Everything at Abu Simbel is a rescue story. Ramesses II had the two rock temples carved into the cliff above the Nile in the thirteenth century BC, with four colossal seated figures of himself guarding the larger one. Then, in the 1960s, the Aswan High Dam was about to drown the whole valley, and an international UNESCO campaign cut both temples into huge blocks and rebuilt them on higher ground, inside an artificial hill. It is one of the great engineering efforts of the twentieth century, and it is the reason a rider can stand here at all, with Lake Nasser glittering off to one side.
The ride that begins here is really a journey north through Nubia's saved monuments, ending at Philae, the temple of Isis, which was likewise lifted off its island and set up on Agilkia. Between them lies the long desert road to Aswan, roughly 280 kilometres of dead-straight tarmac, with the lake sometimes visible and sometimes not. It is not technical riding. The challenge is heat, glare, wind-blown sand on the surface and the sheer emptiness of it. Start before dawn, carry more water than seems sensible, and fill the tank before you leave town, because there is little in between.
Abu Simbel itself is a small place that lives off its temples, with a handful of cafes and guesthouses. Check locally about police convoy rules for the desert road, which have varied over the years. Twice a year, around late February and late October, the morning sun is said to reach all the way into the inner sanctuary of the great temple and light up the seated gods, and the date draws a crowd, so book ahead if that is your plan.
The best hour here is simply early, when the cliff faces are rose-coloured, the tour buses are still on the road and the lake is flat enough to hold the sky.