back out for a 4×4 tour in the back of the canopy-covered truck for a desert tour. The desert landscape was interesting as it had multiple colors of sand and large rock-like mountains jutting up in all directions. We stopped in a few locations and learned about the different tracks animals in this area made in the sand and how to identify if a lizard, fox, snake, gerbil, or other animal had passed by. In one area, we stopped for a photo by a large rock arch, a photo with a rock in the distance from a Star Wars movie, and finally, at a rocky viewpoint, where we watched the sunset. It was cool to see the colors of the landscape change as the sun went down over the horizon.
Post-covid, our Bedouin camp has changed to a more comfortable setup. It used to be a series of tents in the desert. While it is still very basic, electric generators run for a few hours in the evening so that lights, chargers, and fans work in the rooms. There is also a private washroom for each person and a large tent-covered dining area. In the evening, a bonfire was lit with foam-padded cushions surrounding it on the sand. It was a great way to finish the day just before watching the stars and a beautiful moonrise from behind a small rock hill in the distance.