Why this ride
685 km from Al Jabāyish to Al Jabāyish, about 17 h 31 of riding. It goes by way of The East Hammar Marshes, The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod and back through The East Hammar Marshes. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
The Central Marshes and The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 685 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 17 h 31
- 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. The Central Marshes
Between the Tigris and the Euphrates, in the far south of Iraq, lies a world of water, reeds and sky: the Mesopotamian Marshes, home for thousands of years to the Ma'dan, the Marsh Arabs, who build houses and great arched guest halls, the mudhif, entirely from reeds, travel by narrow boats called mashoof and keep herds of water buffalo. The Central Marshes are one of the main areas of this wetland, listed in 2016 with the archaeological cities of Ur, Uruk and Eridu as the Ahwar of Southern Iraq, a World Heritage Site that joins nature and the earliest cities of Sumer.
Read the complete The Central Marshes write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Central Marshes is where the day begins. Next is The East Hammar Marshes.
2. The East Hammar Marshes
The marshes of southern Iraq are one of the strangest places on earth to find in a desert. Where the Tigris and Euphrates come together in their last stretch before the Persian Gulf, the land is so flat that the water spreads out instead of flowing, forming a maze of reed beds, shallow lagoons and channels, some of them wide enough for a boat and others narrow enough to touch both banks. The East Hammar is one of the great blocks of marsh that survives here, a wide mosaic of reed and open water lying east of the Euphrates and close to the Iranian border. UNESCO inscribed the Ahwar of Southern Iraq in 2016, as both a natural wonder and the home of a unique culture.
Read the complete The East Hammar Marshes write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The East Hammar Marshes comes up 99 km in. Next is The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod.
3. The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod
Birds are the other half of this story, and the marshes of southern Iraq are a vast and vital place for them. The Ahwar of Southern Iraq, as the World Heritage site is formally called, includes three wetland areas, the Central, Hammar and Huwaizah marshes, and the Refuge of Biodiversity is the part of the listing that acknowledges how much wildlife they hold. The reed beds lie along one of the major bird migration routes between Siberia and Africa, and millions of birds pass or winter here.
Read the complete The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
199 km in you reach The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod. Next is back through The East Hammar Marshes.
4. back through The East Hammar Marshes
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The East Hammar Marshes write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through The East Hammar Marshes, late in the day. Next is The Central Marshes.
5. The Central Marshes
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Central Marshes write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at The Central Marshes. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
The Central Marshes to The East Hammar Marshes
The Central Marshes → The East Hammar Marshes is 72 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
The East Hammar Marshes to The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod
The East Hammar Marshes → The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod is 127 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod to back through The East Hammar Marshes
The Ahwar of Southern Iraq: Refuge of Biod → back through The East Hammar Marshes is 127 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through The East Hammar Marshes to The Central Marshes
back through The East Hammar Marshes → The Central Marshes is 72 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.