A bus ride from Sharm El- Sheik to Mt Sinai takes 3 hours, and from Dahab to St Catherine monastery 2 hours. Luckily there was a Bedouin’s rest place just before the final 100 steps where we took a warm shelter. Refreshed and alert we went up to the top of Moses Mountain a few minutes just before the sunrise. I have started the Mount Sinai trip from Dahab, a small town on the coast of the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt.
Alternatively, the sunset is also an impressive sight; for this you should start your climb in the early afternoon. But this is the mountain where God spoke to Moses. That, at least, is the overwhelming belief, and the belief itself has drawn pilgrims for over a thousand years. Although no archeological evidence of Moses’ presence on the mountain exists, there are abundant relics of faith throughout the eons. Nearing the summit, one encounters the natural amphitheater where the 70 wise men waited while God spoke with Moses, then finally a small chapel and mosque at the top.
For others on the hike, the expedition had deep religious significance. The Bible says this is where God gave Moses two stone tablets inscribed with the commandments. Moses received these laws after leading the Jews out of slavery in Egypt, a story that is retold during the Jewish holiday of Passover, which begins this year at sundown March 29. But Sinai is an important site for Jews, Christians and Muslims alike, and every night, hundreds of pilgrims make the climb. Climbing Mount Sinai Peak (2285-metre / 7,497 ft.) is one of those experiences that are on many people’s bucket list – for a reason! Even when you’re not religious, it’s an incredible experience and you will feel the special energy in this place.
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What Is The Holy Mountain Of God?
The sky was full of stars in a way that it can be seen only in areas of unspoiled nature with no light pollution. On our way up we took breaks a few times, refreshed ourselves taking some warm tea or coffee at the Bedouins’ rest places. But as soon as we stopped, we felt the coldness and we started shaking in our shirts and jackets which got wet during the hike.
Nowadays about two dozen, mostly Greek, monks live at the monastery. They elect the abbot and archbishop, who mostly lives in Cairo. At the time he isn’t present, four caretakers are performing his functions. 1575 the monastery was declared independent from Rome, at that time St. Catherine was the site of an archdiocese.
The ascent takes around 6 hours and starts at around 12 in midnight. Physical fitness is necessary to climb up to the top. It is very very cool at the top for which blankets are provided by the last cafe on the mountain. There are tea stalls and cafes about every hour as you climb the mountain. Do not carry a lot of stuff along as it gets heavier and tougher to walk. The hike to Mt Sinai was the only thing I had on my list for this escape-November-save-tour-soul trip and even though we did do some other cool stuff it was for sure the highlight of my visit to Egypt.
Tips For Hiking Mount Sinai In Egypt
Dahab is 2 hours and 133 km away, Nuweiba is 120 km and a similar 2 hours away, while the trip from Sharm el-Sheikh is closer to 3 hours. Most visitors arrive on tours that arrive at approximately 1AM at the foot of the mountain in order to climb Mount Sinai overnight and watch the sunrise. Any guesthouse in Sinai can arrange for you to join a tour. There are also several camps, guesthouses and hotels in St. Catherine that can accommodate tourists and travellers alike.
I recommend contacting them at least 2 days before you want to do the hike so they have time to get all the permissions from the government. You will come down a different trail than you took up. The path down is 3,750 stone steps known as the Steps of Repentance. According to legend, the steps were made by a single monk in repentance for a sin he committed.
How Old Is St Catherines Monastery?
By the way, don’t forget to tip this man by the time you come back. After experiencing the sunrise we started the decent back down the mountain and towards the monastery. The path up Mount Sinai is well maintained and ascends in a zig zag fashion. It’s slow going as mentioned but that’s the best way to tackle it.
In the 4th century AD Empress Helena, the mother of Roman Emperor Constantine who legalized Christianity in the Roman Empire, attended a pilgrimage to the site. After the pilgrimage, she protected the bush by building a small chapel on the site. The official name of the St Catherine Sinai monastery is ‘Sacred and Imperial Monastery of the God-Trodden Mount Sinai’. The monastery was built on the site where what’s believed to be Moses’ Burning Bush was found. Mount Sinai in the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt is believed to be the Biblical mountain where God spoke to Moses and where Moses received the Ten Commandments. Mt Sinai is located in the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt.
The place (so-called “the last cafeteria”) is crowded with people from all the countries you can imagine. They’re very simple structures with no water, no electricity, no toilet paper, and with a hole on the ground, where urine and feces are dropped. They have doors, but some of them will not lock, so take a friend with you, because going there alone, holding a flashlight, and doing you-know-what is kind of tricky. The first minutes are really easy because the path is not steep.
As soon as I left the bus, I headed for the bathroom to put on pants and a sweater. The temperature had dropped at least 50 degrees F from the daytime high. It was only going to get colder and windier during the climb. By the time I double-checked my gear and clothing, and put on my earphones, there were only six people left at the base. How I managed to lose 50 hikers on one of the most toured mountains in the world is a feat that would impress even Moses. They probably wouldn’t have had to waste precious God favors in splitting the Red Sea.
One of the few landlubber excursions is a nocturnal three-hour hike up to Mt. Sinai , timed perfectly to observe the sunrise from the pinnacle. Throughout Jewish history, two mountains stand out more than any others – Mount Sinai and Mount Moriah. Both are indispensable to the history of the Jewish people and are inextricably linked to the Jewish journey. 32, made two stone tablets and went up the mountain. The Ten Commandments appears here again, but the component laws are different as this one is constituted mainly with ritual laws.
Expeditions to Mt. Sinai are nightly and are organized by many agencies in Dahab. I had been utterly convinced of my failure as a pathfinder when I suddenly found myself as a leader. My flashlight was a beacon, my stride set the pace. But I had become accustomed to the silence and the light.
Even more, today Mt Sinai is a famous tourist hiking site in Egypt. Mount Sinai hike is a part of the world-famous Sinai Trail that has been voted as one of the best treks in the World. Here we share our favorite quick and easy recipes, plus travel tips and guides for our favorite places around the world. If you have any questions about what camera I use or how I edit my photos, check out my photography tutorials. Before the hike you will have the opportunity to visit Saint Catherine’s Monastery, located at the base of Mount Sinai.
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