Camel Caravan: The Saddle

Mount Up!

Discover the amazing Nabataean civilization through this new book.

The Saddle

Camel saddles are deep in the middle and high on each end. They sit up high on the hump of the camel. While they are great for sitting in, and for hanging cargo sacks from, they do make the rider sit up very high. It's a strange experience, sitting up high on a camel. It's nothing like riding a horse, where the horses head comes up in front of you. With the camel, the hump drops down in front of you, and then the neck and head stretch out in font of you, rather far away. If you fall, there is not much to hang onto.

Another problem with riding a camel, is finding a camel saddle that fits. If you get one that is too small, it can pinch you front and back. Not something you want to happen on a long camel caravan! Can you imagine days and days of being squeezed, bounced and banged in all the wrong places?

Getting On

The camel has the amazing ability to crouch down, and fold it's legs under itself. From here you have to figure out how to best get on

Some people struggle to get their food over the camel's hump, and make a fool of themselves. The best way to mount a camel is to jump onto it from behind, like leap-frogging over friend!

The hardest part is hanging on when the camel decides to get up! First the back legs go up and then the front! If you don't hang on you're in for big trouble!

OK, now that we are up, let's take picture and get going. Oops, I forgot. Camera's weren't invented yet. We are supposed to be back in Nabataean times.

Back to Our Food

Back to More Fun Stuff

The Trip South