Saudi
Arabia is a country with a very small number of wild caves. The caves here have
great investigation potential with supreme attractiveness that provides
interest to a cave explorer. Al Heet cave is also known as Ain Heet where Ain
means eye.
When
you go inside the cave, the entrance is very close to the shape of an eye. It
has a natural beauty with underground water in its center chambers. Al Heet is
a town which faces Mount Al Jubayl in Wadi as Sulay on the border of Riyadh. It
is one of the easily reachable caves in the area of Riyadh located between Al
Kharj road and the city of Riyadh.[irp]
There
is an old pump house near the cave which could be a landmark for identification
of the cave. The exit to ‘Heet’ is about 40km from Riyadh City Center (in the
Al Kharj main road) going towards Al Kharj. About 5km from Heet exit, there is
off-road on the east which takes to the entrance of the cave.
The
entrance of Ain Heet cave is about 20 meters broad and it narrows down to about
5 meters. As you go close to it, the entrance of the cave gets bigger and
bigger. Like other caves, Ain Heet cave is also shaped in the limestone by
dissolving the anhydride minerals inside. Most part of the entrance seems delicate
and newly downed limestone pieces were found at the entrance.
Big
and sharp rocks are hard to climb as most of the rocks have moved when anyone
stepped on them because they are not fixed to the ground. After a downward path, when the glow of
sunlight ends, there is a narrow hole which takes you to one of the chambers of
the cave which has a wide room with deep underground water.
A
natural pool filled with crystal clear water welcomes you. The clearness of
water is amazing. The water is deep. You cannot see its bottom but the area
near the rocks are convenient. This is something new in Riyadh! And definitely
something attractive and amusing!
The
water level is more than 30 meters in depth and horizontally 150 meters in
length. The water in the lake is not always present. So whenever you plan your
trip to Al Heet cave first check there is water present inside.
It
gets full around 9 o’clock in the morning, so it is better to visit early in
the morning so you can get space in the pool area for swimming. Wear rubber
shoes and do not hold anything while caving the cave because it is dangerous.
If
anyone wants to experience cave diving or desert diving, this is the right
place for such an exciting activity. But be careful, the complexity of a cave
requires proper equipment and proper training for caving and diving.
Caving
in Saudi Arabia is not promoted much while this is an exciting activity with
full of adventures and surprises. Rare minerals, rocks, and stones in Saudi
caves are precious and needs to be sealed.
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