With its focus on fancy five-star city living and dramatic desertscapes it’s easy to forget that Dubai is just a short drive away from beautiful mountains. If, like me, you can’t face the logistics and the gear that goes hand in hand with camping (or so I assume, never actually having braved it), it’s still possible to enjoy the mountains without actually committing to anything that might require a visit to what I remember as Millets back in the UK.
First up, cycling in south Ras Al Khaimah. From the heart of Dubai, it’s an hour’s drive to Showka Bicycles where you can hire a Stumpjumper for Dhs70 an hour and head out to explore the Showka trails. They also give you a helmet, gloves and knee and elbow guards if you want them (I am very much an amateur cyclist and had no intention of doing anything that might necessitate body protection so chose to forego the extra padding). We were out for two-and-a-half hours (disclaimer: we got entirely lost but we always had phone connection and it’s relatively easy to navigate once you locate the main road, but if you’re worried, the shop provides guides) with some friends who ranged from utterly useless (me) to guys reclaiming their BMX heydays on the jumps and hills. The bikes are great. I have zero sense of balance (or direction) and felt pretty secure, even on some of the steeper downhill runs. Back at base, there are shower facilities and coffee and you can be back in Dubai for lunch. That’s my kind of adventure.
A little further away, at just over two hours’ drive (two-and-a-half if you factor in a detour to Barracuda on the way back like we did), is the zipline at Jebel Jais. The drive in itself is fun (we listened to a lot of Freakonomics), with the last half an hour winding up into the Hajar mountains and offering gorgeous views and photo opportunities. While the World’s longest zipline opened back in early 2018, the site has recently extended its offering with the addition of the Sky Trail zipline tour, a route of seven separate ziplines that take you zig zagging through the Jebel Jais canyons over 5kms. Unlike the longest zipline, you ‘zip’ in a seated position, which is less restrictive than the horizontal body harness required for the original ride. With two guides on hand at the start and finish of each line, It takes about an hour to complete the tour (we went on a quiet week day morning – it may be longer on busy weekends) and also includes a walk across the UAE’s highest sky bride, suspended 300 metres above the ground. You can hire a GoPro camera to capture the full Indiana Jones-style experience, and at just Dhs200 (the GoPro is extra) it’s great value. And you don’t even have to go to Millets*.
*my shiny blue tights are by Koral, white tee by Lululemon and leather jacket by Uterque
