Petra High Place of Sacrifice through Wadi Farasa

Petra High Place of Sacrifice through Wadi Farasa

This stunning trail leads through one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, Petra in Jordan. As you follow the trail, rediscover Petra as Johan Ludwig Burckhardt did 1812 when Petra was introduced to the Western World.

While walking on the trail, you will see a large number of monuments in Petra including the Treasury, the High Place of Sacrifice and the Obelisks, the Lion Monument, the Garden Temple, the Roman Solider Tomb, the Renaissance tomb and the Monastery; more monuments than tourists see.

You need to plan for full day of hiking to complete this trail. With a distance of 17.5 km (10.9 miles) and duration of 8 hours, this is a more demanding hike than the alternative Petra Monastery Trail.

You do not need a guide or GPS device to find the High Place of Sacrifice and later on the Monastery. You can always backtrack on the trail from the monastery.

From the start, the magnificent, ancient carved stairs of the High Place of Sacrifice quickly gain you fine views of the wadi and tombs below. The stairs climb relentlessly up Wadi al- Mahfur, switching from one side of the wadi to the other. When you pause to catch your breath, take time to observe the chisel marks up the cliffs revealing how much stone had to be removed to create the set of stairs on which you are improving your cardio-vascular fitness. The steps reveal the wear of countless pairs of feet having passed this way over the millennia. There are few trinket shops on the way. Don`t be shy about accepting offers of tea and a rest; it is a country and there is no obligation that you buy anything. Simply be courteous in return.

Continuing on the trail south you will end at Wadi Farasa. As you continue to descend to Wadi al-Farasa, you pass a few tough junipers clinging to the cliffs and get view of tombs across the valley. To rest you can stop at the lion Monument, where water conduits carved into the stone once channeled water down to the head of large carved lion, and pre-sumably the water once poured from its mouth into a pool. It must have been beautiful place. The steps on wards are steep, but the stonework magnificent.

Below this is a valley with numerous tombs and stunning rainbow-colored cliffs. Look for where the stone has freshly broken away to reveal the true vividness of the rock beneath. As you get to the valley bottom, you pass the soldier tomb.

A head of the valley is the Garden Hall, which was once supplied by water from a dam to the right (which appears to be simply a stone wall). Inside the Garden Hall is an impressive skylight cut through 2m (6.5 ft.) of stone.

Walking off the Garden hall you come to a junction, where you can go straight on north then north-west to the museum, restaurants and steps to the Monastery. You can also go right to cut straight back towards the Royal Tombs near the Roman-Style theater on a trail that skirts around the foot of the mountain al- Nejr.

Afterwards you will end up at the bottom of the 730 steps to the Monastery, also there is a short detour to the left that take you to the lion Triclinium. Then you can complete you journey to the visitor center foll.owing the main track through the Colonnaded Street and the Facades Street with many tombs.

  • Start : Visitor Center

  • Duration : 8 hours

  • Grade : Medium

  • Price: 110 JOD

Hiking Trails

 

   

Khubtha Trail

   

Al Madras Trail

     

Start: Visitor Center

End: Treasury viewpoint

Duration: 4 hrs 5-hrs

Grade: Hard

 

 

Start: Visitor Center

End: Al Madras (Oil Press)

Duration: 30 minutes to 1 Hour

Grade: Medium

    Do not attempt this trail without a guide

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The Monastery (AD-deir) Main Trail

 

The Monastery (AD-deir) to Little Petra or vice versa

     

Start: Visitor Center

End:

Duration: 7 Hours

Grade: Medium

 

 

 

Start: Visitor Center

End:

Duration: 7.5 Hours

Grade: Medium

    Keep in mind that you need to arrange transportation

        ahead of time from Little Petra back to Wadi Musa.

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The Monastery (AD-deir) to Kharubat Al-Fajjah

 

Wadi Al-Mudhlim (Tunnel Track)

     

Start: Visitor Center

End: Kharubat Al-Fajjah

Duration: 7 – 8 hours

Grade: Hard
 

Start: Visitor Center

End: The Bedouin Village or Qaser Al Bint

Duration: 4 – 5 hours

Grade: Hard
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Petra High Place of Sacrifice through Wadi Farasa

 

Petra High Place of Sacrifice to Little Petra

     

Start: Visitor Center

End:

Duration: 8 hours

Grade: Medium
 

Start: Visitor Center

End:

Duration: 8-9 hours

Grade: Medium
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