Fossil Rock

Jebel Maleihah, known in English as Fossil Rock, is an outcrop of sedimentary rock rising out of the red sand between Sharjah and the mountains, and it is called that because the beds exposed on it were laid down under a shallow sea and hold the shells, corals and sea urchins of that period. The dunes around it are the deep rust colour that comes from iron in the sand, and the contrast between the red slopes and the pale outcrop is the reason it is photographed constantly.

What you actually see

• The marine fossils - shells, corals and urchins in beds laid down under a sea.
• The red dunes - iron-coloured sand running up against the rock.
• The dune driving - the desert approach used by off-road and camel operators.
• The sunset light - the outcrop and dunes at their strongest colour late in the day.

When to go

October to April; summer temperatures here are dangerous. Late afternoon and sunset give the best colour and are when tours run. Nights are cold in December and January.

Honest expectations

The dune approach needs a proper four-wheel drive and experience; ordinary cars get stuck and recovery is expensive. There is no water, shade or phone reception in places. Collecting fossils is not permitted.

Nearby

Mleiha is south, and Al Madam is west.