Freshwater Springs of Southern Oman

There are times when seeing is believing. And even then you may find yourself pinching yourself. 

Here’s an example… What you see in the photograph above is just a few miles from the location where this shot was taken. 

The landscape behind the coastal city of Salalah in southern Oman is remarkable in many ways. And the most notable of these is the fact that it is, in places, a very green area fed by fresh springs. 

This particular location is Ain Razat - an important source of spring water in the Dhofar area. It now acts as a public park, but it used to be one of the main sources of water for the port town of Salalah. The main spring, as well as several smaller contributories, flow into a long pool at the foot of the Jebel. 

The cool clear water flows along a falaj (watercourse) throughout the year, although flow is highest during the Khareef. The freshwater flows four miles to Al-Mamurah Palace, the Sultan’s residence when he is in Salalah. A further two miles and the watercourse reaches Razat Farm.

Signs warn against swimming due to risks of Bilharzia (a parasitic worm), but this guy didn’t seem to be worried about that. 

Actually, I thought I may have had a touch of Bilharzia myself when I visited the loo at the rear of the carpark. The entire park was empty the day we visited and I was the only visitor to enter those public loos all day. A sad looking man took a coin off me as the price of entry to the toilets - then handed me a damp, shiny, knobbled stick. It was only when I had done the business in a truly foul latrine that I understood what the stick was for. It was one of the less salubrious and certainly less joyful moments in all my years of travel.  You will be glad to hear I have no photos of that sorry interlude.