Great Sand Sea

The Great Sand Sea covers something over seventy thousand square kilometres across western Egypt and into Libya, one of the largest dune fields on earth, with linear dunes running for hundreds of kilometres and rising well over a hundred metres, separated by gravel corridors. There is no road, no water and no settlement, so travel means a permitted convoy with fuel, water and navigation carried. Rommel and Almasy crossed parts of it; the Zerzura legend attaches to it. Within it lies a scatter of Libyan Desert glass, pale yellow-green silica formed by an impact event around twenty-nine million years ago, one piece of which was cut into the scarab at the centre of a pectoral from Tutankhamun's tomb. Fossil lake beds hold prehistoric artefacts.

What you actually see

• Linear dunes hundreds of kilometres long - the structure of the sand sea.
• Libyan Desert glass - pale silica from an ancient impact event.
• Fossil lake beds - prehistoric artefacts on old shorelines.
• Absolute emptiness - no water, road or settlement in any direction.

When to go

October to March; the sand sea is impassable in summer heat. Two days for a short edge trip from Siwa, up to two weeks for a full crossing. Permits must be arranged well in advance and are sometimes refused.

Honest expectations

This is a full desert expedition requiring permits, a licensed operator, convoy travel and satellite communication; it cannot be improvised. Permits are frequently denied and areas near the border are closed. Removing desert glass is illegal. Breakdowns far from help are a real risk.

Nearby

Siwa lies at the north-eastern edge; Bahariya is east across the desert.