Wadi El Hitan Tours

Whale fossil in the "Valley of the Whales", Wadi El Hitan, Western Desert, Egypt, about 150 km southwest of Cairo. The fossils here are one of the earliest forms of whales, the link between the previous land based mammal and the ocean mammal of today. There is a small delightful museum and several fossils were left in situ in the desert that you can hike to see. It was worth the drive from Cairo for me.

The #history:
The Valley of Whales was once submerged beneath the Terhys Sea. It is now home to an obscure museum which was built around the fossils of the prehistoric whale, Basilosaurus Isis. These fossils show the archaic species to have small hind legs; which supports the evolutionary notion that whales evolved from land based animals to sea dwelling creatures.

What you see in this photo:
Most of the museum is open air but the rest of it is in these structures, designed to mimic their surrounding landscape. You can also see the beauty of the petrified coral on the ambient rock formations.

Travel tips:
You can take a 4x4 tour to this National Park, the ride itself is part of the fun! At the museum make sure you explore the trail and then relax and have tea and snacks in their cafe.
Afterwards, have a BBQ with the locals, go sand surfing, see the Magic Lake and go horse riding as the sun sets! It is a very doable day trip from Cairo, and an unforgettable one for sure.

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