The 2nd edition of our Jordan book was published in July 2008. Info on a number of new climbs and treks was received just after the publisher's deadline, plus we added more on our spring 2008 & 9 visits, and some GPS points. We include some here, and in the following pages, working through Jordan, from north to south (trekking info is minimal, due to space limitations). Any info received in the future that is relevant to this book will be posted on these 'Jordan-update' pages for the benefit of our readers.

PELLA AREA
First, and most important, the mobile phone number for the Countryside Hotel, Pella, run by Deeb Hussein, the Pella Rest House manager, is incorrect in the guidebook. The correct number is: 079 557 4145. Now a couple of new treks:

Wadi Taibah to the Jordan Valley
Long and varied, descending 600m through different eco-systems and geological layers and past olive groves, orchards, an abandoned fish farm and a ruined water-powered flour mill to almost 200m below sea level.
Easy walk Long, though with reasonably straightforward route finding. Though sometimes small, there are paths the whole way down the valley, following the wadi for 20km from the upper plateau at 400m to the Jordan valley road in the village of Waqqas at 170m below sea level; allow 6-7 hours. There may be murky pools just after half way, past the old flourmill, but best to carry sufficient water.
Approach About 1/2hr by taxi (10JD) from Pella Rest House. Take the road up to Kufr Rakib, then left (N) to Da’yr abu Sa’id (shops and café) then right towards Irbid, to the point where the road descends a long hairpin approx 1km after Sammu and rises up again. The wadi below the bend is Wadi Taiyiba, winding W, initially through a twisting limestone gorge with old quarry workings.
Start From GPS 390m 32° 31.236´ 35° 44.875´
Finish the Jordan Valley road is reached in Waqqas (bread shop and groceries), GPS -190m 32° 32.219´ 35° 36.103´.
Return It’s about 10km S to Tabaqat Fahl and the Pella Rest House by frequent but and/or local taxi (5JD for taxi). We left a car at Pella at the start of the trek and arranged transport to the start and finish of the trek, and accommodation at the Countryside Hotel, (see above).
For those who are unable to walk the full wadi, it’s possible to walk or drive up from Waqqas for 2km and take a short walk up the valley past the hot spring.

PELLA AREA Kufr Rakib to Pella via Wadi abu Salih
Not as pretty as the walk down neighbouring Wadi Salih, but equally varied and more challenging.
Moderate trek
12km, with walking and scrambling on steep terrain and sometimes tricky route finding. The route descends from 500m to 60m below sea level at the natural arch and hot springs, then ascends the road to Pella Rest House at sea level. 4hrs to the hot spring and another 1/2 hr to the Rest House.
Approach From Pella Rest House, go down to the road and turn right then right again in less than 1km and follow the road for about 9km, up past a check point to Kufr Rakib. (Baker of excellent taboun bread just before the crossroads.) Turn left at the crossroads, quickly reaching the point where the road crosses Wadi abu Salih (usually dry). GPS 500m 32° 27.434´ 35° 41.679´
The route Follow the wadi down to the second of two small roads enters the valley about 5km from the start.Follow this down a short way, descending right into the wadi when the road starts to rise away from it. Continue down the small canyon and wadi to the rock arch and hot spring (busy on Friday). GPS –60m 32° 27.915´ 35° 37.209. Either descend to the spring or cross the natural arch before walking 2km generally S on the road (avoid the big hairpin bend by going up the hillside); continue S to reach the turn up left to the Rest House.
(Nice accommodation at nearby Countryside Hotel – ask Dib Hussein, Rest House Manager.)

Photos:
top, Wadi Taibah, bottom, Wadi abu Salih.

The following pages have more info on other developments in Jordan since March 2008:
Ayoun treks & climbs
Walks in El Aluk Hills
Dead Sea Hills: RSCN Dead Sea Canyons, a new climb in Karak area, GPS points, Wadi Assal, Wadi Numeira, Wadi Jamal-Khanzira, Wadi Jahal and Wadi Feid.
Climbs in the Petra area
Treks in the new Jebel Mas’uda Reserve
Wadi Rum and the Aqaba Mountains: A new climb near Wadi Rum & Wadi Rum GPS points plus explorations near Aqaba

IMPORTANT: Canyoning & Climbing safety

CLIMBING, North Jordan - SAQEB AREA
Saqeb Cliff: Shivering Crack (guidebook page 305) is Grade 5. Apolgies for the ommission. Dec 09, damaged bolts reported at Sami's Cliff.

CAVING
Zubia Cave - Prof Stephan Kempe, a member of a survey of Zubia Cave (also known as Al Daher) in Dec 2006, has asked us to point out that “The problem with giving locations of caves (none are known in Jordan of the extent of Al Daher by the way) is rather grave since people are digging everywhere and destroying very valuable scientific resources. The same is happening in Al-Daher, flowstone is being removed by professionals and there is no way to stop them. Please put a note in your website as to the absolute need for conservative visitation only; may I also recommend that anybody who is defacing this or other caves in Jordan, damaging their interior or even stealing objects, should be reported to the authorities.”
For a full professional report and topo of Zubia (El Daher) Cave, see Journal of Cave & Karst Studies, Dec 06, v.68, no. 3, p.107-114.
More Caving News (Nov 09).
Carlos Abellanosa emailed with some comments about caves:
Zubia Cave (route 145), the situation is alarming: much dirtier, much more graffiti, much more damage. The road surroundings where people take a picnic is a rubbish carpet, maybe because it was Eid and people was having picnics almost every day. There is no trash container and there are painted arrows so people can find the cave easily. In the cave, people burn plastic bottles held by a stick, so the air inside is poisonous; in a cave with one single entry there is no air draught, so everything stays for long time at the ceiling and who's at the top? The bats. 5 years ago in speleo meetings we were discussing the harmful use of carbide in massive cave visits, because the new LED technology offers a clean solution. We have returned with students of King’s Academy for a clean-up project, for a full report see article. We removed 71 kilos of waste and in the future more cleanness programmes will be developed.
The Lava Tube (route 149), my wife and I were there last weekend and have decided to do a good topo; its not huge, but there is enough to enjoy. This cave is what we call in Spanish speleo slang, a 'drain': all surface rain-water goes to this point, which means you can be blocked in a fatal outcome by a flashflood; the worst is that there are two siphons or U-bends, so it can be dangerous and people should be advised not to enter when clouds look threatening.
Dec 09. We went to the lava tube cave and we confirmed a possible circuit between the ground floor and upper floor, so there are two holes to reach the upper floor. We mapped from the second squeeze til the end and we tried “to open” the way, but we estimated more than 6m trench to dig in conditions that is necessary to remove the helmet… but we will not conclude the cave as impenetrable or with impossible progress, because at the end it’s a hard work but its possible to open a sediment trench.