Oman safari - Wadi Bani Khalid

After our morning in Sur we made our way inland to a natural spring called Wadi Bani Khalid. As well as being a natural waterhole and swimming pool for locals, the wadi also has extensive caves and underground lakes. We just spent our time there resting by the side of the wadi as it was a really hot day and our guide told us that it is quite hard to reach the caves by foot. Heaps of fish kept Jason amused while I rested in the shade with my feet in the water. We also watched a group of local boys bomb dive into the wadi, gasping a few times when they landed a bit too close to some rocks submerged by the spring water!

Oman safari - Sur & Ras Al Hadd

Next we headed to the city of Sur (450km southeast from Muscat) and made our way to a small coastal town called Ras Al Hadd. We checked into our hotel and had a quick bite to eat before heading out at 8:30pm to Ras Al Jinz, a beach 15 minutes drive away. Ras Al Jinz is famous for year-round visits from Green Turtles. Although we were there in the off-season and the presence of a full moon often stops turtles from laying eggs (due to increased numbers of predators, such as foxes), we did see one turtle digging several large holes in the sand at this beach. We were also very lucky to see another group of turtle eggs hatch and see the baby turtles make their way to the sea. The Omani guide showing us the turtles allowed us to pick up the babies and help them to the sea. Below is a photo of Jo holding a baby turtle (the photo isn't very good as we weren't allowed to use flash).



The next day we spent some time in Sur, visiting a dhow building business, fish market and unfinished dhow museum (yep, we were taken to a construction site - however Jason did get some good photos of a very large dhow there). At the dhow building business we found out that they use wood from Malaysia and it takes one year to make a dhow.

Oman safari - on the way to Sur

Last Sunday we went on a three day safari to coastal and inland areas of Oman where we saw a turtle hatching site, visited very old watchtowers and a beautiful wadi oasis and stayed overnight in the desert. We had lots of fun and have some photos to share of our trip.

The following photos are taken in a small town south of Muscat. The watchtowers featured in these photos are thought to be the oldest in Oman and date from the 1550s.

Journey to Jabal Al Akhdar

On Saturday we went on a day trip with Jason's parents to a mountain about two and a half hours outside Muscat. The mountain is called Jabal Al Akhdar (which means the Green Mountain). This name actually refers to the mountainous area surrounding the Sayq Plateau, which is 2000m above sea level. It is called the Green Mountain because of the terraced gardens and orchards. Most of the mountain is quite arid, but is still greener than the surrounding smaller mountains and low lands. The area is also renowned for its fascinating geology and extremely rugged geography.

Views on our way up to Jabal Al Akhdar





Views from the top of the plateau







Views of a dry wadi (creek bed) and small dam




Drying laundry the energy efficient way



Local houses




I want some picnic lunch too!




More views from the plateau





Terraced gardens and orchards