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
To the south-west of Gebel Hodein the sandstone runs off in a mass
of very high hills called =Gebel Kala=, leaving a much lower area of
schist hills in between, through which the Wadi Feqoh pursues its
sandy barren course. Gebel Kala has not been closely approached,
but its principal peaks have been fixed by triangulation, and the
highest is 846 metres above sea-level. The scarps of these hills
are very steep, and the mass appears to be much cut up by wadis
draining to Feqoh. The sandstone ceases just beyond Gebel Kala,
and its place is taken by granite, which forms the mountains of the
watershed further south-west.
PLATE XVI.
[Illustration: MEASURED PANORAMAS FROM THE SUMMITS OF GEBELS NIQRUB
& GERF. (Plotted to scale from theodolite-observations & telescopic
sketches.)
Ball. Geography & Geology of South-Eastern Egypt.
Photo-Metal-Process. Survey Dept. Cairo 1910. (60-190)]
=Gebel Um Reit= is a conspicuous granite mountain rising to 857
metres above sea, seventeen kilometres south-east of Gebel Awamtib,
on the east side of the watershed. It can be approached either from
the west by ascending the tributaries of Wadi Timsah and crossing
the watershed (which is here flat and sandy) into Wadi el Dreb,
or from the east by ascending the Wadi Um Reit. The best place from
which to ascend the mountain is in one of the heads of Wadi Um Reit,
which drains the west side of the mass. By following this up, a
camp can be placed about a kilometre north-west of the beacon and
520 metres above sea-level. The climb of 337 metres from the camp
is fairly easy, and only occupies about an hour. From the beacon
(latitude 23° 15′ 4″, longitude 34° 34′ 17″), a good view is
obtainable of the granite peaks to the south, which forms a complex
mass with Aqab el Negum as the highest point; to the eastward the
outlook is mostly over high broken sandstone plateaux.
Extending south-west from Um Reit is a complex of granite mountains,
which has not been surveyed in detail. The principal peaks have,
however, been fixed by triangulation, and their positions will be
found tabulated in the list of points given in Chapter III. The chief
peaks are =Gebels Etresia= (1,037 metres), =Um Markha=, =Shigigat=
(1,023 metres), =Hamrat el Feg=, =Aqab el Negum= (1,148 metres),
=Etus= (997 metres), and =Natetiai= (1,164 metres). An important
pass is said to cross the watershed at Aqab el Negum, though quite
practicable for camels, it is a very high pass, whence the name of
the mountain, which signifies “Pass of the Stars.” To the north
of Gebel Shigigat there is a sandy plain from which two conspicuous
isolated hills rise to heights of 901 and 703 metres respectively
above sea-level; these hills appear, however, not to bear any
distinctive names.
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