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Wow. We have done everything from an absolute newbie drive for those stepping into the sands for the first time, to a slightly more demanding drive in some absolutely bad weather, to the mesmerizing sands of Lisali to a man made lake in the desert in Al Qudra and recently the on-road scenic drive with slightly different kind of adventure in the waters of Khorfakkan in the past month. So what is next? The option was left to those who attended the last drive and the obvious choice was to find a natural lake in the middle of the desert. Is it true? Is it possible? A natural lake in the middle of the desert....You must be kidding me!!! But, Al Qudra is a man-made lake and we have already been there!!!. Hold your hearts as that natural beauty exists and we are going to explore it this weekend. So what is the plan? Who can join? What can we expect? Plan is simple, we drive down to the desert where the natural lake makes it an oasis which we are in search for. Everybody can join, weather you have a 4x4, an AWD, a Saloon or even a bike, it is possible for all to join. Expect to be taken by surprise and we drive on the road towards some awesome dunes and a shimmering blue surface starts to fill the the light brown dunes, behold it is the lake that we all are searching for. For on-road drivers who jst want something new and different to do, this drive is for you. For off-roader who want a taste of the dune drive, lets do some off-roading that will set your pulses racing, this drive is for you. For those who love nature and photography, if you think you have some awesome photos during the day, just wait till the sun starts setting behind the mountains, find a favorable spot and lay your trap to capture some of the most beautiful views you can imagine, this drive is for you. Excited... Lets get down to the details... Once again I would like to thank all the active members of Carnity who have supported the drives by coming out in numbers and have shown the enthusiasm and the will to learn,the beauty of this area is the wonderful lake smack in the middle of the desert which can be reached by road making it a rare oasis in UAE. The plan would be to meet up at 10 am as per the below link and than head out to discover this hidden gem in the middle of the desert, for the Muslims we will find a mosque on the way where we can offer our Friday prayers, non-Muslims are requested to be patient during this time, we will than head to the lake and pick a gazebo under which we can set up camp and sit around and enjoy the lunch and chats where the secret of how this lake came about in the middle of the desert. It is a very interesting story. For those who would like to feel the sands under their wheels, this will be the time to head out and improve and polish our skills. They say always leave the best for the last, photograph enthusiasts would have hope fully found a nice spot by sunset which will mean you will take back memories which can never be replaced and the place will leave an imprint on your hearts for life. When : 24 February 2017 at 10:00 am Where : First Emarat Petrol station on Dubai - Al Ain Road after Outlet Mall. GPS Coordinate: https://goo.gl/maps/KD4Lath3cB42 Level of drive: All levels Plan: On-road drive, followed by some lunch, followed by some dune bashing for interested parties with proper 4x4s, ending with the shutterbugs bringing some shots that will live on long after the drive is over. What to bring along: Stuff for BBQ or lunch with a little extra to share with all, grill, charcoal, lighter fluid and BBQ meat or chicken, water, liquids, smiles, stories, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. and appreciate and the most important, you best cameras with the best lenses as you do not see this everyday in your life. In fact, many people will never know this hidden gem. Approximate finish time : 6 - 6:30 pm

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.engadget.com/amp/2017/02/14/toyotas-10-millionth-hybrid-sale-hints-at-a-greener-future/?client=safari I found this article stating that Toyota have now sold 10 million hybrids. For me, hybrid is over complicated pointless technology. People buy them thinking they are saving the planet. Mining the lithium to make the batteries causes more damage to the environment than most people realise. Driving a 40 year old muscle car every day will cause less pollution than manufacturing a new Prius. I've had the misfortune of driving and working on Priuses (Prii?) a few times and found them to be completely soulless. They are the automotive equivalent of lentil flavoured fat free organic yoghurt served on boiled tofu.

Tahoe any day of the week and twice on Sunday. This whole realibilty thing is now just nothing but a myth now. Jap cars have just about as much electrickery than anything else and neither is maintenance or parts any cheaper. Tahoe much more roomier much more options a better ride and wasn't hit by every branch on the ugly tree on it ways down like the Land Cruiser. Tahoe is a solid cruiser and many in safaris also use this and i know some that are over 250k Plus kms and still look and drive great. I will also thrown in the Toyota Sequoia in this mix. That thing is big and comfortable and the engine on that is super bitchin 0-100 in just over 6 secs can smoke most sedans and So called sports coupes in a straight line drag, with 3rd row seats which can actually seat 2 adults comfortably. Also look into the Nissan Armada. Going cheap nowadays and Sequoia standards to boot

@taqir in that case I feel the same way as Gaurav bhai. I guess the best thing would be to take your family and try both of them out along with your family. The one that you and your family feel more comfortable will make your decision for you. I remember I test drove one of the cars with my family and though it was a brilliant offer and I loved the feel of it, but decided against it because the back seats were cramped. Test drive both with the family and let us know which one you decide to go with. Sorry for the earlier mistake of comparing TB to an LC.

thank you very much for making me a part of this wonderful trip. You guys are awesome... soo looking forward to next one already... hope to see you all soon...

Here is the full video of our full drive:

Thanks Rahim for this wonderful surprise as I myself have never visited this natural lake and heard a lot from hand full of people. People getting serious for regular off-roading please consider buying radio and inflator now at least as these two things are the first off-road gear you will need in every future off-road drive.

Thank you Carnity again for this not-so-adventurous adventure but so much fun!!! Looking forward to the next one. 😊

This is awkward, I am lost for words. Thank you Gaurav bhai for the great initiative and an amazing route and drive ending with a different kind of an adventure, loads of food and smiles on every face in our group. To top it all of what a wonderful trip report which takes me back to the drive and the moments that made the drive a successful one, with pictures which will stay ingrained in our memories forever. Thank you Girish Sir and Govind bhai for sharing the amazing pcs. We had a very young explorer and adventurer on our journey nic-named Happy and that about sums up the feeling within the group throughout our trip. Thank you to all for an amazing lunch which was so much and so well prepared that Gaurav bhai and I decided to just have a taste of everything, and I was so full that I barely had my dinner last night. At the end the choice was discussed with the group for the next adventure and a unanimous decision was reached which will be posted shortly. As described by Gaurav Bhai it is going to be a natural lake in the middle of the desert, which is completely different to the man-made lakes in Al Qudra area. It is the promise of a drive where normal saloons can go through and there are beautiful and slightly challenging dunes to satisfy those who have been bitten by the desert bug. Hope to see our regulars and many more on the upcoming scenic, plus off-road drive.

Thanks everyone for joining and making this drive a truly "unforgettable family get-together" with lot of adventures. Started little late due to rough weather and those who reached early enjoyed a second round of breakfast at meeting point. In all we had 10 cars from sports cars - 4x4's. Soon after we started few cars got deviated from the route due to bad visibility in windy weather and lack of coordination. Once we all join back we straight head to Kalba area from Maleiha road to enjoy the most scenic mountain view in the UAE. Due to lost time, we only managed to stop in one place through the mountain range and everyone clicked enough pictures for their social media profile and family portraits. Once we reached to Fujairah, to our our surprise whole corniche was closed due to some para games organized their from 18-24 Feb. We tried our luck for next Khorfakkan beach and we could find a sweet spot in grass and shade to settle all family and kids. By the time we reached khorfakkan, weather has changed completely for good and become very stable and pleasant (thank god). It was about 18-20 degrees with very slight drizzle (occasionally) along with nice and pleasant breeze. We settled down and opened our grand lunch buffet loaded with multi nationality specialty cuisine. Thanks everyone for bringing awesome finger licking food in such generous quantity for all. Next time for such Friday lunch, please skip the breakfast to save space for so many specialties. After a sumptuous lazy Friday lunch, it was an action time for all ages. Toddlers and younger kids have enough beach rides and sand toys to keep them occupied. Few decided to stay back and enjoy the chill time at beach and keep an eye on kids. We went straight to our much awaited adventure rides. Thankfully all activities in Fujairah beach and khorfakkan beach are same, so we haven't lost anything by change of place. First of all we decided to hit the Jet ski and though it was my first time, so I learned very well after my first fall off the jet ski with Govind. It was an amazing experience and I can easily co-relate this with off-roading as if you really wanna enjoy then go as fast as you can to glide above the bumpy waves. After that we aim for para sailing, again it was my first time in such adventure sport so I was ready for all surprises. By the time I reach on top I realize this isn't an adventure sport, it's a scenic ride. It was so slow, serene and calming to glide in a parachute above the sea and enjoy the beautiful mountain view is far from scary and thrilling. It was as similar as in flying in cesna in low altitude and enjoy the city view in Dubai. The only sad part about this ride was it lasted in less than 5 minutes and we landed much before we can actually capture anything. Last but not least almost everyone decided to go for a boat ride. More than the boat ride I personally enjoyed the real sport of negotiation with the boat guys as everyone offering different rates for per person and for full boat. So some of our expert negotiator's landed with different proposal and strategies to knock those boat guys down in a multi billion dollar deal, lol. Finally after 15-20 minutes of sporting session both parties came to an agreement and all of us went for a much awaited boat ride. As we reached half way, we realized that this boat trip was not for dropping all of us to the island but just to show the island and come back. Surprise.....! Anyways in the middle of Arabian Sea none of our expert negotiator's thought of challenging the boat guy and we quietly decided to come back to shore with a hope that next time we will visit that island. Overall it was one fully loaded road trip + family get-together + picnic + special lunch + endless adventures in super perfect weather on the beach. By 7:00 PM, we all started packing up our cars and ending up with a discussion for our next week location, which is already decided now and will be soon announced in trips section. It's a very special, unique and hidden "natural lake" in the desert. Hope to see everyone for this special surprise, as 90% of the people haven't visited this lake in UAE.