Khutwah Oasis

We took a short day trip to Wadi Khutwah, which is just over the border in Oman.  This area is believed to have been a copper smelting area perhaps thousands of years ago.  In 2002, pottery shards were found in this area believed to be 4000 years old.

Dates are harvested from the trees and laid out to dry before being bagged and sold.

A "falaj" or irrigation system.  The source is the groundwater found in the subsoil or valley.  Pumps bring the water up and through the channels.

Lizard

Abandoned village

"Town square" of the abandoned village

Need a sundial?  Why not just build one around the light pole?  The sundial is used to determine when to change the flow in the falaj.

Irrigation pump for the oasis.

Men working in the oasis greeting us.  Omanis are very friendly.

Standing at the top of the wadi.  "Wadi" is an Arabic term traditionally meaning valley, but it also refers to a dry riverbed that contains water only during times of heavy rain, or it can be an intermittent stream.

I don't think I would cross that!

Here you can see the layers of erosion cut over thousands of years.

Man, I hate heights.

Evidence of someone that was using this place as a hide out.  Perhaps someone trying to cross the border illegally.

A few bright colors left in this abandoned place.

Heading to the edge of the wadi.

The Germans posing at the edge.

Crystal clear waters.

Me and the Germans.

Just a little stream of water at first.

This is a really weird picture of me with the water reflecting on the bottom of my face.

Getting deeper.

A very deep hole with a climbing rope and a perfect place to jump in.

Experimenting with my Olympus TG-1 camera.  Weird.  The water temperature was PERFECT though!

Yee haw!

View from the top.

View from the top where the rope is. The jumper's point of view.

 Working our way back out and home.