Wadi Shab, the first day of hitchhiking from Muscat.

Wadi Shab is about 150 kilometres south of Muscat, a nice day trip from the Capital. It is even possible to reach by hitchhiking. When I set off to Oman, hitchhiking was one of the ways I wanted to travel around, firstly, because the public transport is not so much built out, and secondly, I had read that it was easy and quite common.

Optimistic start

As I said, I was setting off, hoping to hitchhike to Wadi Shab from Muscat. I walked to where Road 17 takes off from Muscat. Surely, I would have gotten a ride by standing there; however, the taxi drivers are pretty pushy in Muscat, so I was persuaded to share a taxi. I paid about 24 euros for the ride down there. I was sitting in the front seat; four grown-up men had to share the back seat for over an hour.

The driver did not know about the place, and I was guiding him by Google, which was a big mistake. He wanted to drive off before, but I said it was the next exit. So, I ended up very wrong, but I got at least a nice picture of the high road, the seafront and the bottom lake of the wadi. (Top picture). I had to walk back down the high road and get down to the entrance and the short boat trip.

Wadi Shab, one of the most beautiful valleys in Oman

I had read beforehand that this was supposed to be the most beautiful valley in Oman. There are arranged day trips from Muscat, but I wanted to make this journey on my own and to hire a car on my own is something I try to avoid when travelling. When you arrive here, you must start with a short boat that only takes 2 minutes. You can also hire a swimming vest by the boat if you are uncertain of your swimming abilities.

The Hike

When you leave the boat, it is about 40 minutes to walk to where you have to enter the water. Down by the start of the hike, by the boat, the water is green and a bit muddy, but as you walk upwards, the water becomes more clear and transparent. Some of the ponds are so beautiful. As you walk along the path, there is also a lot of vegetation and green.

Finally, you reach the first pool, and here you must decide. Will you leave your clothes and things on the shore or bring them along? I had a waterproof bag, which I brought with me. Also, a waterproof cover for the phone is essential. My experience is that having some shoes or bathing shoes is worthwhile. The ground is slippery, and in between the pools, you have to walk and climb on some slippery stones. From the first pool until you reach the cave, you must swim and walk for about fifteen minutes.

The last five minutes before the cave are only for swimming, and you can not reach the bottom here, so be sure you can stay floating for a while. Also, inside the cave, you do not reach the bottom, but climbing the wall up to a shelf is possible for some athletes. You do not see the cave entrance before you are close. It is narrow, and just about your head passes through.

Inside the cave

It was amazing to swim through the tunnel and see when the space opened up. I could see the sunlight hitting the cave wall and the waterfall inside the cave. Strong currents were inside, so it wasn’t easy to stay still when swimming and taking pictures. But, wow, this experience will last for a long time.

The return

After the cave, it was to swim back the same way and hike the beautiful Wadi Shab. It had been a fantastic hike and swim, and I am so glad I made the way to this place. On my walk back, I wondered how the hitchhike back to Muscat would be. I had to climb up to get to the high road, and I started hitchhiking. Within four minutes and about twenty cars, a driver stopped, and he was going to Muscat.

Bimmah Sinkhole

The gentleman driving me knew there was a popular tourist attraction ahead; I had read about it but thought I had to miss it since the Wadi Shab was the most essential experience of the day. However, the driver offered to stop so I could go over and take a few pictures of the Bimmah Sinkhole. Hawiyyat Najm, in Arabic, is a water-filled depression, structurally a sinkhole in the limestone, a lake of turquoise waters. A collapse of the surface layer formed the sinkhole due to the dissolution of the underlying limestone.

The driver was such a nice man; he asked if I wanted to stop for food. I declined that, but he needed tea at least, and he bought both tea and water for me. What a service, and what a pleasant experience.