Our Cars: Toyota FJ – Weeks 6-7

On the trail of the dead 

by Imthishan Giado

9th March  – 15th March – Read Report For Weeks 4-6

Toyota FJ Long term tombs

Know what the best thing is about our long term FJ? It turns everyone into a Thesiger-style explorer, willing to wander deep into the unknown wild simply to find out what’s on the other side.

Exhibit #1: many years ago, I had heard stories of strange structures scattered across the northen slopes of the tallest peak in the UAE, Jebel Hafeet. Today, we know that these structures are in fact tombs built more than 5,000 years ago, predating modern religion and virtually all history.

Until quite recently, the tombs – accessible only by 4×4 – were at the mercy of whomever happened upon them and quite a few were damaged by curious treasure seekers. But in 2011, the tombs were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, under the protection of the federal government and a select few are open to the public – if you can get there, that is.

With the keys to my trusty FJ, getting there would not be a problem. Finding them wouldn’t be either, thanks to my equally trusty guide Mark Cabiling, who agreed to lead the way in his mildly-modified Pajero.

We started as early as possible, but the arrow-straight road to Al Ain remains as dull as ever. Frankly, I wished I was in Mark’s Pajero for most of this bit. Despite the FJ having a more powerful V6, the poor aerodynamics and tall gearing meant that my Tonka truck felt super-wheezy on the highway, not to mention super noisy. It was with some relief that we finally pulled into a petrol station an hour later to stock up on supplies.

Toyota FJ Long Term Tombs

After navigating our way through Al Ain’s roundabout-infested streets, we finally arrived at the base of Jebel Hafeet. Where most travel straight on, the trick is to turn left at the last roundabout, whereupon you enter a narrow two-lane road that hugs the left most corner of the mountain for a few clicks.

Toyota FJ Long Term Tombs

Mark’s seriously into his geocaching, so we pulled off briefly to locate one such hidden treasure. While he scaled the nearest peak looking for a box of bits, I was er, looking for an outdoor restroom. Coming on a hill, I saw a flash of white, a rich seam that seem be running jaggedly through the rocks. No, it wasn’t some strange ore – it was a camel graveyard, full of bleached white bones.

Toyota FJ Long Term Tombs

Leaving the somewhat grisly site behind us, we rejoined the main road. After a few kilometres, we happened upon a great open plain, with the mountain rising majestically to our right. This was a cue to leave the road and press on into the unknown. Trouble is, the unknown is full of big, sharp, pointy rocks that would just love to tear a chunk out your sidewall. Did I slow down? Hell no, I’m in an FJ!

At several points, the road was washed out entirely by steep gullies filled with a bed of yes, more sharp rocks. While Mark in his low-ground-clearance Pajero scouted for an alternative route, I decided the bone-stock FJ could make it across. I didn’t have any fancy Land Rover style traction controls, nor did I engage torque-multiplying low range, but impressively the FJ made across the rocks without so much as a single scrape. At many points climbing slippery shale hills, all I could see was blue sky – but the unstoppable FJ just kept going. For what’s it worth – I did turn traction control off, and I did engage the centre diff lock to make sure torque was split between the axles. The next step if the rocks proved too slippery would have been low range, but the FJ never needed it.

Toyota FJ Long Term Tombs

Eventually, we left the boulders behind. But nothing could quite have prepared us for the strange sight in front of us, a giant hole in the side of the mountain like a gaping wound, the tombs surrounding it like rocky igloos. From a distance, they’re clearly man-made structures – up close, you wonder how someone was able to drag and fashion all the rocks…and why.

Toyota FJ Long Term Tombs

Each of the dome-like tombs is roughly six feet high, with a small narrow passage the only means of entrance. And when I say narrow, I mean narrow – it’s about four feet high tops. I only just managed to scrunch myself through the claustrophobically small gap. Inside the tomb – well, if you were expecting the Mummy, sorry. All that there is to be found inside is a mound of sand, the roof open to the elements.

Toyota FJ Long Term Tombs

We spent the afternoon exploring the rest of the area past the giant hole (still no idea what that was/is) but truth be told there’s not much more to see; the Oman border fence is less than a kilometre away. But on our way back to the main road, there was one more surprise – a field of wild melons growing quite randomly in the desert! Unbelievably surreal. But they’re definitely not for eating…

Toyota FJ Long Term Tombs

If you’re going up to Jebel Hafeet, the tombs are certainly worth the short detour it would take to get there. But I wouldn’t recommend going in anything less than a ‘proper’ 4×4 – you need decent ground clearance to cross the washouts, and a puncture is very likely from all those rocks as well.

No challenge for our FJ though, which I now think should be christened the Toyota Thesiger!

 

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.