What's up guys we're here with our new friend Waheed,
and in this video we're going to be showing you the White Desert. So we're going to be
doing a full tour with Waheed. It sounds really amazing from everything he's told us and we just
got here from Cairo. So now we're going to head out into the White Desert, so enjoy the video.
We are Zac and Ine. Full-time digital nomads from the United States and Belgium.
We met while studying abroad in 2018 and have been traveling the world together ever since.
We're here to inspire your next adventure, whether it's hiking in the Canadian Rockies,
a road trip through the U.S., or backpacking across Africa. On our channel you'll find
unfiltered videos of hiking guides and the best things to do in destinations around the world.
Located 570 kilometers or 350 miles to the southwest of Cairo, the White Desert is a
once-in-a-lifetime adventure. The landscape looks like something out of a Dr Seuss book,
with strange rocks sticking out at odd angles from the golden sand. The rocks themselves are
soft and have been shaped over millions of years by wind erosion and sandstorms. One unique thing
we learned about the White Desert is that it was actually underwater about 80 million years ago.
In fact, you can sometimes find seashells as well as microscopic sea creatures in the white rocks.
Now, we'll show you all the amazing spots we explored throughout our White Desert trip
and what to expect from your own White Desert adventure.
The most common starting point for a White Desert trip is from Cairo. A personal car was arranged
for us and took us from Cairo to Bahariya, where we met our guide Waheed. It takes about five hours
to get to Bahariya and once there you'll hop in the 4x4 and head to the first destination which
is a short stop at the black desert. This desert has a unique landscape with hundreds of small
black volcano-shaped mountains. The reason they're black is due to the basalt sills on top of them.
Some of the mounds are 100 meters or 300 feet high and a few of the volcanic hills date back to 180
million years ago during the Jurassic Period. After the black desert, you'll make your way
to Crystal Mountain where you can find thousands of small crystal rocks scattered across the sand.
I'm holding a crystal, because this is crystal
mountain and how would this look on my engagement ring? It'd be a big stone.
On your way to the campsite for the night you'll scale some massive sand dunes. We came across
one of our favorite stops on the entire trip near the camp. A huge white rock where you could watch
the sunset, sit in the soft sand, and discover for ourselves how ancient the White Desert really was.
So Waheed just brought us to this secret cave up at the top of this giant mountain. I don't
know how we got the 4x4 up here, but you can definitely tell that this whole white
desert was underwater at some point. Pretty hard evidence because you see all of these seashells
just like sticking out of the white rocks, it's crazy.
For the final activity of the first day it's time to set up camp and get the fire going.
The White Desert can get extremely cold at night,
so it's important to wear warm clothes and build a fire before the sun goes down. One
of the most interesting phenomena about the White Desert is that when the moon rises it
actually lights up the rocks to be nearly as white as their original color during the day.
If it wasn't for the sand, you would think you'd teleported to a winter wonderland.
Day two is where you really get to see some interesting rock formations,
which the white desert is famous for. After a peaceful morning coffee and breakfast
it's off again in the 4x4. The first stop is the arch. Take some time to bask in the beauty
of this natural rock archway that formed over millions of years. Near the arch,
you'll find some massive sand dunes which are perfect for drifting in the car as well as sand
boarding. We were lucky and had the entire dunes to ourselves. Waheed even got in on the action.
The Magic Spring is another one-of-a-kind destination along the route on day
two. So we're here at the Magic Spring right now, and there's actually water
underneath this like all these trees and then it connects kind of to these little pools here.
On your way to the White Desert National Park camp, you'll find endless white waves that look
like they've been frozen in time. This unique shape was caused mainly by wind erosion over time
and makes you feel like you're playing in the ocean for a moment. It's the perfect place for
some surfing. You can also find flower stones here in the surrounding desert if you look hard enough.
For the last stop of the day, you'll arrive into the camp where you can enjoy another
magical sunset. If you're lucky, you'll also get to experience the real Bedouin culture
through a musical evening with drums and singing.
So it's the last day of our White Desert experience. We just woke up at 6:30 in the morning
and you can see the sun painting the sand golden behind us. It feels really good after a cold
night in the desert. And we've had a really good experience so far. We're going to put Waheed's
contact information in the description below if you want to do a similar tour like us.
And also we want to say thank you to Barefoot Experience who is the crew who actually linked
us up with Waheed. And they also do a trip to the White Desert. It's more of a group tour
so we'll also put their information in the description, and we're excited to
see what's uh to come on this last day in the White Desert.
The first thing to do on day three is see the famous mushroom and chicken rock. Like its name
suggests, it looks like a mushroom and a chicken. This is the most famous rock formation in the
entire national park, so if you want to avoid the crowds, go there early on your way out.
We had a nice conversation with Waheed here about the White Desert and what it means to him.
Uh the desert give me power. I feel it's good life here, clear here, peace, freedom.
You can see the Big Bear, the Orion, Cassiopeia, Scorpion, Star,
and if you want to make meditation if you want stay without stress here in the White Desert.
Another highlight on your way out of the National Park is to take a ride to the Valley of the Tents.
After a few spins around the rocks, it's time to head to Bahariya, which is about
one and a half hours away in the 4x4. Then, it's another five hour drive back to Cairo by car.
Since the White Desert is a big adventure, we put together a few top tips so
you can have the best trip possible. First, we recommend booking with a reputable company.
Waheed from Western Desert Safari made our experience a magical one
and we highly recommend him. A good guide can make or break your trip
as well as help you get the transportation to Bahariya, because trust us that is complicated.
Second, this is a trip for adventurous travelers. There are no facilities like
bathrooms or toilets in the desert or camp so it's back to basics. Also,
the 4x4 takes you across high sand dunes which is a thrilling experience but not for everyone.
Third, since the desert has hot days and cold nights there are also some essential
items you should bring with you. These include warm clothes, sunglasses, sandals, sunscreen
and plenty of water, although the guide is likely to also have that. when we visited it was nearly
zero degrees celsius at night, so we used a lot of extra blankets and layers of clothing.
And that's it for our video on the White Desert. Thanks for watching and make sure
to like this video if you found it helpful, subscribe to our channel for more Egypt videos,
and download our free giveaway in the description below. We'll catch you on the next adventure.