Page:The Northern Ḥeǧâz (1926).djvu/119

 At 9.28 we entered the Wâdi al-Abjaẓ at the point where it is joined on the left by the šeʻîb of ʻAleǧân. In the broad, white river bed of al-Abjaẓ we found an abundance of rimṯ bushes, but they too were completely dead. However, on the left-hand side in a small basin through which winds the channel of al-Abjaẓ—below this point known as al-ʻEfâr or al-ʻEfâl—we could see a darker clump of rimṯ bushes at the foot of a high, black peak. We turned aside towards them and remained beside them from 9.46 until 12.42. Rain water had been collecting for some time in this basin, so the roots of the rimṯ were still able to nourish the grayish-green leaves. Our camels grazed on the rimṯ for a few minutes and then proceeded to search for other plants, but, finding none, they knelt down one after the other and rested. To us this was a discouraging sign, for it showed us that the animals were already very tired (temperature: 37.5° C).

Accompanied by the guide and Tûmân, I climbed up to the black peak, beneath which we sat down. The ascent required more than half an hour and was dangerous in places, as we had to crawl on our stomachs up the smooth slope. We named this peak Samra’ Tûmân (Fig. 34), and the guide promised to see to it that the Bedouins should call it by the same name.

Southwest of Samra’ Tûmân rise the dark brown peaks of Ḳdâd, Eṣdeḥ, aṣ-Ṣoḳḳ, and al-Laṭṭ, from which the šeʻibân of at-Ṯemîle, aṣ-Ṣoḳḳ, al-Ḳṣâra, Abu Ḥlejfi, and Abu Dwejme reach to the sea. On the watershed to the southeast rises the black range of ar-Râḥa, on the western slopes of which are situated the cones of Umm Ǧâḏeb, Ṣelf, and al-Ferš. In the southern part of ar-Râḥa, by the cone of al-Ferš, flows the spring ʻAjn Marra, near which rises the šeʻîb of aṯ-Ṯmejmijje, joining with Fejḥân. Somewhere near the middle of this šeʻîb is the spring of Ḳammâḥ, from which the pass Naḳb an-Naššâš leads eastward. To the north of Ḳammâḥ is Naḳb al-Aḥejmer. To the south of ar-Râḥa the watershed is formed by the brown and white streaked hills of al-Muʻaffara, the southern spur of which is called al-Ṛâjme. Az-Zihed towers to the west of al-Ṛâjme and to the north of az-Zihed stretch the narrow ridges of al-Ḥrejbe, al-Mnîfe, aḏ-Ḏbejbi, aš-Šedîḫ, al-Kbejda, al Ḥemâra, an-Nmejr, Lâha, al-Ṛarâḳ, and Mikwan al-Ḥâǧǧ, which slope toward the southwest.

A little before noon a strong, south-southwesterly wind arose which, though it failed to moderate the intense heat, at least set the air in motion and thus facilitated our breathing. We felt the full strength of it as we were moving toward the south through the broad valley of al-Abjaẓ. This valley is covered with a layer of fine sand, from which isolated