Blog 11 - Birkat al Mouz & Jabal Akdhar

Birkat Al Mauz & Jabal Akhdar

From Imti we drive back a bit towards Nizwa, until we reach Birkat Al Mauz. This traditional oasis is supplied with water from the mountains by the 36km long Falaj Kathmayn. The picturesque old part of the village, with its clay houses, is mostly abandoned. Here we come across an 'old acquaintance'. The Volvo truck, which still bears the inscription of the company Schirnhofer from Kaindorf in eastern Styria, has been seen here in 2014 and 2017. It was sold from Austria more than 25 years ago over a distance of more than 6000 km, and still seems to be fully operational to this day.

From Birkat, it soon goes uphill, partly quite steep, to Jabal Akdhar. The road is continuously asphalted and very well built, yet there is a checkpoint of the Royal Oman Police in the valley, which checks whether the vehicle has four-wheel drive, as only these are allowed to drive on the road.

More than 50 km after Birkat, we reach the ALILA Hotel - probably our favorite hotel worldwide. Not only the location at an altitude of about 2000 m on the edge of a canyon is fascinating, but also the design of the houses, the plants and the excellent service.

From here we take a trip with a hike to the "terrace villages" Al Aqur and Al Ain. Once again, we cannot experience the famous rose bloom of the "Green Mountain" - the translation of Jabal Akdhar. In 2017, we were too late in mid-April, and this time we are too early.

We are passing Birkat al Mauz - a traditional oasis. The village is still receiving water from the mountains via a 35 km long Falaj. The old part with the clay houses is abandoned - as usual nowadays.

From here, the steep but excellent road to Jebel Akhdar starts. The police still requires and checks that only 4WD cars can pass. After 50 km, we arrive at our favorite hotel - the Alila. It's not just the location on the edge of the canyon wall, but also the design of the houses, the plants, and the excellent service.

From here, we also take a short trip and hike to the "terrace villages" Al Aqur and Al Ain. Again, we do not see the famous flowering of the roses, this time we were too early.