Why this ride
191 km from Julayjilah to Julayjilah, about 3 h 57 of riding. It goes by way of Northern Oasis, As-Seef, Jawatha Mosque and Al-Asfar Lake.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Al-`Oyun village and Al-Asfar Lake
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 191 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 57
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Northern Oasis → As-Seef
16 km on Northern Oasis → As-Seef.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 16 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Al-`Oyun village
Al-Uyun means the springs, and this village in the Al-Ahsa oasis is named for the water that has made life possible here for centuries. Rising from deep aquifers, the springs fed channels that ran through the palm groves and gave Al-Ahsa the reputation of being one of the greenest places in Arabia. Travellers who crossed the desert described the sound of running water and the smell of damp earth as a kind of miracle, and the village still has an air of coolness and shade even when the sun beats down on the surrounding sand.
Read the complete Al-`Oyun village write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Al-`Oyun village is where the day begins. Next is Northern Oasis.
2. Northern Oasis
The northern edge of the Al-Ahsa oasis is where the groves thin out and you can see the join between farmland and desert. Al Qurayn, a town of about 12,000 people, lies right next to this point, with Julayjilah and Al Mutayrifi close behind, and the whole cluster is one continuous patchwork of date gardens, walls, irrigation channels and low flat-roofed houses. The label talks about a northern oasis, and from the ground the point is simply that the green does not stop abruptly: it frays into scrub, then dunes.
Read the complete Northern Oasis write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Northern Oasis comes up 18 km in. Next is As-Seef.
3. As-Seef
Al-Ahsa is the biggest natural oasis on the planet, and it looks like a mistake in the middle of the Eastern Province: a dark green carpet of date palms, millions of them, spread across a flat plain of pale desert. The oasis exists because springs rise from deep underground and water the whole area. Hofuf, the main city, and Mubarraz, its neighbour, sit within the palms, and the two together hold close to six hundred thousand people. UNESCO listed the oasis in 2018.
Read the complete As-Seef write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
36 km in you reach As-Seef. Next is Jawatha Mosque.
4. Jawatha Mosque
Al-Ahsa is an oasis the size of a small country, and everything about it feels improbable. The eastern province of Saudi Arabia is mostly sand and flat gravel, yet here several million date palms stand in green groves watered by natural springs that rise from deep aquifers. The oasis is on the UNESCO list for exactly this reason: people have farmed here for thousands of years, and the system of canals and gardens is still working. Jawatha Mosque is part of that story, an old mud-brick building in a village among the groves, near the shore of Al-Asfar Lake.
Read the complete Jawatha Mosque write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Jawatha Mosque, about halfway. Next is Al-Asfar Lake.
5. Al-Asfar Lake
The Al-Ahsa oasis in eastern Saudi Arabia is a green island in a very large desert. Under the sand lie huge aquifers, and springs rise to the surface to feed an area of about eighty-five square kilometres of date palms, said to be the largest oasis in the world, with perhaps two and a half million trees. It lies not far from the Gulf coast, near the city of Hofuf, and it has been settled for thousands of years, from the Bronze Age through the ancient Dilmun culture and into Islamic times. UNESCO listed it in 2018 as an evolving cultural landscape.
Read the complete Al-Asfar Lake write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Al-Asfar Lake sits at 72 km, about halfway. Next is back through Jawatha Mosque.
6. back through Jawatha Mosque
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Jawatha Mosque write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Jawatha Mosque comes up 90 km in. Next is back through As-Seef.
7. back through As-Seef
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete As-Seef write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
108 km in you reach back through As-Seef. Next is back through Northern Oasis.
8. back through Northern Oasis
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Northern Oasis write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Northern Oasis, late in the day. Next is Al-`Oyun village.
9. Al-`Oyun village
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Al-`Oyun village write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 191 km.
Leg by leg
Al-`Oyun village to Northern Oasis
Al-`Oyun village → Northern Oasis is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Northern Oasis to As-Seef
Northern Oasis → As-Seef is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
As-Seef to Jawatha Mosque
As-Seef → Jawatha Mosque is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Jawatha Mosque to Al-Asfar Lake
Jawatha Mosque → Al-Asfar Lake is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Al-Asfar Lake to back through Jawatha Mosque
Al-Asfar Lake → back through Jawatha Mosque is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Jawatha Mosque to back through As-Seef
back through Jawatha Mosque → back through As-Seef is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through As-Seef to back through Northern Oasis
back through As-Seef → back through Northern Oasis is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Northern Oasis to Al-`Oyun village
back through Northern Oasis → Al-`Oyun village is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
More motorcycle rides nearby
- Qasr Khuzam and Al-Asfar Lake · 150 km
- Al-Asfar Lake and As-Seef · 206 km
- Qasr Ibrahim and Al-Asfar Lake (120 km) · 146 km
- As-Seef and Al-Asfar Lake · 149 km