The cliffs reach high, table-like plateaus that are surrounded
by sand from the nearby deserts. The Libyan Desert, the
northeastern part of the Sahara, borders the Nile to the west. To
the east, the limestone plateau skirts the Arabian Desert which
parallels high mountains further east. Primarily granite and gneiss,
these mountains border the Red Sea and rise to heights of 6000
feet or more.
Climate
n pre-historic times, primeval
forests covered the river banks when the river was a vast swamp composed
of rushes, papyrus, and weeds. However, due to thousands of years of
human intervention, the Nile throughout Egypt
flows peacefully through green fields—looking much like a rich, well
cultivated European plain.
The Delta, an area of about 10,000 square miles, is a broad
swamp intersected by canals. The Mediterranean Sea influences this
region bringing a regular winter rainy season. The Upper Nile
valley is one great waterway, with insignificantly small irrigation
canals scattered along its length. It is much drier than the Delta,
with little to no rain. The lack of seasons makes it much easier to
cultivate the land in the Upper Nile. Thus it was cultivated first
and is much less swampy than the Delta, which is still being
converted into arable land.
The climate of Egypt is more uniform than
other Mediterranean countries due to the absence of the rainy season.
From April to November the temperatures are extremely hot with highs in
July reaching above 110° Fahrenheit in the shade. The other four
months can be fairly cool—nightime temperatures may drop to
near freezing. From mid-February to mid-June a hot southeast
wind often creates huge dust storms that cover local plants.
The rest of the year, a northwest wind lessens the extreme heat of the
day.
The runoff from the rainy season in the Ethiopian mountains
flows down the Blue Nile and Atbara Rivers. This influx
of water causes the Nile to rise, beginning in early June. By the
end of July, the river becomes a mighty torrent, reaching its highest
levels in late September to late October. The river then starts to
subside, depositing the fine sediments creating the black Nile mud.
This mud yields fertile soil reaching depths of thirty feet from
Khartoum to the sea.•
