I depart Duba at 8 AM after topping up the coolant in the car. The road north is not the best I have encountered, but it’s two lanes each way and the traffic is very light. All is going well as I reach Al Banda’a. This area is mountainous and reminds me of the Swat valley in Pakistan. It really is the back of beyond. After negotiating the town I am 130 KM from the Jordan border. I figure that once I am clear of the town it will be a straight run to Aqaba where the border crossing is. I couldn’t be more wrong. The road out of Al Banda’a narrows to one lane in each direction, The surface is bad and winds between hills and mountains. What happens over the next 90 minutes is by far the hardest and most perilous drive I have ever undertaken.
The road is one blind bend after another. You are completely at the mercy of the oncoming traffic. If the lorry coming in the opposite direction crosses the white line you have nowhere to go as you are already within inches of the hill face. Lorries behind and oncoming are travelling at speeds of 120 - 140 KMH despite the conditions. There are frequent warning signs for camels and landslides. There is physical evidence everywhere that the landslide signs are not there for fun. 90 clicks from Aqaba I came around a blind bend at 80 and in the middle of the road was a camel. There was a 30 foot drop to the right, so left of the animal, into the oncoming lane, was the only option. Luckily there was no oncoming traffic, but had a car or lorry been coming the opposite direction, it would have been all over.
The road eventually goes into a long straight descent and the Red Sea is off in the distance. The relief is enormous that that stretch of road is behind me. I follow the signs for the border and exit Saudi Arabia. A short stretch of road and the sign says “Welcome to the Heshemite Kingdom of Jordan”.
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