Chapter V (4)

=Wadi Yahameib= originates on the north-west flanks of Gebel Elba, where steep well wooded gorges unite in a steeply sloping stony plain, covered with trees and scrub, between two great spurs of the mountain. There is no pass at its main head, but just before it enters the plain there is a small feeder from among the hills to the west, by following up which one can get over a rather steep pass called =Asut Duk=; this pass forms a short cut for unladen camels between the wells of Kansisrob and Akwamtra, but is too steep for animals loaded with baggage. Curving round to the east, Wadi Yahameib is fed, just before it joins Wadi Aideib, by the =Wadis Akau= and =Kansisrob=, both draining the north parts of a great spur of Gebel Elba. Wadi Akau contains a small spring, called =Megwel Akau=, a short distance above its opening from the hills, while Wadi Kansisrob contains a great well of good water called =Bir Kansisrob=, a short distance up from its mouth. Bir Kansisrob is second only to Bir Akwamtra in importance, and there are usually many Bisharin camps in the wadi just below it. Like all the wadis draining from Elba, Wadis Yahameib and Aideib are full of trees and scrub and grasses; in going to the foot of Elba up the head of Wadi Yahameib with baggage camels, much more difficulty is caused by the closeness of the trees and scrub than by the stony nature of the floor. The Elba district is, I believe, the only place in the Eastern Desert of Egypt where vegetable growth is so abundant as seriously to hinder one’s caravan in approaching the mountains; for the progress of baggage camels to be arrested while still four or five kilometres from a peak by the steep and stony nature of the ground is common enough; but for the arrest to be due to trees and scrub was a new and interesting experience. Even the sand dunes on the west side of Wadi Yahameib are half-covered with coarse grasses, and look green instead of the usual yellow. When we could get no further with our camping equipment, Mr. Bakewell, who had been in South Africa, informed me that we were in what would be called in that country “open bush”; but in comparison with the rest of the desert the place was a jungle.

=Wadi Todhi= drains the high hills about Karam Elba. In the upper part of its course it flows north-east between Karam Elba and a range of lower granite hills called Mikeriba; emerging thence on to the plain, its drainage spreads out over a tract, called =Karam Hindi=, covered with trees, whence part drains to the Wadi Aideib while another part goes to the sea near Suakin el Qadim.

=Suakin el Qadim=, is a collection of mounds close to the sea a little south of latitude 22° 20′. Bent, who visited the place in 1896, found “nothing earlier than Cufic remains, unless the graves, formed of four large blocks of madrepore sunk deep into the ground, may be looked upon as a more ancient form of sepulture.”[101] My native assistant reported there was no well at the place, nor anything of interest besides the graves.

=Wadi Delowa= is a small wadi entering the sea about six kilometres south-east of Suakin el Qadim. It originates in the low hill country near Mikeriba and flows north-east between the little red hill of Alafot and the low banks called Alafot Onqwab on the north and the granite hills of Kreishim and Taar Ara on the south.

=Wadi Serimtai= is an important drainage line, the main head of which is situated in the Sudan, probably near the great mountain of Asotriba. It enters Egypt in longitude 36° 22′, coursing northward between Gebel Hanquf and Gebel Shendodai, from which last-named mountain it receives a feeder called =Wadi Um Seyal=. After passing Gebel Shendodai it crosses a tract of low granite hills to the foot of Gebel O Sir Eirab, where it receives the wadi of the same name and numerous feeders from Gebel Hanquf. It then turns north-east, passing along the foot of the spurs of Elba, and north of the granite hills of O Wota and Abai Sis to reach the sea ten kilometres north-west of Halaib. About twenty-five kilometres up from its mouth, Wadi Serimtai contains a well called =Bir Sararat Serimtai=, which has, however, not been visited. The =Wadi O Sir Eirab=, an important tributary of Serimtai, drains the south flanks of Gebel Elba, coursing at first south-west and then turning sharply eastward. At the turn is a well in the wadi floor called =Bir Salalat O Sir=, 440 metres above sea-level, close to which is an easy pass leading into the head of Wadi O Sir Hadal, a tributary of Wadi Yoider. From its entry into Egypt to its mouth, Wadi Serimtai has a length of forty-five kilometres, and an average slope of twelve and a half metres per kilometre. It contains plenty of trees and scrub, especially in its upper parts.

=Mera Kwan= is a wadi draining north-eastward from Gebel Shendodai and entering the sea a little north of Halaib. It has not been surveyed in detail, but as it drains from high mountains it doubtless contains plenty of vegetation, especially in its upper parts. The lower half of its course is rather sandy, passing among low hills on to the coast-plain.

=Halaib=, the only permanent village on the Red Sea coast of Egypt south of Qoseir,[102] is situated in latitude 22° 13′ 25″ N., longitude 36° 38′ 56″ E.[103] The name of the place is pronounced locally Oleiyib, and though I have retained the established European spelling as given on the charts, none of the natives would recognise the name if pronounced in its Europeanised form. Its most conspicuous buildings, and the only ones composed of masonry in any form, are a fort and a block-house; there are a few rude wooden shanties, mostly built of timber which has been cast up on the beach, but the bulk of the population live in little reed huts and tents of matting. Halaib is the headquarters of a small police force under the command of a moawen, the men being lodged in the fort. The fort, which stands about forty metres from the sea on low ground, is an irregular octagon in plan, about ten metres in diameter by six and a half metres high. As its top is only eight metres above the sea and there are low banks west of it, the fort is not very conspicuous as one approaches it from the landward side, but being whitewashed and open to the sea it is a good landmark for sailors in the neighbourhood. It has two flagstaffs, from which the British and Egyptian flags are flown on Fridays. The fort is entered by a ladder, the floor forming the police quarters being about three metres above ground. Below are water tanks, and above a trap door gives access to the roof, which is carried on iron rails and plastered over with stucco. The roof vibrates too much for it to be used as a triangulation station, and observations here were taken from an eccentric point on the ground and afterwards reduced to centre. The block-house is a smaller rectangular structure, whitewashed, situated on a low bank about 400 metres south-west of the fort. A small jetty, built of coral, runs out from near the fort far enough for a small boat to get alongside.

There are five wells at Halaib, all within a few hundred metres of the fort. The water is very hard, and exerts a very strongly aperient action on those unused to it, though the Arabs of the place consider it very good. A small Government garden near the fort contains a few small date palms, but there is no other cultivation. There is a sort of bazaar, where one can buy clothes, sugar, dates, fat, etc., but the supplies are small and there was no flour to be got when I was there. Eggs can be purchased from the Arabs, who possess a few fowls, and excellent fish can be got very cheaply from the fishermen. For a daily wage of eight piastres a fisherman supplied me with as much fresh fish daily as I and my men could eat. Sheep can be got from the hills at a day’s notice, a good fat one costing L.E. 1. Firewood has to be brought in from the mountains, and any European making a stay at the place would do well to send to Bir Kansisrob or Bir Frukit for pure water at the same time. The people are very friendly, but only a few speak Arabic. There is a _kuttab_ where boys learn to read and write Arabic under the tuition of a sheikh from Suakin, so that Arabic may perhaps be more spoken after another generation.

There are two islands a little north of Halaib, both low and sandy. The larger one, called =Geziret Halaib el Kebir=, is nearly triangular, with sides about three and a half kilometres long. It can be reached easily by wading across a narrow channel in low states of the sea. On it is the grave, marked by a wooden cross, of Lieut. Stewart, R.N., who lost his life in a fight with Dervishes here in 1886. The smaller island lies further north; it is called =Geziret Kwolala=[104] on account of its nearly circular shape.

Halaib possesses an excellent harbour, though it is sometimes difficult of access to sailing vessels owing to the direction of its entrance.[105] It is visited occasionally by Coast Guard cruisers as well as by small trading boats from Suakin. On enquiry of the local sailors, I found most of the names given on the Admiralty Charts of this district to be unknown to them. For example, Abu Dara, Sherm Alueda, Ras Abu Fatma, Elba Island, Ras Jazriyal, and Cape Elba were all unknown. Abu Dara was called by the natives Shekra el Delam, while Elba Island was called Geziret el Dibia, and Cape Elba is locally known as Ras Hadarba. I obtained the following names for the small anchorages north and south of Halaib, though I could not locate them exactly on the maps, as the sailors could not read a map sufficiently well, and the harbours themselves are mere gaps through the outer coral reef, not visible indentations of the actual coast-line. Starting from Bir Adal Deib and going southward, Mersa Abu el Qâsim is near the mouth of Wadi el Kiraf; a big tree forms a landmark for entering it. Further on is Mersa Harâba, then Mersa Abu Naam with an island opposite to it, then, after passing Ras Unbilat, comes Mersa Yoider, at the mouth of Wadi Yoider, where there is a well called Bir Nabit. Passing Abu Ramad well in Wadi Aideib, and Suakin el Qadim, one comes to Mersa Aqwetit, then to Mersa Serimtai, at the mouth of Wadi Serimtai, opposite the island of Kwolala, and then to Mersa Halaib itself. South of Halaib the principal anchorage is Mersa Shellal, at the mouth of Wadi Shellal. The cape in latitude 22° 10′ is called Ras Qubet Isa. A small anchorage south of Ras Hadarba (Cape Elba) appears to be called indifferently Mersa Hadarba (from the hills near it) or Mersa Qabatit (from the wadi and well near it); but I could not make quite sure if these are one and the same, or two separate anchorages.

=Wadi Shellal= heads between the high mountain masses of Gebels Shendodai and Shellal, and courses north-east for about thirty kilometres to reach the coast about four kilometres south-east of Halaib. In its lower part, where it crosses the coast-plain, it is a broad shallow drainage channel full of scrub. Its upper parts, which have not been explored, are doubtless well supplied with trees, and are stated to be the principal habitat of the Hamedorab Arabs.

=Wadi Aqilhoq=, which drains the eastern parts of Gebel Shellal, courses about parallel to Wadi Shellal a few kilometres further south. It contains a well, =Bir Frukit=, about twenty kilometres up from its mouth, near some dark conspicuous foot hills called Gebel Balatitda. This well yields a constant supply of very good water, and is the place where I sent for my water supplies in commencing my return march to Port Sudan. The position of the well as shown on the map is only approximate, but its direction having been pointed out with the alidade by guides from two plane-table stations, I believe the location is pretty nearly correct.

=Wadi Aqwei= drains east of north from among the foot-hills east of Gebel Shellal, and enters the sea four kilometres west of Ras Qubet Isa. Where I crossed it two kilometres from its mouth it was a broad shallow wadi with plenty of scrub, dividing round a low but conspicuous gravel bank before reaching the sea.

=Kreit-reit-or= is a similar wadi to that last mentioned, coursing north-eastward over the plain from among low hills, and entering the sea five kilometres south-east of Ras Qubet Isa. About two kilometres south of Kreit-reit-or, at a distance of three and a half kilometres from the coast, and thirty metres above sea-level, are the bitter wells of =Ti Kureitra=. These are four wells, sunk about twelve metres deep in the gypseous strata which here underlie the sand and gravel of the coast-plain. The wells are lined with slabs of selenite. The water is so strongly purgative that a number of my Arabs who drank of it were made extremely unwell, and the wells are chiefly used for watering the flocks of sheep which graze in the neighbouring valleys.

From the group of conspicuous though not very high hills called Gebel Hadarba, ten kilometres west of Ras Hadarba (Cape Elba) many drainage channels cross the coast-plain towards the sea in a direction north of east. Some of the drainage lines form the north side of the hills reach the sea east of Ti Kureitra wells; but others lose themselves in a quicksand called =Kuatianai=, or “the devourer,” which covers a large triangular space of about twenty square kilometres about the cape. At the actual cape, rocks are visible at the coast, and the quicksand, so far as I could judge from a distance, appears to be really a lagoon, filled with the sand washed down from the hills. The Arabs state that camels wandering on this sand get swallowed up; the colour of its surface is distinctly darker than the rest of the plain.

On either side of the 22nd parallel, near the sea are low gravel-covered banks of calcareous grit, seventy metres high in places, and through these pass several broad wadis draining from the low hill country further west. The chief of these wadis, called =Wadi Qabatit=, enters the sea at a well defined inlet of the coast called Mersa Qabatit. A well, =Bir Qabatit=, is situated in the bed of another drainage channel a little south of the main wadi, one and a half kilometres south-east of the mersa and 3·85 kilometres south of the 22nd parallel. The ground at the well is only five metres above the sea. The well is a big excavation in the wadi floor, and its water surface is about at sea-level. To me the water tasted decidedly salt, but the Arabs say it does not purge them.

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[Footnote 89: Floyer’s map (_Geog. Journal_, 1893) gives the name Gemal as continuing further up as far as the pass into Wadi Durunkat; but my guides say this is an error.]

[Footnote 90: This road is said to lead _via_ Ghuel, Um Khariga, and Dabur, to Gebel Hamrat Wogud.]

[Footnote 91: For a brief mention of the ruins of Berenice, _see_ p. 29.]

[Footnote 92: Each of the three vowels in Naait is pronounced broad and separately, so that the word has three syllables.]

[Footnote 93: _Allawi_ = crooked.]

[Footnote 94: I did not hear anything of this in 1907 when in the neighbourhood, perhaps owing to the ignorance of my Ababda guides. The information was given me further south in 1908 by several Bisharin guides, who appeared to know the place well and who all agreed on the point.]

[Footnote 95: The authors of “The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan,” 1905 (Vol. I, p. 87) erroneously place Bir Shalatein in Wadi Hasium instead of at the mouth of Wadi Hodein. The mistake has led to erroneous delineation of the administrative boundary between Egypt and the Sudan in existing maps (_see_ p. 74).]

[Footnote 96: This and the other main feeders of Wadi Hodein are described in more detail in following pages.]

[Footnote 97: The final syllable in _Silsila_ is hardly heard when the name is spoken by an Ababda Arab; it sounds like _Silsi_ unless one is listening specially for the end of the word.]

[Footnote 98: To be distinguished from the Wadi Gemal further north mentioned on p. 100.]

[Footnote 99: Bir Madi, 12¼ kilometres north of Bir Sararat Seyet, was at this time open and giving good supplies.]

[Footnote 100: This and the other main Egyptian tributaries of Di-ib are described in more detail in the following pages.]

[Footnote 101: _Geographical Journal_, 1896.]

[Footnote 102: Qoseir is in latitude 26° 6′ north, about 400 kilometres as the crow flies from Halaib.]

[Footnote 103: The position given is that of the centre of the fort, as determined by my triangulation from the Nile Valley.]

[Footnote 104: _Kwolala_ is the Bishari word for circle.]

[Footnote 105: _Red Sea Pilot._ 1900. p. 130.]