Photos by Yeru Ebuen
Insta: @yru_here
In an era when everyone likes to explore offbeat places, Wajma is a hiking destination you must add to your list when you are visiting Oman. From Muscat, it takes almost a two-hour drive to reach Wadi Sahtan and another 30-minute drive by four-wheel drive towards Wajma Village located on top of one of the surrounding mountains where the hike usually begins.
From this point, you will already see waves of mountains, layers after layers of peaks made even more beautiful by the usually blue sky. In winter, the sky becomes gloomy but one of the greatest treats is when the mountains form a sea of clouds that makes it feel like you are above them.
Here are the four reasons why hiking to Wajma should be your next mission.
The Abandoned
Village of Wajma
The abandoned village of Wajma has its own charm thanks to the village being located on a massive mountain cliff. Heading to the village alone is already an adventure as the winding path is not only scenic but challenging. Wajma has been abandoned by its inhabitants because of water shortage and challenging access to education, electricity, and transportation. Every once in a while the villagers still visit Wajma as they still have farms there that are planted with root crops and date palms. Sitting on the rooftop of any of the cliff houses and watching the sunrise or just passing the time enjoying the peace already makes a trip to this village worth it.
Spring water collection process
At the far end of Wajma Village is one of the most unique attractions that continue to drive people to the abandoned village. As access to clean, drinkable water is hard, the inhabitants have created a smart way of collecting droplets falling off the side of the cliff. They lined up the bottom of these cliffs with earthenwares and pots that collect the water. During the rainy season, Wajma also has one of the most beautiful falaj cisterns where water is collected and creates a pool where the inhabitants swim.
Coffee with a view of Al Hajar Mountains
There’s no better place to see the entire range of Jabal Shams than from Wajma. There are five mountain peaks between the army camp which is near the Jabal Shams summit point and the actual mountain summit. The entire mountain range is more visible from Wajma than from the Jabal Shams viewpoint. To enjoy the view, Omanis usually have a habit of making coffee on top of these mountains. Collecting water from nearby springs, and picking up wood along the way for fuel, the Omanis can clearly demonstrate why coffee on top is a totally different experience worth checking out.
Exceptional hiking trails
Jabal Shams summit hike (W4) is one of the most challenging hikes available in Oman, which needs stamina and mental strength. Surprisingly, Wadi Sahtan mountains can offer almost the same challenging and difficult hike routes especially since it has numerous steep ascents. While crossing these mountains, one can see old abandoned villages. Some cave mountain houses are also still usable and some hikers stay in these camps when they explore the area.
Some of the routes that you can try are the following:
a. Start at Wajma and cross the villages of Al Seer, Al Hop, Al Bashop, Al Olah, and Al Wadaim and back to Wajma which is approximately 11 km. This is a challenging hike where you need to cross countless mountains and in between, you can see a wadi and waterfall.
b. Wajma Village to Al Huwaib Village ( approx. 12 km) via Al Habna, Al Qabil. Al Habna is a great place to camp if one is interested in staying in the mountains.
c. From Wadi Sahtan mountain, there is a route that directly takes you to the highest peak of Jabal Shams (W4). This trail is said to be the most challenging one and a must to have a guide.
d. Wajma Village to Al Huwaib Village (approx. 11.17 km) only via the Sinsila route. “Sinsila” is an Arabic word that means Chains. Sinsila is a wooden step at the mountains, which connects Al Hamra and Al Rustaq mountains. These wooden steps are made of the trunk of trees tied together by chains and nails hanging at an elevation of 1,600 metres.
e. Misfat Al Abriyeen (W9) can also be accessed from Wadi Sahtan mountain. This is not a marked trail and needs special arrangements.
These trails are not recommended for beginners and must be explored with professional guides. Some of the hikes need special arrangements as they need camping within the mountains and can take 2-3 days. Interested hikers can contact Saif through his Instagram @saif91alsalami and @mazin_al.abri for guiding services and information.
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