The peaks
Sharp and rocky.
Rod Waddington — CC BY-SA 4.0 · yeowatzup — CC BY 2.0 · Rod Waddington from Kergunyah, Australia — CC BY-SA 2.0 · yeowatzup — CC BY 2.0 · yeowatzup — CC BY 2.0
The Haraz Mountains are a high range west of Sanaa, on the old road to Hodeidah, centred on the town of Manakhah. They are among the most beautiful mountain areas of Yemen, with farming terraces and stone villages built on peaks and ledges. Manakhah was the area's market and a caravan stop on the road between Sanaa and the coast, and it is still the centre of the district that bears its name. The mountain people grow coffee and grain on the terraces, which they built stone on stone over centuries, turning steep slopes into farmland. You walk old paths between villages, with sharp rocky peaks rising above the valleys and many-storeyed stone houses clustered on the mountain edges. The colours shift with the light, and the mountains turn gold at sunset. The highlands are much cooler than the coast, so bring warm clothes for the evening. Sanaa is about 57 km away in a straight line, and Al-Hajjarah about 5 km. Hire a local guide for the longer trails. The UK Foreign Office currently advises against all travel to the whole of Yemen and tells anyone there to leave, so check official guidance before making any plans.
Sharp and rocky.
On the mountain edges.
Golden mountains.
Manakhah, west of Sanaa, Yemen
Coffee and grain, on old stone terraces.
Mild by day and cold at night in the highlands.