Top 5 tips when walking in a sandstorm

Hiking on Jumeirah Beach. Click this image to see more pics.

This week’s group training activity with Gulf for Good was a walk along the entire length of Jumeirah Beach.  I’d missed this when I had bronchitis and was really keen to do it especially as dogs aren’t allowed on the beach in Dubai, so I usually walk about a third of this route relegated to the pavement.  Bea, my 11 year- old daughter, said she’d come with me so I woke her while it was still dark and we fumbled about as we found there was no electricity.  The first major crisis was averted – I could make tea by heating water over gas – or I might have had to cancel!  My husband, lie-in completely disturbed by my clattering into things, drove us to the car park near the Dubai Marine Beach Resort.

The wind was swirling around making the palm trees sway and even though it was early in the morning it felt warm, muggy and sandy – the beginning of a shamal or sandstorm.  We were a mixed group, old and young, fit and less fit, with some people already signed up for challenges in Lebanon, Kilimanjaro and Cuba and others still making up their minds.  We walked at a brisk pace with the oncoming wind and the sand underfoot providing extra resistance.  I decided to test out my accumulated hiking gear as it is too late to find out if something rubs or is uncomfortable when you are halfway up a mountain in Lebanon.  My Camelbak for water was great but walking boots and thick socks in 30 °C lead to some very strange looks from passersby.  The weather conditions meant that the beach was nearly deserted and we could walk nearly the entire 13km on sand with the blue Arabian Gulf (can I still say this?!) to our right and some splendid villas and palaces to our left.  There were a few detours onto the side roads, a clamber over rocks and through the middle of a fishing port.  We actually walked through the fishermen’s living area which caused them great amusement but what we saw was a huge contrast to the earlier splendour.  The men sleep in igloo-shaped huts made of sticks and material, resembling oversized lobster pots.  There was just enough room to fit a tiny bed inside.  Conditions must be particularly grim when temperatures soar in the summer.

We also saw all manner of boats along this coastline from tiny rowing boats, to gleaming speed boats and gin palaces to elegant, wooden racing dhows.  By the end of the walk the going was tough; Bea and I bade the group farewell on Umm Suqeim Beach as we could walk home rather than taxi.  With the sand whipping into our faces we reached our front door in just under 3 hours (to restored electricity thank goodness).  So these are my top tips (with tongue firmly in cheek) for walking in a sandstorm:

1. Wear a hat with a big brim to protect your face from a micro-dermabrasion session.
2. Sports sun protection (that dries to nothing) is essential if you do not want to resemble a pebble-dashed wall.
3. If you wear lip-salve make sure it’s not the sticky stuff or you’ll feel like you’ve eaten a doughnut without licking your lips.
4. WAG mega-sized sunglasses are essential.
5. Surround yourself with a lovely team from Gulf for Good and you’ll hardly notice the stinging on your legs or contemplate how you will ever get the sand out of your ears.

P.S. Training going well but I’m booked in with my friend who is a personal trainer on Thursday as I need to walk uphill on a treadmill.  I haven’t used a gym for over 14 years so I’m very apprehensive.  Ann, be kind to me.

Kit, fitness, funds and hounds

Dog tired

This week has been a lot about boots.  It’s a long, exhausting and tedious saga which would bore the pants off you (especially if your pants are elasticated and beige…more of that anon).  After weeks of trouble (and contributing to global warming in the amount of short car journeys to shopping malls) I’m now the owner of a brand new pair of comfortable, well-designed, walking boots. These replace a pair of uncomfortable boots which had a manufacturing defect.  I won’t name names but the clue is ‘like the rapper’.  This retailer’s systems in Dubai seem specially designed to make life incredibly difficult for the customer.  I’ve done a tour of most of their shops and had conversations of a degree of absurdity that only shoppers in the Middle East can truly appreciate.   The systems aside, the staff at head office and in-store are delightful and I finally walked out this morning with a big smile on my face ready to start breaking them in (the boots not the staff). I’ve been trying to get the rest of my kit list this week while the Dubai Shopping Festival is on and I have now learned all there is to know about breathable hiking clothing.  It comes in many, many shades of one colour – beige.  I now possess trousers that wouldn’t look out of place on a Saga holiday.

The aching caused by doing squats last Friday only abated on Wednesday.  My girls didn’t have a twinge and did not disguise their complete derision.  Marjan who has done three challenges with Gulf for Good gave me some really good advice about preparing for my trip.  My dogs are getting very fit with their two hour walk everyday (the picture is of them in recovery) but I need to do something more serious.  A visit to the gym is the only solution.  I can’t quite believe that I wrote that last sentence.

I’m spurred on by the brilliant encouragement and generosity of my friends, family and sponsors.  And yes, I have sponsors in plural now.

BASF - the world's leading chemical company.

First off the post was BASF UAE.  They take corporate responsibility very seriously and the contribution to these children’s charities is a small but very welcome part of this.  I’m really grateful for their help in fundraising for refugee and orphaned children in Lebanon.  Visit the sponsor page to find out more about them and more about sponsoring this trek.  News about some other great supporters coming soon.

Donations are also trickling in, for instance a friend’s car screeched to a halt when I was on my dog walk this morning and a 200 dirham note was waved out of the window.  With this sort of help and people contributing ‘Gold for Good’ I could actually exceed my target which is fantastic news for the charities.  Please contact me if you can help in any way.  A mention for my husband who has had a daily, blow-by-blow account of my boot saga for the last 3 weeks and finally begged for mercy.  Thanks everyone.