But it was hard work and not at all glamorous. Most of the time it was a dusty, dirty, sometimes painful, strenuous job and nine out of ten holes were uninteresting. We took a lot of photographs, ending up with an article in the March/April 2000 issue of Aramco World Magazine, written by John... and we met some wonderful people along the way. For example, there was the bedu that tried to stop us from going down another hole, or dahl, telling us we were crazy. When we came up, two hours later, he was still waiting for us, telling us that it was only God's will that we were still alive! We had wonderful nights at the campfire in Ad Dahna sand dunes where we compared impressions from the day's work. That, together with the caves, will be a lasting, cherished memory, when I return to Sweden. Unfortunately time has also seen continuous damage to the caves with a lot of stalactites destroyed in Surprise Cave by unknown culprits and the entrance to Dahl Sultan totally blocked by sheep carcasses (which might be blessings in disguise!) With the new road to Ma'aqala passing just beside the cave area, the future looks rather bleak. Here are some pictures, not yet published on this site.

Lars Bjurström