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By: Marijcke Jongbloed


  Dhofar was the name given long ago to the southern part of Yemen and Oman. Yemen Dhofar was a powerful state that ruled most of the tribes in the Arabian peninsula until the 5th century AD. Dhofar of Oman gained fame mainly because of its frankincense production. It extends over some 120.000 square kilometers, which is almost equal to one third of the total area of Oman.

  It consists of three very different habitats: a coastal plain that stretches from Darbat Ali in the West to El Kahal in the East, mountainous ridges that enclose the coastal lowlands and separate this from the Najd desert to the north.

  The coastal plain is the most inhabited area. One quarter of the plain lies under the influence of the seasonal monsoon that provides copious rain and mist during the months July, August, and part of September. At the time when the rest of Arabia is suffering the greatest heat of summer, the plains around Dhofar’s capital Salalah are wet and cool. Most of the visiting tourists come to enjoy this weather and participate in the annual Khareef festival. However, the mountains and the desert have their own attractions.

  The mountain ridges extend eastwards from the Yemen border for some 290 kms. The population is sparse and the mountain people have their own language known as “jibbali”. Jebel al Qamr starts on the Yemeni border and extends to the east, while the lower Jebel Qara forms the middle of the northern boundary of the coastal plain. To the northeast the vast area known as Jebel Samhan consists of a rolling plateau, dissected by deep wadis and rising to over 2100 meters. It has some of the most spectacular steep escarpments that drop down to the coastal plain. Elsewhere the ridges rise to a height of 800 to 900 meters above sea level. The mountains are mainly limestone with some granite outcrops here and there. The seaward side of the mountains is covered with lush vegetation, where the monsoon spills its rains before drying out as it pushes over the top of the ridges. This area of lush woodlands is restricted to a narrow belt that extends from 3 km to 30 km inland, over a total length of 240 km. The landward side gradually becomes more and more arid and continues seamlessly into the great Najd desert that covers 97% of the total area of Dhofar. This desert is the natural extension of the Ru’ub al Khali, the Empty Quarter and is inhabited only by small groups of nomadic bedouin. The main point of interest of this empty sand and gravel desert is the city of Ubar, trading center and frankincense capital of the ancient world, still partly hidden under the sand. It was rediscovered only recently by an expedition that had pinpointed the site by means of infrared satellite photos.

  Salalah and its surroundings give the impression of a tropical country. Large coconut and banana plantations line the two major throughways. Fruit and vegetables are the main crops these days though in the past sugar cane and fodder for livestock took up much of the production. Since the coming of oil that enticed many young people away from the area, livestock is playing a less important role in the economy. Nevertheless camels are still kept in great herds, especially in the mountainous areas.

  I have visited the area twice towards the end of the rainy season and both times I was amazed at how different this piece of Arabia is from the rest of the peninsula (except possibly some areas in the southwest of Saudi Arabia). There are various comfortable hotels in Salalah, some on the seaside with access to the beautiful beaches. However, it must be kept in mind that in the cool season the sea is wild and not suitable for swimming. At certain times of the year it is possible to see whales quite near the coast here.

  Most of the interesting parts of the region can be reached by ordinary saloon cars that are available for rent at the airport or in town. Exploring the area west of Salalah takes about half a day. The drive along the coast towards the village of Mughsail has nice views towards the Arabian ocean with various tidal pools being explored by hundreds of wading birds. Mughsail is famous for its thundering blowholes, where the incoming waves make fountains up to 20 meters high spout from the rocky shelf that lines the coast. The water has eroded holes in the rock in various places and these form the blowholes.

  Further west the road starts to climb and in the rocky valleys between the ridges you can see some of the frankincense trees that gave this region its fame and prosperity many centuries ago. Frankincense is the fragrant resin that the tree produces and that was harvested to be sent north by huge camel caravans or east across the sea to the Indian sub-continent. The best frankincense trees are found in the southern part of the Dhofar Najd desert, where there is the right temperature, a soil rich in bicarbonates and high humidity due to the monsoon clouds evaporating when they cross the tops of the mountain ridges. The frankincense trees grow wild and the areas where they grow were traditionally divided into small areas called manzilah (pl. manazil). Each manzilah is owned by a tribe and passed from father to son in order to keep the property within the family. There are various grades of frankincense, each with different names. First grade frankincense is called “Al Laqut” and consists of pure white lumps of resin, grade two frankincense is called “Al Motayab”. Lower grades are yellowish brown. The largest manazil occur in the northeastern areas of the Dhofar Mountains and foothills.

  The road now zigzags through many switchbacks to a height of over 1000 meters. Jebel Qamra is stark and forbidding, with beautifully weathered rocks and picturesque Dracaena serrulata trees. At the end of the rainy season the areas between the rocks are covered with the most extra-ordinary grasses and flowering plants, such as Aloë dhufarensis. Over 750 species of plants have been recorded in the various habitats of the Dhofar region, with 50 of these being indigenous – that is, plants that occur nowhere else in the world. Many of the plants are related to those of the island Socotra and the drier regions of tropical North Africa. The woodland is similar to that found in parts of Somalia. Unfortunately much of this unique flora is under threat due to human activities. Overgrazed grasslands are gradually replaced by species that cattle do not like to eat such as the Sodom’s apple or Solanum species. Where trees have been removed for their wood, the rolling mists do not leave their moisture and the land becomes more and more arid. A wonderful book by Anthony G. Miller, illustrated with beautiful drawings by Miranda Morris describes many of the unique plants of the Dhofar and gives interesting information about traditional economic and medicinal uses (Plants of Dhofar, ISBN 0 7157 0808-2).

  A tour through the extensive lower mountain ridges of Jebel Qara takes a full day, with the chance to explore permanent pools, meadows full of the most incredible flowering shrubs and herbaceous plants, bird watching, looking for flints and fossils and studying the many species of lizards that live among the rocks of the more arid areas on top of the mountains. The birds that occur in this region have affinity with species from Africa. It is possible to see the rare Grey-headed Kingfisher, the Pheasant-ailed Jacana and the bright green Didric’s Cuckoo as well as the more common Rueppell’s Weaver.

  The most spectacular trip, however, is the full-day one to the top of Jebel Samhan towards the northeast. At first the gravel plain is flat and without features. Towards the right is Khawr Rowri, now separated from the ocean by a large sand bank but once a major commercial port. Nearby are the ruins of an old castle, the remains of Samhuran or Queen Sheba’s palace. It is an archaeological dig that is still in process. As you enter the foothills of the great mountain there is a turnoff to the left leading to wadi Darbat. This river has water throughout the year but after the rainy season there are waterfalls and a large pool (better not to swim there as there is a warning sign for bilharzias – a disease transmitted by water snails). During Eid days the area is chockablock full of people on picnicks, but in quieter times I t is a good bird watching site and there are all sorts of wildflowers and insects to be found. There are hiking tracks and caves with ancient wall paintings. A bit further on there are a few enormous sink holes such as Tawi Attir, over 100 m long and 200 m deep. At the bottom a system of caves extends for some distance, but should only be accessed by professional spelunkers/divers.

  The vegetation on the way up is thick and lush, with mosses dangling from tree branches and with impenetrable undergrowth in places. Slowly the vegetation thins out and as you reach the high plateau the gravel plane is bare except for some extraordinary bushes, such as the Euphorbia balsamifera, the yellow-flowered Caralluma qauadrangula and the thick-stemmed Adenium obesum. Often huge herds of camels are encountered here. The road peters out on a part of the plateau that is close to the edge of the escarpment of Jebel Samhan. During the monsoon you can stand at the edge and look over the top of the clouds that hug the cliffs. A month later the view to the sea is clear and you can look for miles up and down the coast.

  Jebel Samhan was declared a nature reserve in recent years, especially to protect the very rare Arabian leopards. Intensive research with remote controlled cameras and satellite tracking of leopards with special collars has revealed that there is still a viable population of these small beautiful creatures in the Dhofar Mountains. There are quite a few other rare creatures around that are not quite so spectacular, such as the Golden spiny mouse, various species of lizards and snakes. The rather hard-to-find Dhofar Museum in Salalah can provide you with a map marking various sites of natural history interest.

  The Dhofar can be reached by road, but the trip across the central desert is long and arduous. If you travel in the wet season the steep road down the mountain towards the coastal plain is dangerous because of being very slippery. The reward of the long trip is a stay in the lush greenery of another Arabia!

   

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