Why this ride
An 83 km round trip from Al Buraymī - roughly 1 h 37 in the saddle. The stops in between: West Ridge Hafit Tombs, Jebel Hafit Desert Park and back through West Ridge Hafit Tombs. Dry, open country - carry water.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Hili North Tomb A and Jebel Hafit Desert Park
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 83 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 1 h 37
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. 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
Jebel Hafeet Mountain Road
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For about 16 km this is Jebel Hafeet Mountain Road, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 16 km
- Named road
- Jebel Hafeet Mountain Road
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Hili North Tomb A
The Hili tombs sit in the oasis landscape where Oman meets the United Arab Emirates, and the border here is a line on a map rather than a barrier on the ground. The Omani town of Buraimi and the Emirati city of Al Ain run into each other, with palms, fields and low sandy hills, and these stone tombs are among the oldest standing monuments in the region. They are circular towers of carefully cut limestone, built around 2500 BC in what archaeologists call the Umm an-Nar period, and they were used as communal graves.
Read the complete Hili North Tomb A write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Hili North Tomb A is where the day begins. Next is West Ridge Hafit Tombs.
2. West Ridge Hafit Tombs
The road up Jebel Hafit is one of the best-known motorcycle climbs in the Gulf, and it is easy to understand why. It runs for about twelve kilometres, with dozens of well-surfaced bends and hairpins that wind up the flank of the mountain to a summit plateau at roughly 1,200 metres, and from there you can see the whole of Al Ain spread out below and the desert running into the haze. In a country of motorways and flat horizons, it is a gift.
Read the complete West Ridge Hafit Tombs write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
West Ridge Hafit Tombs comes up about 16 km into the recorded legs. Next is Jebel Hafit Desert Park.
3. Jebel Hafit Desert Park
For riders in the Gulf, there is a road that people talk about with real affection. Jebel Hafit, a long, rocky ridge that rises out of the flat gravel plain on the border between the United Arab Emirates and Oman, is about 1,240 metres high, and a smooth tarmac road snakes up its eastern flank in a long series of hairpins and bends to the top, a distance of about eleven kilometres. At the summit, a hotel and a viewing terrace look out over the oasis city of Al Ain, with the desert stretching away to the horizon, and at dusk the lights come on below like a field of stars. Motorcyclists and cyclists come here in the cooler months, usually early in the morning or at sunset, and the road is one of the best in the country.
Read the complete Jebel Hafit Desert Park write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 36 km into the recorded legs you reach Jebel Hafit Desert Park. Next is back through West Ridge Hafit Tombs.
4. back through West Ridge Hafit Tombs
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete West Ridge Hafit Tombs write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through West Ridge Hafit Tombs, late in the day. Next is Hili North Tomb A.
5. Hili North Tomb A
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Hili North Tomb A write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Hili North Tomb A. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Hili North Tomb A to West Ridge Hafit Tombs
Hili North Tomb A → West Ridge Hafit Tombs is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
West Ridge Hafit Tombs to Jebel Hafit Desert Park
West Ridge Hafit Tombs → Jebel Hafit Desert Park is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Jebel Hafit Desert Park to back through West Ridge Hafit Tombs
Jebel Hafit Desert Park → back through West Ridge Hafit Tombs is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through West Ridge Hafit Tombs to Hili North Tomb A
back through West Ridge Hafit Tombs → Hili North Tomb A is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.