Wadi Mujib Siq Trail

CanyonsMadaba, Mujib Biyosfer Rezervi,Jordan

A red sandstone slot in Jordan whose main trail is a swim, climbed upstream against the current from a shore 420 metres below sea level.

September·Peaking now

Sep–Oct

Comfort returns as the heat eases, and the wet trails run every day to their hard close on 31 October. After rain, staff can shut the Siq on the spot, so call the Adventure Centre the morning you set out.

Year-round The red Nubian-sandstone slot, its spring-fed stream running every day of the year, and the Nubian ibex on the cliffs are always here, in a reserve some 420 m below sea level.

The main trail in Wadi Mujib is a swim, and it runs upstream. The canyon opens onto the Dead Sea shore in Jordan, on lower ground than any other nature reserve occupies. The route in starts dry, on a walkway bolted to the cliff that carries you into the mouth of the gorge. After that the water takes over. Two kilometres of red sandstone slot, a life jacket, and a stream coming the wrong way at you the whole time. One minute you are wading ankle-deep, the next you are swimming a pool with no floor under it, and then you are hauling yourself up the next cascade on a fixed rope. The walls stand close together and the gorge lies in shadow for most of the day. Midday is the exception, and it is worth pacing the climb for. For a while the sun stands high enough to drop into the slot, and the wet Nubian sandstone on both sides turns from shadow-grey to warm copper. The way up ends at a waterfall pouring down between the walls, with a pool at its foot to stand in and take the hammering. Then the river does the return: you let go and it carries you back down every pool you fought up, faster and with none of the work. This little stream was once one of the best-known borders in the ancient Near East, the Arnon of the Bible, the line where Moab ended, and it still separates two Jordanian governorates. Nubian ibex were shot out of the cliffs above it and bred back in the reserve, and a few hundred now live on those walls. In winter, when floods make the gorge too dangerous and the wet trails shut, a guided ridge walk goes up through them on dry ground. The day ends where it began, two minutes' walk from the life jackets: you spend hours swimming up fresh water, then step into the Dead Sea and it will not let you sink.

Worth knowing

Good to know

Everyone on the wet trails must be at least 18 — the reserve enforces it at the gate, so a family with younger children needs a different plan for the day.
The Siq is the only self-guided route here — no guide and no advance booking; you sign in at the Adventure Centre and pick up a life jacket. Every other trail needs a guide.
A closed day is a real possibility — after rain, or when the flow runs too strong, staff shut the wet trails on the spot. Call the Adventure Centre the morning you set out.
Assume everything you carry gets soaked — you will be chest-deep and you will slip, so a sealed pouch and shoes with real grip matter more than anything else in your bag.
Start in the first hours after opening — the gorge is coolest and emptiest then, and the reserve stops admitting walkers early enough that a late arrival can be turned away.

Things to do

1
Swim the Siq upstream to the waterfall
A walkway bolted to the cliff carries you dry into the mouth of the gorge, and then the water takes over: life jacket on, two kilometres of red slot canyon, and a stream running the wrong way. One moment you are wading ankle-deep, the next you are swimming a pool with no floor under you, hauling on a fixed rope to get over the next cascade. It ends at a waterfall pouring down between the walls — climb into the pool at its base, take the hammering, then float the whole thing back down.
2
Time your climb to hit the narrows at midday
The slot sits in shadow most of the day, so pace the swim to be deep in the tightest section around midday, when the sun finally climbs high enough to reach the floor. Stop there, tread water, and look straight up as the wet Nubian sandstone shifts from shadow-grey to warm copper on both walls.
3
Float in the Dead Sea after the climb
The trailhead sits on the shore roughly 420 metres below sea level, the lowest ground any nature reserve occupies. Salt water is a two-minute walk from where you hand back the life jacket, and floating in it is the natural way to end a day spent swimming up fresh water.
4
Take the winter Ibex Trail when the water routes close
From November to March the gorge is too dangerous to enter and the wet trails shut, but a guided ridge walk opens above them. It climbs dry ground with the Dead Sea laid out below, through the cliffs where the reserve released its captive-bred Nubian ibex.

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Nearby

15 km