Amman, London, Chicago, Boston, and New Hampshire

The day before I leave was a busy day, maybe not truly but more mentally, a bit of last minute freaking out, Indeed I was still having some doubts if I did the right thing turning off the IT offer I have just got, and rather choosing again to stick to travel and to the adventure. But to get out of all this mess I decided to go out with some friends for one more last Shisha.

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I believe it is time for a new adventure!

It has been almost two years since I came back from Africa. The first year went well, but the second year unfortunately didn’t go as planned, this doesn’t mean it was bad, but it needed a stop and a look to change the plans for a better one.

I believe traveling is another addiction I am getting dragged in (considering the first to be Adventure and Outdoors), and so I believe it is time to hit the road again.

The Jordan Trail (Hidan, Mujeb, Kerak, Wadi Rum, Red Sea)

Rum to Aqaba, Aqaba Mountains.

During the last couple of weeks The Jordan Trail team was out on the trail, Mapping, Photographing and keeping notes about the trail, we have done two amazing parts. The first was from Wadi Hidan all the way to Kerak City, crossing Wadi Mujeb which took us 4 days camping out, one night near Shqaiq Area and the other 2 nights down in Wadi Mujeb.

Jordan Trail (Homrat Ma'en to Waleh)

Down Wadi Waleh - Hidan

During the last days we have done scouting 3 more sections of The Jordan Trail, (Zarqa Ma’en p to Makawer, Makawer down to Hedan), and parts of the third section that goes down from Humrat Ma’en to Zarqa Ma’en, all 3 parts are amazing hikes, where you get up and down through many different topographic

The Jordan Trail (Homrat Ma'en)

Monday (13, Oct), I joined the team mapping the Jordan trail in the first hike, the team was: Tony & Di Tailor, Mark Khano, Amjad Shahrour, they have already done mapping  a good part of the trail, Most of the northern regions up to now, I will be joining the team during the coming month mapping, walking and taking the GPS and walking notes for more than 200 km mostly to the south of Jordan, yesterday we hiked around 7.5 km in Humrat Maen Aria crossing from before wadi Hemara and reaching to Wadi Zarqa Maen, a pleasant hike, contained some up and downhill, the start point was full of Acacia trees, along the way we saw different birds, crested larks, Tristram starlings, what I believe a Hoopoe lark, some hyena tracks and territorial marking, different types of butterflies, and some interesting flora, but the most intresting thing in the hike was the amazing views toward the Dead Sea area.

Wadi Al-Hesa

Wadi Hesa : the end side toward The Dead Sea.

Wadi Al-Hesa goes around 25 km from the potash mines near the desert high way, all the way down to reach to Ghor Al-Safi on the Dead Sea. Most of its Water comes from Sad Al-Tanur -Water Dam-, which took its name from the archeological site near by in Khirbet Al-Tanur. The water in most of the parts runs in a gorge that varies in the different areas going from Limestone to Sand Stone, and to sediment walls in other parts. Many water source seeps from its walls, some from hot sources while others are cold. Some of these water sources are even drinkable. (Check the canyon map below).

Wilderness First Aid - Hike Safe!

In outdoors you should always be ready for the unexpected. In an extreme environment with many parameters out of control, accidents may happen. And then you will need to be prepared as a trip leader to provide the help and care for people who become ill or injured far from definitive medical care, and only using the limited resources Available.

The minute the guide accepts a participant to be in his group, he takes all the responsibility for bringing him back safe. In general, few simple acts of first Aid can make a difference between life and death, the lack of understanding these acts can put everyone in the outdoor group in danger.

King of the Jungle

There are no words to describe the feeling when you stand in front of a wild animal when you are in a Walking Safari, what if this animal was the king of the Jungle?

I still remember the first time I did so in my course in South Africa. There is nothing between us we stood there and looked each other on the eyes.

The whole feeling differs when you are the guide! Here you have to be aware of everything around you, every single move, not only that you have to be ready for the worst, if thee lion decided to attach –which not supposed to happen if you know what you are doing-, and above all give your client the chance to satisfy their lifetime dream.

Birding and Bird Guiding in Jordan

We’re down the end of the winter season. For birds the spring migration has begun and that means it’s peak season for bird-watching.

Birdwatching or birding is the observation of birds as a recreational activity in their natural environment either by naked eyes or with the help of a visual enhancement device –binoculars-, or even by listening to the birds’ calls and songs.

Hoopoe - Upopa epopos. Photo by: Osama Tamimi

Birding has become a truly international pastime, inspiring an increasing number of enthusiasts to travel the world in pursuit of rare and exotic species, often in fragile ecosystems.

Jordan is an exceptional place for birdwatching. Its geographical position means that it is a hub for migratory species from Europe, Africa and Asia. The birdlife of all three continents pass through Jordan twice a year on their passage between seasonal habitats and sometimes it is possible to see specimens from each at the same time.

During the period 28^th February to 7^th March Baraka have conducted the first phase of the first Jordanian Certified Bird Guiding Program that aims to train and certify specialized bird-watching guides capable of leading dedicated international birding groups accordance with international best practices. This is in a step toward developing the birding and nature tourism in the country.

11 DAYS, 11 MARATHONS TO GIVE HOPE TO CHILDREN IN JORDAN

Amman—After his run around the world, David Christof will cross the Kingdom of Jordan in eleven marathons from the 15th to the 25th of March. David hopes to raise money for Jordanian and Syrian children’s educational needs such as school improvements, supplies and equipment.

Over a third of all Syrian refugees who have found refuge in the Kingdom are children and Jordan is struggling to meet the needs for teachers, materials and space to provide them with an education. Informal schools run from garages and other ad-hoc locations attempt to provide education to the children who cannot enroll in the Kingdom’s over-crowded schools.

The First Specialized Training in Nature Guiding

A photo of the participants in the Nature Guides Training course

The RSCN held the first specialized training for their Nature Guides last Sunday (5-1-2014) as part of the building capacity for their employees in order to provide the guests with the best experience possible.

The training was delivered by Four FGASA (Filed Guide Association of South Africa) Guides (Osama Cori, Osama Al-Smadi, Abdulla Abo-Rumman, and Nadia Al-Aloul) who have spent a year studying Nature Guiding In Eco-Training Academy, South Africa.

This Course was a first of its kind in the region, covering an introduction to the intended skills needed for a guide to build the best experience for his guests, and covering the basic knowledge that the guide need to possess to be able to interpret the environment to his guests. The training where build through over 6 months during which the four guides were working on developing a training curricula similar to the South African one but well fitted to the needs of the region.