Seeb Al Ghareeb, Musandam
My first trip to Oman was when I bought my first 4×4 in the UAE 2 years ago. I was so excited to try it on an adventure so I decided to visit Musandam with a couple of my friends. And I fell in love. Last week’s visit was surely different from my first one: I am actually more at ease with the customs procedures. I now know my way around the place. I am acquainted with many fishermen to transport me to the islands suitable for camping, etc.
Moving Thursday night, we met by pure chance friends of Toufic’s at the station and we all hit the road to the borders. At the passport check, we again saw some old friends who were also heading to Oman but to a different camping site. After some time spent at the customs, we rush to Khasab for the night. We joined Toufic, Leanne, Omar and the rest by Khasab Port where they set the camp to sleep. But sleeping was not the plan for me. Hiking was. I wanted to see how the Port looked like in the middle of the night from the top of its surrounding mountains. The climbing took about 45 minutes during which my tent, then my sleeping bag, then my bag took turn in annoying me by falling off my back (Need to manage better packing next time). The view from the top made me forget all this and more. I just stood there, taking in deeply the cold breeze and enjoying the moonlight. It was breathtaking. Then it was time for some “selfies” before finding the right spot to sleep the few more hours left before sunrise. By a cliff was the perfect spot.
The morning was full of emotions. I wake up with a smile on my face. Lingering inside the tent, i was listening to the surrounding silence, only disturbed by the buzz of some crows and hornets curious with this strange nomad invading their wide kingdom. We met with the company around an hour later. They were already climbing and enjoying the shadow of the rocks by the sea. We took turn to practice our climbing techniques under the watchful and serious eye of Toufic.
Photo by Hicham Elzabadani
Photo by Hicham Elzabadani
Photo by Juraj Elef
Then it was my turn to rock climb and enjoy a new challenging route. With the help of fellow rock climbers guiding me from below, I was able to pull it of and learn new techniques. An accomplishment I am proud of.
A while later, i was taken by Omar running in the water trying to swim with the reef sharks. The word “shark” was the perfect invitation for me to jump in the cold waters yet was a bit far and Omar had the perfect timing. It was unfortunate I did not bring my scuba gear on this trip as I always do. It would have been great to take some underwater footage of these magnificent underwater creatures that do not ofter visit so close to shore. The sea creatures were as curious as we are, swimming closer to the shore then escaping when we got near them.
Photo by Juraj Elef
Photo by Juraj Elef
Photo by Juraj Elef
Photo by Juraj Elef
After the thrill of watching reef sharks and getting first encounter with these beautiful creatures, i went back to the rocky walls to practice what I have been learning in caving class with MECET. I tried my first belay on an actually rocky wall. Not as easy as I thought it would be, but again as always I learn better every time from my mistakes and with Toufic’s guidance I was up and down in no time.
So much action in this weekend it was a shame it had to end as I packed my gear and head-back to Dubai, for another adventure called “Avoiding Dubai Traffic”!
Amazing writing and breathetaking photos.. Well done!
Thank you Noush, happy you enjoyed it stay tuned for more action 🙂
Inspiring stuff – really looking to go to Musamdam when the “fall” hits the UAE.. I’ve also just bought my first 4×4 – thank you for the interesting blogpost and your work on the Adventurati Meetup which led me here..
-Jonas
Thank you Jonas, much appreciated for your kind words.
Congrads on the new ride, what brand did you get?
I look forward to having you join us for some thrilling outdoor adventure 🙂 Stay tuned!
Have you ever find a cave in Musandam?
I thought there might be many caves in Musandam, because it looks limestone everywhere. I’m a caver in Japan, and I will visit Oman next month.
Hello Yuriko and thank you for your interest. Oman is famous for its cave systems, not particularly in Musandam but more towards the eastern region close around Salmah plateau. For a better understanding of the nature check out my video of my recent drop at the 7th hole in Oman, one of the most famous caves in this area. my email is fadi.hachicho@gmail.com drop me an email and I can share with you more details 🙂
Enjoy the video : http://youtu.be/gsIF3tT9HV4?list=UUUIm9upTDW2kZymRueJYClQ
Hi Fadi, lloks good your trip!
Me and my girlfriend are planning to go to Khasab just after newyear for some camping. Can you tell me which Island(s) is/are the best for camping? And can we just head to the harbour and ask some fisherman to bring us there?
Thx!
Hello Thijs! Apologies for the late reply. I have been traveling for sometime now and just came back to UAE. You can go to the harbor ans ask any of the fishermen to give you a ride (make sure you negotiate the price). If your packing light you can hike up the mountain facing the harbor next to the small house and trees. Its a bit steep at first but then it gets flat and easy. Once you reach the flat area at the top just keep hiking forward towards the the ocean side at the other end and it will lead you straight to the canyon that leads to Seeb Al Ghareeb Beach 🙂 if you need more details feel free to contact me on fadi.hachicho@gmail.com enjoy!
Do you really need a 4×4 for this trip?
I am asking because for example, I have been told that you must go to Jebel Jais with a 4×4 but at the end, my saloon car was more than enough and it was only a 6k to the summit that I have enjoyed a lot by walk 🙂
Hello Noa and thank you for your message. This trip was in Musandam, Oman.
For this trip you do not need a 4×4. You can park your sedan at the port and go hiking from the port across the mountain (as marked in the map above) all the way down the canyon till you reach Seeb Al Ghareeb beach front. An easier way to do it would be hiring a fisherman to take you by sea and drop you at Seeb Al Ghareeb beach front. Its only 1km away by sea. Either way its a beautiful location to enjoy the stunning waters of Musandam.