A night under the White Desert stars

The road out of Bahariya does not look like it leads anywhere useful. Limestone plateau, painted in bands of red and white, and then — after an hour of nothing at all — a field of wind-carved spires standing in the dark.

We arrived at 4 pm, in the last hour before sunset, and there is a particular quality to that hour in the Western Desert: the light goes horizontal, the shadows stretch out for tens of metres, and the temperature drops faster than you expect it to.

Why two nights and not one

Most visitors drive out from Bahariya, spend three hours walking between the formations, and drive back the same evening. It is a good day out. It is not the same thing as sleeping there, because the park after dark is a completely different proposition.

The official camping area sits inside the protected zone, and there are basic facilities — a shelter, a toilet block, sometimes a guard on duty — but they are not a hotel. Bring your own tent, your own food, and more water than you think you need.

The night itself

There is no light pollution in the Western Desert. The Milky Way is not a thing you look at; it is a thing that is simply overhead, brighter and more structured than anything you have seen in a photograph.

The silence is the part people underestimate. Not quiet — silent. The wind picks up in the small hours and the sound of it against the rock is unlike anything in a city.

Practical notes

• The drive from Bahariya is about three hours on a graded track. Go with a guide the first time; the washes are easy to lose in the dark.
• January nights drop below freezing. A proper sleeping bag matters more than a good tent.
• There is no fuel, no phone signal and no ATM inside the park. Fill up in Bahariya.
• The best light is around forty minutes after sunset, when the white rock goes from gold to a deep violet.

Two nights is the right answer. The first night you sleep through, and the second one you do not.