TAMR: Stage One
In the spirit of savoiring the journey, it made more sense to ride the full route in stages. With that, I present you with TAMR Stage One, a 346-mile stretch with +35k ft of elevation gain, across various terrains, from gravel to singletrack to pavement, and everything in between.
Stage one starts in the high desert of AlHada, just outside of Taif, and angulates along the ridge through cliffside villages, high altitude passes, sandy connectors, and dense juniper forests, ending in the foggy city of AlBaha. Along the way, you have a few alternative route options, difficulty, and even weather. While this section captures the spirit of the full route, it's only a brief glimpse of the entire TAMR experience.
The journey begins on the rugged north side of the mountain range, where the land is shaped by high deserts and sweeping rainshadow plains sitting above 5500 feet. As you press onward, the landscape shifts and reveals pockets of thick Juniper and Wild Olive forests, a hidden world perched near dramatic cliffs that soar between 6500 and 8500 feet. With every mile traveled south, the scenery transforms, becoming greener, wilder, cooler, and strewn with ever larger rocks underfoot.
Along the route, choices await at every turn. Do you dare ascend into the cool, mist-shrouded forests that demand you remain above 7500 feet, or does the call of the sunbaked, rocky desert pull you onward, promising heat and relentless exposure? Every decision shapes your adventure, and the mountains remain ever unpredictable; weather can turn without warning, and fortune favors those ready for anything.
As you wind deeper into the wild, the route threads through remote villages, some reachable only by rough gravel paths and others just now feeling the touch of modern connection. Here, the adventure intensifies, hauling your bike over punishingly steep passes and through soft, sandy wadis uncovers secret natural marvels and echoes of history known only to those who call these mountains home. In these forgotten corners, you may well be the first cyclist to leave a track, just like we did.
Just when the solitude of the mountains begins to feel endless, the distant shimmer of city lights appears on the horizon. Yet the journey is far from over; the route forks, daring you to choose between plunging back into untamed landscapes, racing toward civilization, or seeking a path that strikes a balance between wild freedom and city convenience.
