Yemen: Footbridge across a 300 metre (985 ft) chasm at Shahara, north of Sana'a,1986. Photo by Bernard Gagnon (CC BY-SA 3.0 License)

Yemen: Footbridge across a 300 metre (985 ft) chasm at Shahara, north of Sana'a,1986. Photo by Bernard Gagnon (CC BY-SA 3.0 License)

The celebrated Shahara Bridge in Yemen was built across a 300-metre deep gorge in 1620, ostensibly to repel Turkish invasions. Shaharah is a fortified village high in the Yemeni Sarawat Mountains about six hours drive north of Sana'a. Fortified mountain villages are common in Yemen, but Shaharah is the most inaccessible. Incredibly inaccessible, Shaharah has been a thorn in the side of any invading army and a bolthole for retreating imams for centuries. It wasn’t until the civil war of the ’60s that the village was finally conquered through the use of air power. In addition to its defensive fame the village has a long tradition of learning (dating back to the time of the Zaydi dynasty in the 9th century). Its scholars were known throughout south Arabia. The village lies at 2600m and overlooks mountainous bulging swells to the south and shimmering hot plains to the north. The climb up from these plains to the village takes you through some of the most impressive scenery in the country.

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