Why this ride
From Hadibu it runs 628 km to Hadibu; allow about 13 h 36 of riding. It goes by way of Socotra B, Socotra h, Darsa and Samha. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Socotra c and Samha
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 628 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 13 h 36
- 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.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Socotra c
The dragon's blood tree looks like an umbrella turned inside out, with a dense crown of branches spreading from a thick trunk, and it grows almost nowhere else on earth but the island of Socotra, in the Arabian Sea between Yemen and Somalia. Its red resin was traded in antiquity as a dye and medicine. Socotra has been isolated for millions of years, and about a third of its plant species are found nowhere else, including bottle trees with swollen trunks, desert roses and frankincense trees. UNESCO lists the archipelago for its extraordinary biodiversity.
Read the complete Socotra c write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Socotra c is where the day begins. Next is Socotra B.
2. Socotra B
Towards the western end of Socotra, the land narrows and lowers, and the north coast curves into bays of sand so white they hurt your eyes in the midday sun.
Read the complete Socotra B write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Socotra B comes up 46 km in. Next is Socotra h.
3. Socotra h
Socotra looks like the set of a science fiction film. On this island in the Arabian Sea, about three hundred and fifty kilometres off the coast of Yemen, the dragon's blood tree spreads its branches like an umbrella turned inside out, desert roses swell from the rocks with fat, bottle-shaped trunks, and frankincense trees cling to the cliffs. Around a third of the plant species here exist nowhere else on Earth, the result of millions of years of isolation, and the archipelago became a World Heritage site in 2008.
Read the complete Socotra h write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
93 km in you reach Socotra h. Next is Darsa.
4. Darsa
Darsa is a speck of rock in the Indian Ocean, one of the small islands of the Socotra archipelago, which lies about two hundred and forty kilometres off the Horn of Africa and belongs politically to Yemen. It is the sort of place that makes sense only on a map: a low, dry island west of the main island of Socotra, with few or no permanent inhabitants, visited by fishermen and by seabirds. Together with its neighbour Samha and the big island, it forms one of the most remarkable natural treasures in the world, which UNESCO listed in 2008.
Read the complete Darsa write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Darsa, about halfway. Next is Samha.
5. Samha
Samha is a small, barren island in the Indian Ocean, one of the two islands known as the Brothers that lie between the main island of Socotra and the Horn of Africa. Together with Socotra and the other islands of the archipelago, it belongs to Yemen and is part of the Socotra Archipelago World Heritage Site, inscribed in 2008 for its extraordinary biodiversity. A few hundred people live on Samha, mostly fishermen, in a village by the shore, and the island has its own endemic plants, adapted to the harsh, dry climate.
Read the complete Samha write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Samha sits at 185 km, about halfway. Next is back through Darsa.
6. back through Darsa
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Darsa write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Darsa comes up 231 km in. Next is back through Socotra h.
7. back through Socotra h
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Socotra h write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
278 km in you reach back through Socotra h. Next is back through Socotra B.
8. back through Socotra B
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Socotra B write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Socotra B, late in the day. Next is Socotra c.
9. Socotra c
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Socotra c 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 628 km.
Leg by leg
Socotra c to Socotra B
Socotra c → Socotra B is 47 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Socotra B to Socotra h
Socotra B → Socotra h is 53 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Socotra h to Darsa
Socotra h → Darsa is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Darsa to Samha
Darsa → Samha is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Samha to back through Darsa
Samha → back through Darsa is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Darsa to back through Socotra h
back through Darsa → back through Socotra h is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Socotra h to back through Socotra B
back through Socotra h → back through Socotra B is 53 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Socotra B to Socotra c
back through Socotra B → Socotra c is 47 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
More motorcycle rides nearby
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