Oman's fruit bowl

Bountiful pomegranates and roses are Jabal Al Akhdar’s best-kept secrets, writes Aftab H Kola

The most beautiful country in the GCC, Sultanate of Oman, was my home for 12 long years. Packed with a stunning scenery, splendid heritage, surreal beaches, off-beat sights, a few places really stand out and one such amazing destination is Jabal Al Akhdar. Every season has its reasons to visit the highland plateau punctuated with breathtaking views.

Jabal Al Akhdar, the fruit bowl of Oman, is popular with tourists in all seasons. The road is a fantastic stretch of concrete with safety measures, which is what makes it ideal for a nice adventurous drive. Starting from Muscat, the capital, make your way towards Nizwa road for about 90 minutes and then deviate towards the town of Izki (sign-posted) and to Birkat Al Mawz (a town worth scanning for traditional mud architecture and a fort) from where the deep ascent begins.

A falaj, or man-made channel running across a slope

Green mountain

Just a while after Birkat Al Mawz a check-point ensures that you are driving a 4WD. The 45-minutes ascent from here offers panoramic views. Jabal Al Akhdar (which means the green mountain), whose peaks vary from 7,000 to 9,000 feet high, is perched high up in the central mountain ranges of Al-Hajar. The mountain town is a spectrum of exotic fruits and roses, unadulterated picturesque cliffs, and settlements spanning the slopes. Jabal Al Akhdar’s famed fruit plantations are laid out terrace-style along the sloping contours of the landscape, with natural springs and aflaj (man-made water channels).

Fruits galore

A wide range of fruits, like dates, pomegranates, roses, olives, walnuts, pista, almonds, apricots, peaches, pears, plums, figs, grapes, lemons, wild berries, strawberries, etc., are harvested here depending upon the season. While the main crop is pomegranate — 30,000 pomegranate trees spread over ten villages and the fruits plucked in September — the rose harvest turns the place into pink in March. The first place one always goes to is the Wadi Bani Habib. At the dead-end of a road, there is a steep climb down through concrete steps that leads you to bountiful pomegranate orchards. Trees laden with pomegranates wow you. On another side is the ruined settlement on a small hillock that looks photogenic. At the parking lot of Wadi Bani Habib, locals sell pomegranates, fresh walnuts, wild berries, honey, etc. I can vouch that there is none to match the juicy and sweet seeds of Jabal Al Akhdar’s luscious fruit.

Pomegranate orchards

The other picture-postcard places are Sayq Plateau and Al Ayn which are a profusion of trees adorned with the luscious pomegranates that welcome visitors. Many such places like Shuraijah, Al Aqr, Hail Al Yemen, Al Manakhir, Qutnah, Al Sograh and Al Qasha’a villages practice terrace farming to grow different fruits. Their scenic locations delight one’s senses. Another fruit that is now closely competing with pomegranate in the mountain plateau is the crunchy pears. The best place to visit, if you get the permission, is the farm maintained by the Ministry of agriculture and fisheries. Here, one can feast on a sea of fruit trees, be it pomegranates, pears, pistachios, almonds, etc.

At Jabal Al Akhdar it is not just the fruits that beckon the visitors, but also a range of shrubs and plants that are a part of a unique natural heritage.

Surreal

In March-April, bushes adorned with famed damask roses offer a surrealistic landscape of burnished brown with patches of green. These rose blossoms are traditionally distilled to produce rose water. One can also visit these traditional units where the roses are processed to produce pure rose water. Rose petals are distilled at the traditional mud ovens called Al-duhjan. The petals are allowed to simmer gently for about four hours in a vessel called Al-burmah, which is covered by another vessel made of copper. As it boils, water flows from the petals into the copper vessel.

The old petals are then replaced with fresh petals using a traditional tool. After boiling, the rose water is poured into a large pot known as Al-karas, where it remains for at least 30 days. Then, the rose water is ready to use and is bottled and taken for sale. Though most of the places in Jabal Al Akhdar are motorable, a few require a steep climb to some settlements hemmed in by vertiginous cliffs.

One of the most visited point is Diana Point (Lady Diana was wowed by its sheer drop when she visited the place) where a sudden rock throws open to a mammoth depression. Here, one can find some fossils on the rock.

The weather in the mountains is extremely pleasant throughout the year but a bit colder in winter months. Feasting on traditional mandi, kabsa, machbous and shuwa — all Arabian dishes — is a bonus on this mountain retreat.