The paved road brought us through the desert scenery to the Moreeb Dune (Tal Moreeb). This is the edge of the beautiful but fearsome Rub Al Khali, and undulating, orange sand-dune fields rim both sides of the road along the route. The bitumen runs out at the foot of Tal Moreeb (the name translates as ‘scary mountain’), one of the world’s tallest dunes, soaring almost 300m high.
The area directly under the dune is, unfortunately, rather built up, with a camel race track and various buildings and porta-cabins used in the annual Liwa Sports Festival, which spoils any romantic idea of desert panoramas you may have had. Still, the dune scenery along the way out here makes the visit more than worthwhile. We did not spot anyone except a few road workers for two days, so we got a postapocalyptic feeling driving around a “deserted” area.
Parking location – Tal Moreeb: 23.002338N 53.760049E