Liwa Advanced invitation Only Drive on 24th-25th Jan.2013.

We are at it again…
To go and visit that mother of all deserts the Rub Al Khaali…meaning The Empty Quarter…in plain English!!!
The Prophet’s (PBUH) Birthday Holiday is expected 24th of Jan. 2013, which is a Thursday…allowing us 2 days of fun in the sand & 1 day to recover…before we trudge back to our desks again…
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfFR_ac1WdA[/media]
Here is a very nice video compilation of visit to Liwa last season, very kindly contributed by Mr. Silvester Petras.
The Rub’ al Khali (Arabic: الربع الخالي‎) or Empty Quarter is one of the largest sand deserts in the world, encompassing most of the southern third of the Arabian Peninsula, including southern Saudi Arabia, and areas of Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. The desert covers some 650,000 square kilometres , Liwa Oasis is about 100 km south of the Persian Gulf coast and 150 km SSW of the city of Abu Dhabi, on the northern edge of Rub’ al Khali desert and stretches about 100 km east-west, along an arch curved to the north.
The geographic and economic center of the oasis is Mizair’a, where the highway from Abu Dhabi enters the oasis and then divides to the east (65 km to the easternmost village, Mahdar Bin `Usayyan) and west (45 km to the westernmost village, `Aradah).
The villages of Liwa Oasis are the southernmost settlements of Abu Dhabi and of the United Arab Emirates. The southern border of Abu Dhabi with Saudi Arabia, which runs at a distance between 16 and 35 km to the Oasis, is a straight line in the Rub al Khali desert, which is largely uninhabited.

Please click on the thumbnail to view the full sized image.
We will be traversing some of the most inaccessible as well as picturesque areas of the Rub Al Khaali in this Drive with very tall Towering Dunes…some rising as high as 300 metres!!!
Thus a high level of vehicle & driver preparedness is a pre-requisite on this drive.
This is a strictly invitation only drive due to the extreme nature of the terrain & is limited to only Eight cars for us to be able to cover the Route as well as to avoid any unnecessary mishaps.
Meeting time 2200Hrs. on Wednesday the 23rd of January 2013 for an overnight rest before the adventure begins!!!
The First day’s Drive will commence at 0900Hrs. on Thursday the 24th of January 2013 & will terminate at a camp site close to the legendary Moreeb (Horrifying in Arabic) Hill, where we will Camp Overnight.
The Second day’s Drive will commence at 0900Hrs. on Friday the 25th of January 2013 & will terminate at 1600Hrs. close to the Adnoc at Hameem, for refuelling/ refreshing before the Drive back home ETA 2000Hrs.
Please register your intent to participate in the drive here, but note that only the chosen drivers will be notified of the meeting point co-ordinates.
Please make sure that your vehicle is fully prepared for an expedition type drive with complete recovery kit etc. and that it is fully serviceable with recovery points front & aft.
We will be camping overnight in the desert & while the day will be hot & sunny, the night temperature is expected to be chilly, so please be prepared with complete camping & warm gear as well as sufficient food & drinks for the complete drive as we WILL NOT encounter any place to replenish supplies on the way.
The total off Road drive section on the two day drive is expected to be about 200kms.+ which means that ALL single tank cars need to carry extra fuel or risk being stranded in the middle of nowhere!!! Literally.
It may be prudent for the dual tank cars too, to carry extra fuel just to take care of emergencies.
So Guys let’s start registering…
1. Ahmad Pervez