Overnight Walk up Mount Sinai

by **charlie-lou18** on Wed Mar 12, 2008 13:58 pm

Has anyone doen this trip? If so, who with? I've read that you need to be quite fit to do it and a bit worried I might not make it to the top! Would love to do it though

by **Sekhmet** on Wed Mar 12, 2008 15:40 pm

Haven't done it but know people who have & yes, it's quite tiring.
there is an option to take a comel for part of the way & you'd be on board for about 1.5 hrs. My male friend says don't take the camel down if you're a fella as the pressure from the saddles on the "family jewels" is not to be endured! : 0
It will be a long trip in the sense that it's about 2.5 - 3 hrs to St. Catherines & Mount Sinai, then you climb up for a few hrs, sit up there, watch the sunrise & descend. Unsure if you also visit the monastry too; believe that you may well do if it's a longwood trip.
So, you have to set off late pm / eve of one day, be awake all night & thru into next day, as I understand it. It's cool / cold up the mountain, depending on the time of yr; you need to be covered up to enter the monastery, remember. Torches are handy on this trip.
Longwoods have a website; hotels & local vendors will also offer this trip. You con't have to be thru Longwood to book this , or any trip, thru them.
Longwoods office is in Na'ama bay, next to the Jolie Ville Resort & Casino, on the main rd thru Na'ama. the office is upstairs in shopping mall 8. My female friend always books thru Longwood & finds them to be very good.

by **charlie-lou18** on Thu Mar 13, 2008 13:40 pm

Thanks for the advice

Going in November so will it be very cold at the top? I do feel the cold! Have had a look at Longwoods and they seem to only do the trip on a Friday night???? Have seen the trip on DO Somthing Different - has anyone booked with them before?

Also, what other trips would you recommend? We are staying in sharm for a few days either side of a Nile cruise and are keen to do as much as poss?

by **Sekhmet** on Fri Mar 14, 2008 09:19 am

Have you checked the Tips for 1st Timers thread? (Sharm forum) That has a section on trips. have a look at that & then feel free to ask about any of the ones mentioned. Have done many of them & if I haven't, will point you in the direction of someone who has or obtain info for you.

by **Sekhmet** on Fri Mar 14, 2008 09:21 am

P.S. Yes, it will be pretty cold at the top! We have only ever been to Sharm in Dec / Jan when night temps can be 13-19 in resort, where it's warmer. When we did stargazing in the desert (& Mt Sinai is in the desert) I wore a sports thermal vest, 3 other layers, a heavy fleece & a bedouin scarf! I'm also "nesh" (that's local slang in Notts for feeling the cold easily)

by **Petrafyde** on Fri Apr 04, 2008 23:37 pm

My first visit to Sharm was in November, and the days are wonderfully sunny - and the nights wonderfully cold. Pack a thick long sleeved top, and take a cardigan. Remember, that although it is cold, you will be doing physical exercise which will warm you up anyway!

Do not worry about your state of health. I have NOT been on the mountain trip yet, I plan to when we go back for our honeymoon in July - but knowing the Egyptians, and how the majority DO take care of the tourists, if you are struggling - they will help you. I've put on a lot of weight since our last baby, and it was a concern of mine until common sense leapt in!

Sunsets in Egypt are truly, fantastically, magnificent. The sun rises around 5am (so the night isn't as long as you may imagine). Take a torch, dress appropriately and let the camel go and use your legs - you'll feel more achievement if you climb/walk it un-aided.

All the best of luck, hope you enjoy.

by **rolanbanach** on Mon Apr 07, 2008 16:38 pm

I have just come back from Sharm and I went up Mount Sinai with my two daughters. It is a very memorable experience but it was extremely busy when we went up. Apparently St Catherine's monastery had been closed the day before and that was partly why it was so busy. I would judge there were getting on for a thousand people going up on that day from all over the world and it was a wonderful atmosphere but also quite exhausting. A number of people were struggling on the way up and there is always the offer of a camel but the steepest and highest bit you can only climb up. It's good if your used to hiking already and also have a head for heights. We travelled by Cosmos and the tour rep. advised that they stopped doing the trip for health and safety reasons but I found a firm Virginproperties.org who do the trip and also include breakfast on the way home (but you still need to take something up with you to eat on the mountain although there are cafes at several points). Our guide at the monastey and on the bus was very good but we did not have a very good guide on the mountain as he mainly spoke russian but as there are so many people you do not really need a guide on the mountain but it is helpful to get a clear meeting place and time when you come down as there can be so many people there. It was warm when we went and we only needed a thin fleece going up the mountain and I would think it is extreme warm in the summer but colder in the winter.

Brian

by **snowwhite7** on Sun Oct 05, 2008 09:48 am

justs climbed Mt. Sinai, we are both in our sixties and refused the camel ride (even though the guides said we would need help). Set out at 2 a.m. and got back at 8 a.m. Saw the most magnificent sunrise ever on the top. It is quite an arduous walk, especially the last 700 steps but well worth it.. The walk back was quite precarious, as it was very slippery on the stones and rocks. so we kept sliding every so often and I actually fell over, but apart from that it was a magnificent walk.. From the top it was breath taking seeing all the torches and lanterns in the dark winding their way up to the summit -awesome. The views are something else.

Yes I think you need to be fit to do this climb - we both run three times a week - but did not find it too strenuous - in fact we did not even ache the next day. Enjoy