Treks and Trails of Jordan: Karak

"It could be a dangerous..."

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:33:00 GMT

Feedback on Wadi Al Karak canyoning adventure

By Rawan Al-Sourchi

"This was my first hiking trip and I must say that it was a fantastic experience thanks to the guides who had it well organised. In this Wadi I saw some of the most beautiful scenery in Jordan. As we hiked through the canyon we came across a different tropical environment for every kilometre. This Wadi full of water springs, waterfalls and hanging gardens was wonderful to see. Sleeping overnight by the waterfall was a great way of experiencing what nature has to offer. Yes it was a bit noisy with the sound of frogs & insects, but looking up at the stars shining so bright, while laying down with the sound of the waterfall just a short distance away, made this adventure a pleasant and enjoyable one to always remember. If you would ever like to see the 'Hidden Heavens' of Jordan which is what I would like to call it, then joining the programme Terhaal has to offer is the best way to do so.

The Rappelling was very fun as we did a couple over the cliffs and below the waterfalls. It could be a dangerous environment to rappel in but thanks to the professional guides at Terhaal it was setup with very high safety measures. This ensured us to enjoy it to the maximum. I would definitely consider joining another adventure with Terhaal as the information provided before hand was very accurate, and I really enjoyed every moment of our trip.

With Many Thanks to Rakan, Raad, Oudai and Atef

Rawan"

"A few thoughts of Jordan"

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 16:23:00 GMT

Feedback on Jordan Dynamic - a 9 day adventure holiday.

By Elizabeth Shoreland

"On touching down in Amman my perception of Jordon - somewhat naively - was one dominated by deserts, the Rose City and bobbing up and down in the Dead Sea. Granted, some activity would be needed to conquer these well known tourist sites, but on discovering that I was going on an "Active Jordon" trip I certainly felt some trepidation: was I going to be able to master cycling, hiking and camel riding in two short weeks? On reflection this was the best way to get a glimpse into the heart of Jordon: while ensuring that we did not miss the more well known tourist attractions the trip took us off the beaten track and exposed us to different aspects of the country and Jordanian life.

The trip was all go from the begining. We toured the Roman city of Jesrah before taking to our bikes in order to cycle through the northern part of the Jordan Valley with its fertile fields and ancient olive trees. We then headed to the Dead Sea where - just like in the posters - we were able float around, before heading to the Dana Nature Reserve. Our hike in the Dana Nature Reserve provided a great insight in the huge variety of ecological systems that exist in the area and dashed any remaining thoughts I had about Jordon being all deserts.

It was then onto Petra where we were able to marvel at the sheer scale of this city carefully carved into the rock, Petra, however, was full to the brim with tourists, and while it was amazing, it was also fantastic to make our escape to Wadi Rum. I never imagined that a desert could hold so much beauty. The Jebels provided an amazing playground and our host, Salam showed us that life in Wadi Rum was action packed: hiking, rock scrambling, camel riding and not to mention crazy antics by the fire at night.

On leaving Wadi Rum we continued our journey south to the Red Sea. I knew the Red Sea was famous for its technicolour marine life: I was not disappointed. Tropical fish and corals were easily spotted during snorkeling excursions during our lazy afternoon on the beach. The next morning we motored north back to Amman. As we were travelling during the holy month of Ramadan we had decided to head into the city to experience Iftar (the breaking of the fast). In the late afternoon the city appeared to have come to a standstill as people attempted to make it home for Iftar. The temporary noise and chaos of those finally few hours however were worth it simply to experience the evening meal in a local restaurant.

All too soon our trip was over. It had been nine actioned packed days that saw us conquering all sorts of transport modes (even run-away camels) and seeing some of the many beautiful sights of Jordon. More importantly though we had meet a number of Jordanians who had, with unrivalled enthusiasm, shared their country and experiences with us: while I have no photos of that experience, it is inevitably the one that I will remember most vividly."

"I returned quite enthused..."

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 17:28:00 GMT

Would you like to write a testimonial to be published on our blog for other travellers to read?

Richard Soghier:

"its worth redoing. I returned quite enthused, and felt few years younger. Except for the food, the trip was excellent. The bread, and contents of the sandwiches left lot to be desired."

Wadi Ibn Hammad and Karak Castle , 15 August 2008.

more pictures

Experiencing Wadi Al Karak

Sun, 27 Jul 2008 15:07:00 GMT

by Batoul and Talal

Hi there at Terhaal,

We've been on several hikes around Jordan, and Wadi Al Karak is definitely one of the most wonderful we've seen. It offers a wide variety of scenery, greenery, colorful rock formations, and waterfalls. And believe it or not, even on a hot summer day, this Wadi was most enjoyable; the shaded Siqs, the accompanying stream and multiple waterfalls provided us with just the right cooling we needed.

Although this Wadi can be hiked in one day, Terhaal programmed it over two days instead with an overnight camp, which we though was a great idea. This gave us more time to enjoy what this Wadi has to offer, and the overnight camp provided an even more authentic experience. Not only was the evening around the campfire fun and enjoyable, but seeping in the arms of nature, under the glittery skies, by the sound of the waterfall right next to us, and the even louder sound of the frogs that kept welcoming us throughout the night; wow, that was a most relaxing night! The singing birds all over were trying hard to wake us up as early as they did the next morning, and for those of us who insisted on sleeping anyway, Rakan's wake up call -although soft and nature like- ensured that we didn't! Well, he wanted us all to start early to enjoy the day the longest possible, and he was right. The Wadi had still so much more to offer.

The abseils which we did were amazing; over the cliffs and under the waterfalls. We are in nature safety conscious; but Terhaal's safety measures throughout the hike were up to standards. Moreover, their pleasant and enjoyable company, and their profound passion for nature made it a real joy for us.

This trip was definitely worth it, and we would do this and others with Terhaal over and over again.

Thank you Rakan, Oudai, Mohammad, Oxana, and Ra'ad for a most memorable hike.

Batoul and Talal

wadi al karak adventure

Sun, 18 May 2008 17:13:00 GMT

Click here to view the set of selected photos from our last canyoning adventure to Wadi Al Karak on May 16, 2008.

To all the guests we had: we have really enjoyed your pleasant company. We'd love to read your feedback- by commenting on this post. Your positive notes gives us the motivation to do what we're doing, while the negative ones is what help us evaluate our service and operation, improve, and keep going forward.
Looking forward to see you again.

Best regards,
Terhaal Team

Night trekkers I salute you

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 17:00:00 GMT

by Oudai Al Daoud

We headed to Madaba to meet with Rakan at a hall room where the theoretical part of the training would take place. We got there but the instructor has not come yet so I sat down with the rest of the trainees and got to know each other. You could see the eagerness and excitement in their eyes to learn this great sport of abseiling. Minutes later the instructor has arrived introduced himself and learned our names. The instructor starts talking about the history of the sport, physics, the systems and techniques used to get through canyons and cliffs, rescue, and most importantly the rope which is the heart of this sport. As time went by he gave each of us a short rope so he would teach us the knots -which were confusing to most of us-getting troubled when the knots went wrong made us try harder to get them right. The day was over so fast.

The second day brought new knowledge about the equipment and their weird names or was it the accent of the instructor that made them sound weird; anyhow each item used has several roles in the abseiling system, some of these super light weight items can hold up to 2500kg without failing or breaking! Made me respect them and trust them with my life.

Missing a day made it hard for me to catch up with the group; some of these guys were getting good real fast, but this made me try harder.

This day brought a bigger challenge the group headed to a cliff alongside the road to Ma'in; passing a knot on the rappelling rope while wearing a rope harness which was uncomfortable. The instructor made a fast demonstration on how to do it and it all seemed easy the way he performed it. But when you put it to practice you get confused with the steps of solving this problem due to a powerful mixture of burning sun, lack of sleep, missing out one day of vital info, adds up and leads to misjudgment and panic not to mention the numbness in your legs that makes you panic even more. Looking at Rakan and the instructor sitting in the shade of a palm tree at the end of the cliff smiling and giggle at times when a trainee gets stuck or just hangs on the rope clueless of what to do next!!

A hectic day has passed without passing the knot! This thing raised my anger and frustration to the point that the thought of quitting the course crossed my mind, but I insisted to go on.

The course was so intense that I lost track of time and date, starting early in the morning and finishing by sunset. Your energy gets drained away because of little time to rest and proper meals none the less you are boosted by the ambition to learn this great sport and the amazing adventures that you dream of in the outstanding wadis of Jordan along with dreams of the knots, problems and rescue procedures that never leaves your mind.

The two week course was over, although it was tough at times but it was a great new knowledge and an adventure that I will treasure and apply.

Now as guides we were taken to practice in Wadi 'Assal which we did not have any prior knowledge of.

The group consisted of eight persons including two instructors; we started trekking along a goat trail to begin the wadi. As we reached the first waterfall, two guides opened the first rappelling station, and the others acted as their clients, the instructors supervised their performance and the others who built the following three stations, we finished rappelling the four stations and we headed to the exit point, but "somehow failed to find it". It's almost dark now, the water is cold, and the radio's battery was running low, which made the communication impossible with Rakan who was waiting at the exit point, not to mention that there was no network to operate our cell phones. The instructor advised us to climb a hill hoping to get to the exit and a get in contact with Rakan, so we did but the hill was too steep and with the sun going down we had to climb down, and continue trekking along the water stream to the Dead Sea! The group was struck with the words of the instructor knowing that the trek would take six hours!

It's dark now; everyone lit their headlamps and proceeded with the night trek, along the way we rappelled on two 20m waterfalls and few small ones joining our headlamps for maximum light. Abseiling and canyoning at night who could think of it! The group did not mind it all and pulled together and worked as one. At this point the technicalities and knowledge learned during the training paid off together with our survival instincts that kicked in under this pressure. After a long trek to the Dead Sea we finally made it exhausted, Rakan was waiting and told us that the whole thing was a planned scenario or the "ultimate test" of every guide's abilities under extreme circumstances. This real adventure proved that without proper training and safety measures such as the course that we attended was impossible.

The instructors were pleased with our performance and congratulated us for passing the test as guides.

I’d like to thank my instructors for giving me the opportunity to learn abseiling. A special thanks to Tala and Rakan for their continuous support and advice throughout the course.

To my colleagues who showed great personalities and above all team spirit and selflessness, wish you all great success. Night trekkers I salute you.

Canyoning the Karak

Fri, 14 Mar 2008 19:37:00 GMT

by Arabi Abdelhaq

It is almost midnight now, and I'm reviewing a checklist of do's and don'ts I should commit myself to in the coming two days, should mother nature be pleased with my visit!

And so, I find myself going up and down the hilly roads of western Jordan, not looking back at the dozen DVDs I left on the computer shelf, I'm so done with ejecting and inserting disks that tell about stories never seem to happen and surely never seem to end.

When the bus stopped after a rally-like course down the top of the main street that was not so much far from Al-Kerak Castle, and taking a look down across the small farms that were hanging on the slopes of the mountain we were standing on, I thought to myself that there better be an adventure in the green spot I see at the bottom of the valley, well, everything was prepared for an adventure, the group of Jordanians and foreigners were as if ready to do the walk of their life time; with their back bags loaded with an abundance of food, an insisted-on 6 L of water, dates , nuts, and surely the spirit of adventure.

Yellow crab: "Find yourself another spot to walk on".

To flow with the water flow is an amazing sensation by itself, to be guided by water, and be entertained by its company, even when at some points you look around and find nobody (even if only for a few minutes), but still be sure that someone is still there, Nature! Which means also little frogs, crabs, fish, and of course red & blue dragon flies.

The real challenge was doing the abseiling part -at two different places- I had a bad experience once four years prior in a scout's camp; I hang upside down all 40m from top to bottom of the 40m tower! But this time, it was a revenge time for me to enjoy abseiling, and I surely did, Not only did I trust the equipment we used, but also trusted Rakan, Tala, and the supervisory team. Surely their instructions and abiding by them made it an enjoyable abseiling experience!

All in all, Wadi el Kerak was an amazing place to be at; small details have made all the difference, the thought of hiking feet in water, eyes gazing around at the palm trees springing from marvelously shaped rocks, fresh air breezes of a rosy scent, and a great company, made the trip what it really is, a wonderful ride offered by nature!