Wadi El Hitan (Valley of the Whales)

Wadi El Hitan, the Valley of the Whales, is a remote desert valley in the Faiyum region that holds one of the most important fossil sites in the world, which is why it is a World Heritage Site. Scattered across the sand and eroding from the rock are the skeletons of ancient whales that lived some forty million years ago, when this desert lay beneath a warm sea. Crucially, these early whales still had small hind legs, and their fossils captured here provide vivid evidence of one of evolution's great transitions, the return of a land mammal to the ocean. A walking trail winds among the exposed skeletons and the wind-sculpted rock formations, and a small open-air museum shelters the finest specimens. It is a place that combines strange, sculptural desert scenery with a genuinely significant scientific story, and its isolation keeps it quiet.

History

The first fossil whale skeletons here were found in the winter of 1902-1903, but for 80 years the remote valley drew little interest; in the 1980s, as four-wheel-drive vehicles became common, interest returned, collectors carried off many bones, and calls grew to protect the site. Its fossils of archaeocetes, among them skeletons up to 21 metres long with five-fingered flippers and, unexpectedly, hind legs, feet and toes, are preserved so well that some stomach contents survive, and with the sharks, crocodiles, sawfish, turtles and rays found with them they allow the ancient environment to be reconstructed. In July 2005 the valley was designated a World Heritage Site for the light it sheds on how whales emerged as ocean-going mammals from land animals (Wikipedia, Wadi al Hitan).

The landscape

• The whale skeletons - fossil skeletons of ancient whales lying in the sand.
• The legged whales - specimens preserving the small hind legs that show the sea-to-land story.
• The fossil museum - the open-air shelter protecting the best skeletons.
• The eroded rock formations - wind-carved shapes along the walking trail.

When to go

October to April is the cool season for desert travel; summer is far too hot. A day trip from Cairo or the Faiyum is possible, but camping overnight lets you see the formations in dawn and dusk light and the desert stars. Weekdays are quietest.

Practical notes

It is a long drive, much of it on desert track requiring a four-wheel-drive and ideally a guide, so it is not a casual outing; combining it with the Faiyum's lakes and other fossil sites makes the journey worthwhile. There are minimal facilities. The fossils are protected and fragile, so stay on the trail and touch nothing. Its remoteness means few crowds but also little shade or water.

Nearby

Lake Qarun and the Faiyum oasis are the usual base; the nearby Wadi El Rayan has waterfalls and lakes.