W10h-W8-W10: The Hajar ridge from Sharaf Al Alamayn to Ras al Ḩaraq
Trail photos
Author
Trail stats
- Distance
- 6.75 mi
- Elevation gain
- 1,627 ft
- Technical difficulty
- Difficult
- Elevation loss
- 1,181 ft
- Max elevation
- 7,552 ft
- TrailRank
- 44
- Min elevation
- 6,538 ft
- Trail type
- One Way
- Time
- 10 hours 45 minutes
- Coordinates
- 2104
- Uploaded
- March 17, 2017
- Recorded
- March 2017
near Hāţ, Ad Dakhiliyah (Sultanate of Oman)
Viewed 2979 times, downloaded 111 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
This is part 2 of my 5-day hike in westerm Hajar mountains from February 28th to March 04th, 2017.
The preceding part can be found here.
The trail follows the hajar ridge westward from Sharaf Al Alamayn road pass to the mountain Ras al Ḩaraq (رأس الحرق). It includes the trekking routes W10h and parts of W8 and W10 as recommended by the ministry of tourism of the Sultanate of Oman. See their official website.
The second part of the trail is described in the book “Adventure Trekking in OMAN” by Anne dale and Jerry Hadwin (out of print) as part of walk 9.
W10h and W8 are perfectly marked and cannot be missed. W10 is only sparsely marked by some older waymarks or the ocassional cairn and requires some scouting skills. Good preparation and a GPS are recommended.
The hike offers stunning views in all directions. One is on the ridge, after all. This is not for persons afraid of heights. Following flat rockbeds first, the trail becomes more difficult when aooroaching Ras al Ḩaraq. Some simple climbing is required which can get tricky with heavy backpack.
I set up my tent in the saddle in front of Ras al Ḩaraq. There are good camping spots, and water is available. This is the only water source along the track: a number of natural cisterns containing rain water, covered with branches and stones to reduce eveporation. For drinking, this water must be filtered or purified, of course.
The subsequent part of the hike can be found here.
The preceding part can be found here.
The trail follows the hajar ridge westward from Sharaf Al Alamayn road pass to the mountain Ras al Ḩaraq (رأس الحرق). It includes the trekking routes W10h and parts of W8 and W10 as recommended by the ministry of tourism of the Sultanate of Oman. See their official website.
The second part of the trail is described in the book “Adventure Trekking in OMAN” by Anne dale and Jerry Hadwin (out of print) as part of walk 9.
W10h and W8 are perfectly marked and cannot be missed. W10 is only sparsely marked by some older waymarks or the ocassional cairn and requires some scouting skills. Good preparation and a GPS are recommended.
The hike offers stunning views in all directions. One is on the ridge, after all. This is not for persons afraid of heights. Following flat rockbeds first, the trail becomes more difficult when aooroaching Ras al Ḩaraq. Some simple climbing is required which can get tricky with heavy backpack.
I set up my tent in the saddle in front of Ras al Ḩaraq. There are good camping spots, and water is available. This is the only water source along the track: a number of natural cisterns containing rain water, covered with branches and stones to reduce eveporation. For drinking, this water must be filtered or purified, of course.
The subsequent part of the hike can be found here.
Waypoints
Waypoint
6,799 ft
Junction W8-W9-W10h
Waypoint
6,789 ft
Junction W8-W10
Fountain
7,196 ft
Water pits
Campsite
7,170 ft
Campsite
Summit
7,927 ft
Ras Al Haraq
Comments (3)
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Hi, hope all is well with you. I'm planning to do this hike with my kids, 11 and 9 years old. Is it possible with kids?
Hi AR Mokha,
it's been a while since I was in Oman. As far as I remember, the first part of the trail is technically not difficult. It gets harder after the fork to Bald Sayt (W8).
I would recommend that you start from the hotel, go as far as you can manage, and return to the hotel. This should be safe.
You will not make it to Ras Al Haraq, though. If you want this, you have to camp there. There is no water and some chance to get lost, since the trail is not marked. You could consider hiring a local guide.
Best regards,
Erik
Thankyou very much. Truly appreciate your support.