Al Sabalouga, also called Sabaloka gorge or in English Cataract Number Six of the River Nile. The location is downstream approximately 100 km northwest of Khartoum near Meroe. Meroe was the capital of the Kingdom of Kush for several centuries in ancient. The River Nile has six cataracts.

While only one cataract locates in Egypt the other five cataracts locate in Sudan. Today, cataract number five doesn’t exist anymore. It had been flooded by the Meroe dam. Al Sabalouga is actually the name of the village nearby the gorge.

All the way from Khartoum was desert but then a green stripe along the river Nile. Palm trees, banana trees and other agriculture suddenly appear out of the desert.

Coming from Khartoum it takes roughly three hours to cross the Nubian desert to reach the sixth cataract on River Nile. However, the first part is an easy trip on the main road from Khartoum to the north. After that, somewhere on the desert highway the driver turned left and went off-road.

It’s hot and dry but still, villages with stone houses appear. Goats and donkeys take a rest in the shade of rare trees. However, in the far, some hills come closer and closer and the desert changes into rocky and hilly terrain.

The landscape around Sabaloka gorge is a rocky island out of the flat and dusty Nubian Desert. Early volcanic activities shaped the rocks. Anyway, today there is no more volcanic activity. In this place, the Nile breaks through the mountains. Above all, the banks are rocky and sloping down.

Sabaloka is a famous destination for weekend trips for people from Khartoum. Families fully equipped with each and everything come to this place to stay overnight. Locals offer shelters, fireplaces, and boats to rent. Fishermen catching fish for BBQ.