The geography and geology of south-eastern EgyptBall, John
Science
The geography and geology of south-eastern Egypt
Ball, John
Geology -- Egypt; Physical geography -- Egypt
These three heads, each of which has numerous feeders, join together
in a small plain at the south-east foot of O Shakafa, a remarkably
prominent peak practically isolated from the mountains near it,
and from this point onwards the main drainage channel is called
Wadi Meisah. The little plain where the three head wadis unite is
covered with trees, and has almost the aspect of a park; it is 455
metres above sea-level. Curving eastward and northward close round
the foot of O Shakafa, Wadi Meisah receives from the south the
=Sarob Kwan=, a short and very broad wadi leading to an easy pass
into Wadi Didaut, and then winds about as a narrow gorge shut in
by high hills. Just where it leaves the foot of O Shakafa, there
is a track from the east side of the wadi over a very easy pass
into the head of Wadi Orgem. =Bir Meisah= is a well sunk in the
alluvium of the wadi bed about three kilometres below O Shakafa,
and 410 metres above sea-level. When I visited it in March 1908,
it was filled with downwash, and as there was plenty of water in
the rock basins of the mountains further north there was then no
necessity to dig it out. The Arabs say the well is about ten metres
deep, and its water is not so good as that obtainable from the galts,
so that they only open it when the other sources in the neighbourhood
are exhausted. Two gullies entering Wadi Meisah from the east, just
below the well, each contain large galts, called =Meis-heit-ar=, a
short distance up from their mouths; these were both yielding good
and plentiful water supplies in the spring of 1908. After winding
about among the hills for ten kilometres below the well, Wadi Meisah
receives a feeder from the west having three heads. The northern
one, =Akla Da-Aiyob=, is a very sandy gully, in fact it is choked
by drift sand, and all the trees in it are dead. The central one,
coming westward from among high hills, is called =Hanqun Ra-ub=,
while the southern one, called the =Wadi Eqaiyib=, is only separated
from Meisah at its head by an easy pass, so that it almost forms a
loop of Meisah itself. To go from Bir Meisah to Bir Um Bishtit, one
crosses this pass into Wadi Eqaiyib, then up Akla Da-aiyob, and over
another easy pass at its head into Wadi Um Bishtit; the total distance
between the two wells by this route is only sixteen kilometres.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account