Our last excursion took us to Wadi An Nakhur, the Grand Canyon of Oman.
From Nizwa at 492 m you drive up to more than 1900 m and you are really glad if you have chosen four-wheel drive and a strong engine.
Just getting up there is spectacular and there are also some sights along the way, but we unfortunately had little time left. Once up there, you have the choice of a nine-kilometre hike up to Oman’s highest mountain, Jabal Shams, at 2,997m, or a much shorter walk along the rock face of the upper end of Wadi An Nakhur.
The rock walls of the canyon are up to 1000 meters high.That day, unbeknownst to us, there was a race along the so-called “Balcony Walk”. However, by the time we started, it was already over and the runners had time for a photo with us. How appropriate that I had tied myself a turban again.
The views into the canyon are spectacular, but can only be reproduced to a limited extent with photos. For this reason I refrain from further pictures here.
On the hike you pass an abandoned tiny village. It is hard to imagine how and why people lived here in the middle of the rock face, in the middle of nowhere. I assume that they were mainly goat herders.This small waterfall was the turning point and resting place of our hike.
Had we had more time, I’m sure we would have stayed a night and climbed Jabal Shams. So, like many other hikes, we will have to postpone this until a later visit to Oman.
This picture represents our farewell to the wild nature of Oman. We went back Muscat and the next took the airplane back to Munich. Oman is a great destination!
