Camel riding on the edge of Mesr at the Dasht-e Kavir desert.
It was less than six months ago that I went camel riding for the first time on my travels. I was backpacking in Iran and we somehow ended up in a couple of remote settlements in the central desert – firstly in the town of Khoor and then we headed out for a night in Mesr. These remote towns are north east of Yazd and in a desert area called the Dasht-e Kavir.
Mesr is very remote – it’s as good as a “desert town” gets with nothing more than a few streets and a few camels, with a shop, a Mosque and a Primary School thrown in for good measure. Given that it’s so remote and not commercial, it’s a great place to rent a camel from one of the locals who own camels in the town, one smack in the middle of the Dasht-e Kavir desert that is.
To get to Mesr, there is no bus station, no train station, no garaj and no airport. It’s a bit far for a camel to walk as the nearest other town is Khoor, where we also stayed. Since Khoor has a bus station, it’s the best place to base yourself while you explore the area. And cars are not all that reliable in this part of the world.
Amir and Rohab run this website: http://www.irandeserts.com/, which is worth checking out.
We paid 50,000 Rials each so about $1.50 US Dollars to rent the camels, so nothing that will break the bank.
You can go out for as long as you want, but 15-20 minutes was enough for us.
Out in the vegetated desert near Mesr, Iran.
The post Backpacking in Iran: Camel Riding in Mesr appeared first on Don’t Stop Living.
Jonny Blair is a self confessed traveling nomad who founded and blogs at Don’t Stop Living. He sees every day as an adventure. Since leaving behind his home town of Bangor in Northern Ireland ten years ago he has traveled to all seven continents, working his way through various jobs and funding it all with hard work and an appetite for travel. Don’t Stop Living, a lifestyle of travel’ contains over 1,000 stories and tips from his journeys round the globe. He wants to show others how easy it is to travel the world, give them some ideas and encourage them to do the same but most of all he aims to constantly live a lifestyle of travel. He is currently based in Hong Kong and on Twitter @jonnyblair.
