An expedition will take place to cross the Rub Al Khali, the biggest sand desert in the world, as part of Oman’s 45th National Day celebrations, it has been announced.
With the blessing of Sultan Qaboos bin Said, the Crossing the Empty Quarter expedition will be only the second time in recorded history an attempt is being made to cross the Rub Al Khali.
A team of Omani and British explorers will leave from Salalah in Oman on December 10 and walk across the desert through Saudi Arabia to Doha in Qatar.
The two month journey will be tackled by the expedition team that includes two Omanis – Mohammed Al Zadjali and Amour Al Wahaibi – and British explorer Mark Evans. They will depart from Bait Mirbat Salalah with the aim to reach Doha at the end of January 2016, a journey of 1,300km.
The 2015 expedition will trace the route taken by the first men credited with making the crossing in 1930. British explorer Bertram Thomas and Sheikh Saleh bin bin Kalut took 60 days to reach their destination negotiating their way through warring tribes, sand storms and an unforgiving landscape, combatting scorching heat, freezing nights, blinding sandstorms and surviving on a diet of brackish water, dates, dried meat and packet soup.
The 2015 expedition will again be conducted solely on foot and by camel train.
Mark Evans, general manager of Outward Bound Oman and head of the Crossing the Empty Quarter expedition team said: “We are proud to be undertaking this historic and challenging expedition, and look forward to starting the journey in a little over one months’ time.
“One of our key objectives is to encourage and inspire young people, and instill the idea that success in life can only be achieved by sustained hard work, willingness and team spirit.”
Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, secretary general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, added: “This expedition comes as part of the 45th National Day, celebrating the wise leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said – the first patron of the youth and reflects his determination to equip and inspire Omani youth to be prepared for future challenges. We wish the participants all the best on this journey in their quest to build on the achievements of their ancestors.”
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