Not enough people these days know about Wilfred Thesiger. He was a diplomat, traveller, geographer and soldier. But it’s as an explorer that he’s best known, which is why the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) is promoting the Footsteps of Mubarak Bin London expedition as part of the UAE’s 40th birthday celebration.

Mubarak Bin London was one of the names given to Thesiger during his epic journeys in the Arabian Peninsula, notably his two crossings of the Rub al Khali, the Empty Quarter – the desert beyond Liwa that stretches into Oman and Saudi Arabia.

Recreating the journeys will be Capt. Saeed Rashed Al Mesafry and Lt. Ghafan Mohammed Al Jabry from the UAE Armed Forces, who are joining the record-breaking adventurer Adrian Hayes in a 1,500km trek from Salalah in Oman to Abu Dhabi via Liwa and Al Ain.

The expedition is expected to take 40 days, the team travelling by camel and on foot, relying on basic provisions, Bedouin hospitality and nature. They will leave Salalah in Oman later this month and aim to reach Liwa by National Day, then complete their journey via Al Ain to reach Abu Dhabi around 9th December.

As Hayes put it, “The journey will take place against some of the most beautiful yet harshest desert environments on the planet. Honouring the culture and heritage of the Bedouin, UAE and Oman, together with the extraordinary travels of Thesiger and his companions, we aim to travel and survive by means as close to the methods used by the 1940s expedition team.”

Want to learn more about Thesiger? Check out his book Arabian Sands or Thesiger: A Life in Pictures by Alexander Maitland.

Dennis Jarrett