Hijaz Mountains 2.7

The Hijaz Mountains, or Hejaz Range, is a mountain range located in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia. The range runs north—south along the eastern coast of the Red Sea.GeographyThe western coastal escarpment of the Arabian Peninsula is composed of two mountain ranges, the Hijaz Mountain to the north and the Asir Mountains farther south, with a gap between them near the middle of the peninsula's coastline. From an elevation of 2100m, the range declines towards the vicinity of the gap about 600m,The mountain wall drops abruptly on the western side toward the Red Sea, leaving the narrow coastal plain of Tihamah. The eastern slopes are not as steep, allowing rare rainfall to help create oases around the springs and wells of the few wadis.MiningThe Hijaz Mountains include the "Cradle of Gold (Mahd adh Dhahab)" district, in the region between Mecca and Medina. It is the only known Arabian source for workable quantities of gold.River — wadiThe Hijaz Mountains have been conjectured as the source of the ancient Pishon River, that was described as one of the four rivers associated with the Garden of Eden. This is a component in the research of Juris Zarins that locates the Garden of Eden at the northern tip of the Persian Gulf near Kuwait.