Standing still and drinking in the nature around him on his first hike, 37-year-old Ahmed Shata of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia realised there was more to life than sitting in front of a screen all day.
For him, it all started with a small group in his home city that encouraged him to discover nature through hiking. The triumphant feeling of reaching a target destination and contemplating the view inspires him to continue uncovering new trails while also building a community and a business that encourage others to join him.
“The moment when I reach the goal after two, three, five-hour hikes... I feel like I have done something, like I can fly,” Shata explains. “I thought, why not convert this to [something] commercial and let people see what I am feeling?”
Shata founded Jeddah Go Outdoors with a fellow hiker in 2014. The group aims to spread the spirit of adventure and inspire people to discover Saudi Arabia’s great outdoors.
What started as a project with just three people joining the founders on the first hike has grown into a business with more than 30,000 clients.
The beauty of hiking is that it is an activity for anyone, Shata says. Hikers as young as eight and as old as 60 join the trips, depending on the difficulty level of a trail. Interestingly, about 80% of the participants are women. “I don’t know where all the men are,” he jokes.
YOU CAN SEE THE WORLD IN SAUDI
Last month, the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage announced a new tourist visa programme and relaxed strict dress codes as part of plans to boost the country’s traditionally closed-off tourism industry and attract foreign investment. This comes under the Vision 2030 reforms outlined by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to diversify the Saudi economy away from oil.
Contrary to perceptions, the Gulf kingdom offers plenty of nature-rich destinations, Shata point outs.
“We hear this a lot,” Shata says when asked about the country's prevalent portrayal as an arid desert. “[But] Saudi Arabia is huge. We have mountains, beaches, islands, wadis, greenery; we have a lot of things. There are places like the Maldives in Amlaj, greenery and rain like in Malaysia in Asir, mountains like Kilimanjaro near Abha and Taif, volcanic craters in Wahba - you can see the world inside Saudi.”
Shata, who works at a telecom company during the week, says he lines up new spots for his scenic weekend excursions using Google Maps. “We study maps, and we find places to explore,” he explains.
On some journeys with professional hikers, he has even come across areas with wildlife. “[On one trip] we discovered a lot of animals - wolves, monkeys, donkeys - because no one has entered there before.”
CHANGING ROUTINES
The adventures planned by Jeddah Go Outdoors often include different activities, such as full moon hikes, star gazing, diving, camping, yoga, colour fights, barbecues, games and entertainment.
“People like seeing new faces, new places, and new things,” Shata says. “During the week, we are working. We have managers, noise, stress, a lot of things... In order to move, fly, or escape all these things, we go the natural way. We encourage people to go outside.”
Most importantly, “there’s not a single phone” in sight because many areas lack network coverage, giving people an opportunity to connect in real life.
“I feel happy when I see people smiling and saying to me, 'Thank you for the trip, I can go back to work, and this gives me the energy to continue',” Shata adds, recalling his own change of routine.
“I found that I was not doing things in a natural way,” he admits. “I was a crazy gamer. I would be playing [video games] or programming five to 10 hours [a day]. You would be shocked to see [my life] before. You wouldn’t believe I’d ever be a hiker.”