Natural Crafts Oman

It is one of the most famous wadis of the sultanate for its superb freshwater basins of a beautiful emerald. As always, you are advised to take precautions before venturing out. Don't venture out without a sun hat, sun cream and of course water, as the heat can be overwhelming; and above all, check the weather forecast to make sure that no thunderstorms are expected that day, as the risks of flooding and drowning are real in the wadis. To access the more remote pools, you must first swim across the arm of the river or simply go by boat. Some kids propose this crossing of a few meters. Opposite, a dirt path drowned in palm trees leads to the heart of the wadi along the river. Very quickly, the water disappears and we find ourselves walking on the rock, between mountains with steep walls. Big boulders and touches of greenery: a wild and rather masterful environment, especially when the water shows up again, in the form of punctual basins of incredible green! The most beautiful ones are at the bottom, about 40 minutes walk away on a pseudo path that one loses and finds again at random luck (but, impossible to get lost, since one is so to speak "stuck" in the dry river bed). After about 20 minutes, keep to the right and go up a few meters overhanging following the cliff face and in particular a black pipeline. The path goes down naturally and you must then walk until you spot some abandoned stone constructions, a little higher up, on the left. Further on, there are several pools lined with small pebble or coarse sand beaches: an idyllic setting to spend a few hours. The highlight of the walk is there. It's not really a secret: in informed circles, we all talk about "the famous wadi Shab cave". But still, if you don't know, you can't find it! It is by swimming to get there, following the pools to the bottom, where the mountain forms a sort of cul-de-sac. Slightly on the left, a corridor of a few meters offers itself as a notch, which allows only the passage of the head (the rest of the body remains immersed, which allows to progress while swimming). One enters it with a little apprehension, with one's eyes riveted on the light, at the bottom. Suddenly, the reward is there: an open-air cave into which an adorable waterfall falls! A basin of a few meters in diameter, but abyssally deep, set in its rocky setting.

A village suspended from the scorching slopes, drowned in green palms, forms one of Oman's most striking postcards. Easy access by tarmac road, well-equipped parking lot, tourist coffee shop, natural pools crossed by modern, secure footbridges - this is a major destination for Omani families and travellers alike. From here, following the long-distance footpath, walkers cross the range in 14 hours. It takes considerably less energy to laze on the large rocks and dive into the green water. On weekdays, when it's quieter, this water park, given by nature and redesigned by man, is a recommended excursion. To make the most of the place, take a towel and a bathing suit, which for the ladies must be covering, as the posters remind us. Between the parking lot and the pools, there's a goat path. Don't hesitate to get away from the crowds and head upstream along the wadi to enjoy the peace and quiet. The gorge narrows to form a vertiginous canyon. After the sometimes tricky passage of several large limestone boulders and the crossing of several basins whose water level varies according to the season, you reach a very narrow cave after 1 km - Muqal Cave. It stands halfway up the wall. Following a narrow corridor that requires crawling, it opens onto a vast, dark cavity, extended by vaults and galleries. Even though the area is marked out, it's best to come with locals or a guide.

Much wider than its neighbour the Wadi Shab, the Wadi Tiwi allows you to drive there. It can be reached by a recent road, then by a track that runs along the river through the plantations of date palms, banana and fig trees. It is important to be very careful while driving, as some passages are quite brittle or narrow. A driver who does not feel comfortable with his off-road vehicle will have to make do with the access road, which is flat and well paved. On a regular basis, it is possible to park your car on the side for a swimming break - opt for a discreet spot, as the locals are not used to seeing European women in swimsuits, although this is tolerated. If you like walking, you can also discover the wadi on foot, as you explore the hamlets and terraced fields surrounded by low walls specific to Tiwi, also known as "the gorges of the nine villages". To visit all the hamlets, count one or two days on foot depending on the pace adopted or several hours by car.

The increasingly steep and narrow mountain road goes down 36 kilometres into the wadi and reaches the very last village of Mybam: the wadi citadel, perched at an altitude of 800 metres. The complex, consisting of mud and stone houses and defensive constructions built on a rocky outcrop, is fairly well preserved.

On the way, about 20 km from the entrance to the wadi, you can stop at the sign indicating the start of the hike to the very picturesque village of Saymah (about 1h30 round trip). Clinging to the side of the Bani Jabir djebel, this one conceals an old defensive round tower also used as a grain silo.

Several beautiful natural pools decorate the wadi. From the small village of Umq Bir there is a superb aquatic canyon 6 kilometres long, with numerous pools and long pools to swim in. Lasting about 7 hours, this canyoning is spectacular and is for experienced and enduring people accompanied by a guide (www.omantrekkingguides.com).

For experienced hikers who are willing to be self-sufficient for three days, there is also the ultimate opportunity to link Wadi Tiwi to Wadi Bani Khaleed via the Hallut Plateau. This is a good level hike that can only be done in the company of a mountain guide who knows the area well. It offers a beautiful panorama of the Arabian Sea and the entire coast from a rocky balcony at an altitude of 1,900 metres.

The Bay of Najd, a model of balance in its volumes and colours, is displayed on all Musandam's promotional documents, in blue and ochre, with its hairpins falling towards the wave. After the asphalt, we take a trail that climbs to 400 meters and allows us to embrace the landscape of this "fjord" from above before plunging down towards the bay. On the way back, at the junction of the two tarmacs, we discover a beautiful expanse planted with acacias and thorny jujube trees, large parasols offered by Mother Nature - the Khalidiya Park. Snack break.

Less than an hour from Muscat, the Omani capital holds its small natural paradise as Marseille has its creeks. There are two options to treat yourself to this superb site: either take part in a day trip with one of the operators of the Bandar Al Rowdha Marina (10am-5pm, drinks, shelter and meals included), or go alone by car knowing that the most beautiful beaches are only accessible by sea - thus via a local service provider. These lonely ribbons of fine sand, embedded in the mountains, are the privilege of sailors.

Some moments, during the journey, are immediately precious, certified unforgettable. On this island, made far away by the brisk slowness of its ferry, half a thousand kilometres from the capital and as if light years away from the present time, here is one of these rare moments. They do not appear on any catalogue of approved tour operators, are not signposted, let alone listed in the guides. They are a precipitate of simple nature at the birth of the world, a wild shock. There are two solutions: you can either sleep in a hotel 13 km to the north and come here on a day trip, or you can stay overnight and maybe get a chance to see the Loggerhead ladies in the early morning. To bivouac or swim, you may prefer to go down 6 km further south, on the other magnificent beach decorated with a wreck, with the advantage of a narrower sand ribbon making the sea easier to access by car. Travellers are asked to show the utmost respect and a true sense of responsibility so as not to disrupt the egg-laying process and lead to a premature return to the sea: do not walk anywhere at night on the beaches where turtles breed (risk of crushing the young or cutting off reptiles), do not shine flashlights or use flashes, do not speak untimely, do not encircle the animals or try to approach them. Overall: remain discreet, keep your distance and do not touch anything.

A must-do, even if you don't live in this area, to discover this particular facet of the capital: the mountains that come close to the coast and plunge into the sea, cutting into bays and valleys where luxury resorts or white neighborhoods like villages in the city are tucked away.

From Old Muscat, follow the coastal road to the Al Bustan traffic circle - you can stop to marvel at the atrium, which is open to all if you are dressed appropriately. Turn right onto An Nuzhah Street and then take the first left onto Qantab Street. Well before the junction leading to the new residential and hotel area of Jumeirah Muscat Bay, a wide esplanade offers a sublime panoramic view of the jagged coastline, the white neighborhoods encircled by their chaos of brown rocks, the hard blue of the sea so photogenic echoing a sky often of the same blue, powerful and limpid. Continue straight ahead on Al Jissah Street in the direction of the Shangri-La. At the Bandar Jissah traffic circle, start the wonderful panoramic descent towards the Muscat Hills Hotel just for the photo and the pleasure of seeing the bay gradually unveil itself between two twists and turns. Go back up to the traffic circle, gain height and continue for a few more kilometers on the ridge of the coastal mountains, until you reach the Shangri-La hotel area. Then turn around.

It is one of the prettiest places in the Akhdar jebel, not too crowded so far. Staircases have been installed, to the left and right of the car park. Preferably take the ones on the right, they lead to the bottom of the wadi, incredibly green and lush. Walk in the wadi for a hundred meters: on either side of the dry river bed grow multiple fruit trees or not, protected by dry stone walls. Climb a few big stone steps on the right to reach the lower part of the first village; particularly scenic, the latter is literally hung on the mountain walls, a landscape that is well worth a photo. The hamlet is no longer inhabited and its houses, although fairly well preserved, are not very stable. It is pleasant to walk around and enjoy the coolness of the old walls, but beware of the risk of landslides. The walk continues down the wadi for about 200 meters until you reach a preserved mosque, but forbidden to tourists. 50 meters after the mosque, climb the steps of the stone staircase on the right to reach a second abandoned village, also perched high up, and from which the view of the first hamlet is worth the detour. At the top and at the back of the few houses and alleys, the view plunges on a second river bed, as if parallel to the first one and planted with as many crops. The walk is preferable at the end of the day when the evening light iridesces the ochre of the old facades. Return to the parking lot by the same way.

To reach Ain Razat, take the direction of Mirbat then, shortly after Salalah, the spring is indicated 8 km on the left. We arrive at the foot of the Jebel Al-Qara; many springs flow along the wall to end up in the same basin, itself connected to a falaj system in charge of irrigating the region. A park, open only at weekends, has been set up at this point. The springs of Hamran are located a little further on. First take the road to Mirbat and then follow the road that goes to the left towards Ain Hamran until a dead end.

To get there, take the Atin Road (the one that also leads to Job's tomb), in the direction of the village of Atin for about fifteen kilometers from the city center, then you reach a dead end. The area around the spring has been landscaped with picnic and rest areas, benches, steps to access the water... The site is especially interesting in summer when the spring, fed by regular rains, forms a superb waterfall. The water is then centralized in aflaj which supply the nearby village.

It is the local "croisette" where you can stroll in the mild hours if you sleep on the spot. The place runs along the beach and comes alive especially at the end of the day, when the football players take the sand by storm and the fishermen come to sell their catches. The cornice is then enlivened by a beautiful effervescence, very local and essentially masculine. At high tide, as you approach the port, you can watch the ballet of fishing boats and dhows coming in and out. Little advice to these ladies: as always, wear covering clothes.

This wild lagoon is part of a group of seven others, all located in Dhofar, protected and classified as reserves. The one of ad Dahariz has the particularity to cut the long coastal road which traces on about thirty kilometers between Salalah and Taqah. Far from the hustle and bustle of the city, it materializes in a way the eastern border of the metropolis. The density of its vegetation provides a providential habitat for hundreds of birds, including many migratory species that can be observed from shelters designed for ornithology

It is a very nice walk, easy, although you have to go down and up, and of real diversity in the heart of a landscape of mountains with rough and arid walls and gorges that make you dizzy, but which the human presence has tamed and made much softer. On the rocky hillsides, picturesque villages, typical alleys, miniature mosques, orchards, gardens, trees that crumble under the fruit, bushes that smell of flowers... and, omnipresent, the aflaj: a guarantee of freshness and zenitude, the soft crystalline sound of rustling water. We start from the first village (Al Aqur) and walk to the fourth (Sayq) following the markings, three coloured stripes - circuit W18b. It is also possible to start from any of the 4 hamlets to shorten the walk, as all of them are accessible by an asphalt road. The signposting starts to the left of the Al Aqur car park at the level of a lane that you follow to the end (signs on the posts). You then follow the falaj down to the terraced fields. Beautiful panoramas open out over the surrounding mountains, sometimes hidden by the greenery, until you reach the second village of Al Ayn, where signs are a little too rare for a while. In order not to lose your way, turn left in the hamlet and cross a semblance of a gallery. Walk up to a small mosque with a blue dome, pass to the right of it and go down into the wadi. On the left is a small pool of green water: ideal for a cool break. A few meters before, on the other side of the river bed, big stone steps go up to the third village (Ash Shirayjah), again well signposted. Then you have to follow the road for about 600 meters, before you find yourself back on a path to Sayq. Count about 3 hours round trip (8 km in total), but do not hesitate to make some diversions to go deeper into the streets of the hamlets to capture some scenes of life ... Also go down along the terraced fields to the edge of the canyon for the panorama; or excavate the pebbles to unearth marine fossils, very numerous in the area and over 270 million years old. A word of advice for the ladies: do not go to the mosque and walk with your shoulders and knees covered, out of respect for the local, rural and traditional populations. Tank tops and shorts should be avoided, even in the hot season.

There are several hiking trails in Jebel Shams. But one of the easiest and most beautiful is the one leading to the abandoned village of Sap Bani Khamis (or As Sab). To reach the start of the walk, follow the main track to the village of Al Khitaym: a former hamlet transformed into accommodation for travellers, where goats outnumber men. From here, head for the edge of the ravine to spot the markings: one trail, W6a, heads off to the right towards Wadi Ghul, in the valley, a several-hour walk with a 1,150-meter vertical drop - from 1,900 to 750 meters above sea level. The other path, the W6, marked like the previous one by three yellow/white/red stripes, leads off to the left and skirts the grand canyon for four kilometers: an incredible old mule track, as if suspended above the void, and yet wide enough not to be vertiginous! To the left are the sheer cliff faces, which make you wonder, whenever a panoramic view allows, how and where they can accommodate a trail. To the right, a deep gash reveals the valley floor and a few villages.

There are few, if any, trees to shade the path. Unless you set off early, you'll have to accept that you'll have to hike in the middle of the heat, amidst the rocks. However, this disadvantage is offset by the gentle gradient and good signposting. After an hour and 15 minutes' walk through an XXL landscape, we reach the abandoned hamlet of Sap Bani Khamis: an impressive group of houses clinging to a rocky overhang just a few metres from the void. These are quite well preserved and were probably abandoned only some forty years ago, in favor of slightly less hostile terrain on the plateau. They were built around 400 years ago, using only locally sourced materials: olive and acacia wood, dry stone. The choice of location, almost unthinkable for us Westerners, was justified by isolation (the best protection against enemies) and the proximity of a water source located on the upper plateau and accessible fairly quickly on foot via a steep fault. Fifteen families lived there, mainly raising livestock (goats, sheep, donkeys) and farming (watermelons, onions, chili, tomatoes, wheat...), as evidenced by the presence of terraced farming areas.

The dam on the still-watering Dayqah wadi is the largest in the sultanate, forming Oman's largest artificial lake, with a superb color ranging from blue to emerald. It was built to supply the cities of Muscat and Quriyat and stores 100 million^m3 of water. Well-known to Omanis, who like to spend days or weekends here with their families, the area, encircled by brown mountains, is well equipped for leisure activities (camping, activity center, etc.). To appreciate the beauty of the site, walk to the top of the dam wall.

Wadi Darbat is an immense green plateau located behind Taqah. It boasts Oman's largest permanent natural lake. This wadi winds its way through hills and high plateaus to flow into the Arabian Sea at Khawr Ruri. The water flows down from the mountains to the plains, forming splendid waterfalls that can reach several dozen metres in height. The Darbat, as everyone will tell you, is a classic for weekend outings in Dhofar, with its cool box and camping chairs. It's Dhofar's nugget! This wadi can be visited all year round, but is at its most beautiful between late June and early October, during the summer monsoon season. It's easy to see why this Helvetian-Omani landscape is so attractive to desert dwellers. Between December and April, the effect is less chlorophyllous, but during the dry season, the waters form interesting caverns to visit. The area is also very popular with the Jibbali (inhabitants of the nearby mountains), who come to take their herds of dromedaries out to feed. So be careful if you're driving! There are several observation points throughout the wadi. Boat and pedal-boat tours are also available. However, we strongly advise against swimming in the pools of Wadi Darbat, even if the temptation is great, as bilharzia-carrying worms have been discovered in the water.

Lined with terraced plantations and smooth, polished rocks, this oasis is constantly filled with water and offers a succession of pools wedged between two cliffs: a spot for swimming! Muscat's residents make no mistake and regularly come here to bask at weekends. Thanks to their orientation, the canyon's walls provide shade where it's good to rest or hike for a few hours - a footpath along the old caravan route that linked the port of Qurayyat to the interior.

Khawr Ghawi is separated from the sea by a 6 km long sandbank that can be walked up to its end. At this point, the beach is not as attractive as the one in Dhiris, but the lagoon presents a wild landscape and allows to observe many birds (spoonbills, flamingos, ospreys, coconut sandpipers, etc.). In winter, these come by thousands to populate the sanctuary which then becomes very photogenic, especially as the palette of colours - ivory sand and turquoise lagoon against a hard blue sky - is very beautiful.

As you approach the village of Juwayrah (Al Jawarah), a sign indicates (if it is still there!) "Wadi Banaf"; at the height of it, you can see palm trees on the left, turn towards the sea and continue the track that leads to the lagoon. Going around the lagoon on the left, the track leads to the beach. This corner, often called the lagoon with three palm trees, is probably the most popular area for campers. The sand here is a little less fine and soft than elsewhere, but it stretches for miles. Presence of flamingos and other birds