PauloBizarroPHOTOBLOG

One of my favorite places to visit in Oman is the Jebel Akhdar mountainous area. I have written about it several times already, so forgive me for adding one more to that number. This mountain region provides a good way to escape the summer heat, so it is not surprising that it is a popular destination. There are historical villages and their cultivated terraces, where the traditional harvests follow the rhythm of the seasons. The most famous one is the Damask rose in the Spring, but this time I visited during the pomegranate season, which lasts from August to September.  

The famous trail that connects the three villages along the hanging terraces is best walked early morning or late afternoon, to avoid the time of the day with the highest temperature. Even though it is cooler up here in the mountains, at more than 2000m above sea level, it will still reach 30 Centigrade easily. The Jebel Akhdar pomegranates are well known for their large size and sweet flavor, so I was keen to look for them as I walked along the path. I saw many trees with abundant fruits but not yet sporting the conspicuous red color; seems I visited a bit too early in the season, which gives me an excuse to go back in a couple of weeks or so. 

One of the mornings during my visit, I was out before dawn in a viewpoint overlooking the villages and terraces. The scene in front of me was beautiful, and the tranquility was absolute, with no other soul in sight. Gradually, the first light of the day started to illuminate the landscape in golden tones, slowly progressing downwards into the deep valley. I wanted to record this vast scenery with my camera, so I made a series of images that I later assembled as panoramas. In the future, they will remind me of this unique experience of the sunrise in Jebel Akhdar.

One of the most traditional markets in Oman occurs every Friday morning in Nizwa. Even before the first light of dawn announces the beginning of a new day, many vehicles start to fill the car park near the souk; on Friday mornings, all the buzz is about the famous “goat market”. In a dedicated enclosure, the animals are auctioned in a traditional market, where sellers and buyers close the deals in a lively way. I visited one Friday morning in early August, arriving before 6 am. This allowed me to walk around the souk for some time, becoming familiar with the ongoing activities.  

Even this early, the place quickly becomes very busy, and there is some anticipation in the air. In a nearby square, there was already an ongoing market for fruits and vegetables: dates, prickly pears, mangoes, papayas, were just some of the varieties available.  

After taking some photos of the fruit market, I returned to the goat market, because the action was about to start. The enclosure consists of a circular path, where the sellers parade the animals; the potential buyers are located both in the central and outer parts. Each seller keeps the goats in a pen, waiting for their turn to go. I chose a location in the front row and got ready for the action to start. Once it starts, the whole process goes at a fast pace. For this type of event, I prefer the flexibility of a zoom lens; hence, I mounted the Fujinon 16-50 f/2.8 – f/4.8 on a Fujifilm X-T5 camera.  

This market provides a unique opportunity to experience a genuine Omani tradition, in a beautiful town. Besides the souk, Nizwa offers much more to see and visit: the impressive fort, the surrounding oasis and plantations, or walking along restored walls in the old town. 

Summer in Oman is synonym of high temperature and in some regions high humidity too. One of the places where it is possible to escape the heat is the Eastern coast, where the Ras Al Jinz Turtle Reserve is located. Thanks to the strong monsoon winds coming from the Indian ocean that prevail during the summer, the temperature is a few good degrees lower than the usual. Summer is also the best time of the year to see several species of turtles coming ashore to lay their eggs; every night, hundreds of these majestic animals arrive at these beaches after crossing the ocean, returning to the coast where they were born.

I visited the reserve last year (see link below), and returned this year too, to see them again. I previously wrote about this experience, so this time I will jump straight into the photos.

Ras Al Jinz Turtle Reserve – PauloBizarroPHOTOBLOG

For this trip, I took my Fujifilm X-E5 camera and Fujinon 35mm f/1.4 lens. I knew they would be adequate to photograph during the two guided visits (one at night, the other at dawn). All visits in the reserve are supervised by experienced guides, so not to disturb the turtles.

At night, red lamps are used, which result in unpleasant light; therefore, I converted the images into black and white. It is truly impressive to see these gentle giants arriving on the beach, climbing up the sand, and digging their nests to lay hundreds of eggs. After these exhausting efforts, they return to the sea; after a couple of months, the babies will hatch and make their first journey into the ocean. After around 25 years, the females will return to these shores to continue this cycle of life. It is both a wonderful and humbling experience.

Misfat Al Abriyeen is one of Oman’s most picturesque and historic villages, located on the mountainside in Al Hamra. After spending the night camping in Jebel Hat, I always stop in this traditional Omani village for a nice walk (and coffee) amongst its green terraced farms. Despite the recent increase in tourism and visitors, walking along the narrow streets beside ancient mud-brick houses, and intricate falaj (irrigation) system, is still a nice experience.  If you ignore the signs of modern times, Misfat seems like a place untouched by time, providing a window into the country’s past, with a rich heritage and traditional lifestyle. There is evidence of Persian occupation dating from 1,500 years; Misfat itself is at least 500 years old but the falaj system that maintains the terraces of palm and banana trees is said to be even older. 

The best (and really the only) way to visit Misfat is on foot; before exploring old Misfat, it is worth making a stop in the modern village across the valley, where most of the population lives. They still take care of the plantations, and slowly the old homes are being turned into guest houses. I still remember the first time I visited Misfat about 20 years ago; it was an abandoned village, with houses falling into disrepair and crumbling. There are several marked trails in the area that are worth exploring, as they will take you across the shaded green terraces. I walked around for a while, but the temperature and humidity were rising as the morning went on; thus, I stopped in a local coffee shop for a refreshing drink before driving back to Muscat. 

Now that the heat has come to stay, visiting the mountains is one way to escape it. That is what I did a couple of weeks ago, with a weekend camping trip to my favourite camping place in Oman. I had not been there since October 2024, so I was excited to go back. This time, instead of taking the adventurous gravel road coming up from the north side via Wadi Bani Awf, I took the leisurely tarmac road that starts in the southern side, near Hamra.

Arriving in time for a late picnic lunch, I setup camp and took a stroll to the edge of the mountain, admiring the fantastic view over Jebel Shams, Wadi Bani Awf and Wadi Sahtan. I never tire of this scenery. First time I was here was in February 2003, during my first time in Oman.

The hill in the previous photo is a privileged spot to admire the view; the small tree at its top provides an interesting photographic subject too. The village of Hat can be seen nested against the mountain, way down.

After this initial photo session, I rested for a while and had a nice dinner by a fire. My plan was to set up my camera and wide-angle lens to photograph a star trail; however, a strong wind forced me to cut the session short, and I only got about 30 minutes of total time. In the distance, roughly 30 km away, I could see the lights from the Jebel Shams antenna station.

Following a good night´s sleep in the tent, I woke up to photograph a beautiful sunrise. To the north, the light started to illuminate Jebel Shams, slowly creeping down towards the village of Bilad Sayt. I always enjoy this time of the day, when everything is still quiet with no wind and crisp atmosphere.

This type of light is brief, but while it lasts it is magical. After a well deserved breakfast, I packed my camping gear and left. I know I will return, of course. In the meantime, that day I drove down to Hamra to visit the picturesque village of Misfat Yabreen, but that will be another blog post.

Every April the “rose season” attracts many visitors to the mountain terraces of Jebel Akhdar. Walking amongst the pink flowers that fill the air with their perfume is a unique experience, which can be complemented by visiting a traditional rose water distillery. The temperature at this higher altitude is pleasant and cool, inviting leisurely walks. This year I visited the area again, enjoying the mountain scenery and the picturesque villages. As always, Omanis are friendly and welcoming. However, I spent less time up in the mountain, because I wanted to visit Birkat Al Mawz (which translates to “Banana Pool”), a famous village located at the foothills of Jebel Akhdar. It is a historic village featuring UNESCO-listed falaj irrigation channels dating back 1,500 years, abandoned mud-brick ruins, lush date palm groves, and nice walking trails. 

The road that takes you up to Jebel Akhdar passes through Birkat Al Mawz; as a result, I have driven many times through it, but never really explored it. Strategically located, the village guards the entrance to Wadi Muadin, which is a gateway to the mountains. It is one of Oman’s historically significant villages, providing the experience of a strong connection to a traditional agricultural past, which is preserved in the stone water channels and mud-brick houses frozen in time. These old houses were abandoned 50 – 60 years ago, as families moved to coastal cities attracted by new employment opportunities. 

The ”falaj walk” starts near the parking area and is easy going, as it follows the irrigation system. The village’s ancient falaj system continues to perform its 1,500-year-old function, channeling mountain spring water through gravity-fed canals to irrigate date palms, banana plantations, and vegetable gardens. I visited during the late afternoon and really enjoyed walking along the old buildings and lush plantations, with the sound of running water for company. I wanted to photograph the village and its plantations against the mountain background, but the light was poor, with a heavy cloud cover. As always, landscape photographers depend on the light quality, but I decided to come back the following day before sunrise. 

It turned out that I was lucky and at sunrise the next day there was a brief period where sunlight broke through the clouds. I was ready at a nearby viewpoint overlooking the beautiful landscape in front of me. I had to work very quickly, as the light only lasted for a few minutes. The mountains, abandoned villages and the lush plantations acquired a new life, very different from the previous day. The following photos were taken with my usual Fujifilm X system cameras and lenses, which I carried in my backpack.

After less than 30 minutes of this high quality of light, the sun was again obscured by clouds, effectively ending my photo session. However, I was fortunate to photograph this beautiful landscape with such excellent sunrise light.

These photos were taken during a recent astronomy trip to Wadi Sahtan, near Rustaq. This is a good dark site for sky observation, but besides that, it is also located at the foot of the northern face of Jebel Shams, the highest mountain in Oman. This face is a sheer vertical wall of around 2,000 m height, which is really impressive. In February the temperature is still on the cold side at night, with the crisp air providing excellent visibility.

After a 2 hour drive from Muscat, our group arrived at the site and set up camp. As the sunset was approaching, I walked around for a while, scouting potential locations for a sunrise shoot. At sunrise, that wall of rock would be illuminated by the early morning light. Sunset itself provided a good show, with the light being dispersed by the edge of the mountain.

With the approach of darkness I returned to camp to have dinner and prepare for some observation. Our group managed to had a good look at several planets (Saturn, Neptune, Uranus and Jupiter), plus a few star clusters and nebulae. Before I went to sleep, I set up my camera on the tripod to shoot a few hundred images for later assembly as star trail. The result was the image below, with a total time o 100 minutes (200 photos of 30 seconds each).

The following morning, as planned, I woke up before dawn, to be greeted by the crescent moon.

After that, I walked up a nearby hill and started to shoot as the early morning light slowly bathed the mountain in a wonderful light. It was an incredible experience just watching the progression of the light over the landscape.

Of course on my back the sun was rising, which presented further opportunities for interesting photos too. Like the nearby village of Wahjma, at the foot of the mountain, with its oasis of palm trees.