Oman
Jebel Shams
The rim path hangs above a thousand metres of air, Egyptian vultures working the thermals below.
The Balcony Walk runs along a ledge with a thousand metres of air below it. Egyptian vultures ride the thermals below the rim, and the abandoned terraces of As Sab hang from the cliff ahead.
Jebel Shams is Oman's high point, and the Balcony Walk is its defining outing: a marked trail along the rim of Wadi Ghul, the gorge often called Arabia's Grand Canyon, with terracotta walls dropping about a thousand metres to the wadi floor. The path ends at As Sab, an abandoned village whose terraces still hang on the cliff. Egyptian vultures work the thermals below the edge. Winter brings frost to the plateau, the summit area itself is restricted ground, and canyon routes beyond the marked trail belong to licensed specialists.
Solo
The W6 trail is marked well enough to walk alone in good weather, and the rim campers who stay for sunrise are usually solo walkers too.
Friends
The Balcony Walk gives a group three hours of shared rim with the gorge doing the talking, and the lodge afterwards seals it.
Couple
Walk to As Sab and back in the morning light, then take the viewpoints slowly; the gorge changes colour through the day.
- The Balcony Walk follows the rim of Wadi Ghul, often called Arabia's Grand Canyon, with the floor about a thousand metres below.
- The path ends at As Sab, an abandoned terrace village clinging to the wall.
- Egyptian vultures ride the thermals off the rim, often at eye level.
- Some walkers camp on the rim and take the sunrise above the cloud; winter mornings up here carry frost.
Jebel Shams Resort cooks hot Arabic and continental meals on the plateau, welcome in the cold mountain air.
Thermos coffee and dates on the Balcony Walk, since the trail sells nothing between trailhead and As Sab.
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