Located about an hour and a half from Amerat, this haven of emerald green water pools is a miracle carved by nature itself. It is bewitchingly beautiful and majestically inspiring in its ebb and flow all through the long valley of water. You could indulge the child in you by playing in little pools carved by rocks or go all out and dive in for a long swim in the cool waters. If swimming is not your forte or if you prefer to stay dry, simply sit alongside on a boulder or the pebbled path and let nature take over. Wadi Arbaeen will present you with a wide canvas of nature in all its beautiful colours.
An early start is recommended to make the most of the trip; get a vantage spot to camp for the day and even trek through the long trail to witness spectacular waterfalls. On the first visit, you will be amazed to learn that there is such a generous water body right in the vicinity of the capital, where summer can dry out little puddles of water in seconds. A scenic drive along the Muscat-Sur road will lead you to this picture-postcard village that boasts a long stretch of water with deep pools and waterfalls, looping onto shallow rocky beds of water. The water is cool even when the temperature is hovering in the 40s.
Although it can seem hot and humid outside the water, with rugged mountains standing like sentinels and trapping heat during the summer months, the water at Wadi Arbaeen is pleasantly cool. A dip in is mandatory just to shake off the ennui of city life and embrace the charms that nature subtly weaves.
With highway roads generally clear, more so during weekends, reaching the signboard marked ‘Wadi Arbaeen’, along the Muscat-Sur road, should not take more than an hour and a half. Follow the arrow to the right to enter the destination, which now opens to a dirt track for as long as your eye can see. There is no way to get lost from here, as there is only one narrow road cleared along the mountains leading to the Wadi. A 4WD is recommended for the dirt track; however, even an AWD would work all the way to the pebbled stretch of the track.
Water will play peekaboo from the first sign of flat water surface along with a village plantation, to the main pool with the rushing waterfall sending you messages of magic waiting ahead. Rocks and flowing water provide acoustic relief to the city ears that have endured an overdose of honks and supermarket crowds.
You could drive all the way up to the first big pool, where a cautionary notice will warn you of the dangers of drowning in large pools where the water flows deep. Stringing this to the valley is a little water bed with clear waters throwing up images of the grey pebbles and small fish frisking in the shallow waters. Reeds hem one section of the water trail, opening up a path in the middle for vehicles to drive through to another bewitching section of ponds and flowing waters. Driving is possible in Wadi Arbaeen only up to this point, after which trekking enthusiasts would require to gear up and walk along the boulders and water paths to reach the famous hidden waterfall. This trek is only for the intrepid; for, not only is it a long trek – two-and-half-hours – it also traverses through boulders and water holes, some of which require you to swim or walk along the water path to reach the other end.
Trekking will, of course, require you to be equipped with the right footwear and a backpack with essential water and food to cover the trek time. With the weather getting into the winter mode, heat and humidity might not trouble you, but that should not have a say on the water you carry – take as much as you could carry while trekking.
With several vantage points along the valley, camping for the night is an option for those who want to have a bigger dose of the Wadi and want to savour the joys of trekking and swimming in the turquoise waters of Arbaeen.