Know Before You Go
Only about five miles (8 kilometers) from the city of Al Khor, Al Thakira Mangrove Forest can be reached by car. This requires a 1.2-mile (four-kilometer) off-road ride through compacted sand and salt flats. The dirt track ends on the beach where the mangrove forest begins. There are no signs and no facilities nearby.
Pencil roots spread up to 33 feet (10 meters) for the tree trunk, and they usually form a close-knit pattern. Stepping on pencil roots would damage them, probably resulting in the demise of the mangrove tree. It is, therefore, advised not to walk through the mangrove forest. It is a safer option to wade along the coastline, along the tidal line demarketing the outer limits of the mangrove forest. With high tide, another alternative is to kayak along the coastline and into inlets. The latter option allows taking in the small mangrove islets a short way from the mainland.
