DreamTrail#2: STH Right-Jebel Jais True Summit-Ghaf-Ghalilah Dam Loop
Trail photos
Author
Trail stats
- Distance
- 14.28 mi
- Elevation gain
- 7,963 ft
- Technical difficulty
- Moderate
- Elevation loss
- 7,963 ft
- Max elevation
- 6,327 ft
- TrailRank
-
76
4.3
- Min elevation
- 490 ft
- Trail type
- Loop
- Moving time
- 7 hours 22 minutes
- Time
- 9 hours 40 minutes
- Coordinates
- 4158
- Uploaded
- January 16, 2021
- Recorded
- January 2021
near Ra’s al Waḩḩ, Musandam (Sultanate of Oman)
Viewed 2708 times, downloaded 78 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
Update Feb 2024.
Please follow below trail for the actual path as designed by Highlander 2021 as I had hiked this older trail by exploration and without proper trail in about 8 Kms area at upper Jais.
https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/ghalilah-dam-sth-rb-jais-summit-jebel-raharah-peak-ghalilah-loop-159440843
*******************************************************************************************
About 8 Weeks ago, I set myself a Challenge to Hike Jebel Jais from various directions and reach its True Summit at 1935 meters Peak, which Technically lies with our Neighbours.
The Challenge to self was to complete 5 Trails from various directions at the base of Jebel Jais mountain of various difficulties and elevation gains of upto 2200 meters well before my Birthday in March.
Here I am today, I managed to complete all the hikes in my list.
Ranking by difficulty level.
6. Jais View Deck Park to Jais True summit and back. 16 Kms
5. Wadi Shah to Jais True Summit and end at View Deck Park. 24 Kms
4. Wadi Ghalilah to Jebel Jais True Summit and end at View Deck Park, 24 Kms
3. STH Right Bank to Jais True Summit to Ghalilah Dam to Wadi Litibah. 24 Kms
2. STH Left Bank to Jais True Summit to Ghalilah Dam to Wadi Litibah. 24 Kms
1. Al Rams to Jais Summit 21 Kms through Exploration Hike by Abdeslam of Adventure Extreme Group.
In my 2 years 4 months of Hiking life, I am so proud and Happy that God has been so merciful and generous in his blessings so that I could achieve my dream.
I have been fortunate to be in the company of some Ace Hikers of UAE who taught me so much about Hiking, Terrain, Methods and Geography.
God Bless All.
BETTER LATE THAN NEVER
Please read all details in the Description, including Safety related Topics below.
This Trail is my Dream Trail #3 / 6.
My Hiker friend Imran agreed to join me.
We started from Wadi Litibah in RAK at 6.30 am at the usual start point of STH right Bank.
Hiked up on STH Right Bank till the Ras al Ghash village in 3 hours using Standard STH Right bank trail.
Continued till True Summit of Jais at 1932 Meters Elevation in 1.5 hours ( Total 4.5 hours to the Summit ). There was no Trail, so you need to have a sense of direction towards the Summit, in addition to it you need to maneuver the mountain to avoid Valleys and choose to hike up the Slopes towards the top.
Edit:
After our hike in early 2021, the Highlander 2021 organisers developed this section and they created a properly laid trail from Ras al Ghash village all the way to Jais summit (3 Kms) and further to connect it to the Ghalf Summit trail.
Once at the True summit of Jais, we turned Right towards HH Sheikh Qassimi palace, and then further towards the Ghaf Summit Trail.
Closer to 1484 Restaurant, we reached the link to the Glalilah trail.
Then descended towards the Ghalilah Dam via the Ghalilah Trail.
Reached down to the Dam and walked flat Wadi 3 Kms to our cars parked at Wadi Litibah ( STH Strat point )
Total 23 Kms distance, covered in 9 hours ( including breaks ) and 46,000 Steps during the Trail.
Total Elevation gain 2,300+ meters.
I also met the Owner of the STH top village of Ras al Ghash Mr. Ali Salem Shehhi at the Wadi, he was courteous enough to have a short conversation with us and pose for a picture.
May 2023 EDIT:
Few clarification from my end.
I had made an error in my trail description and corrected it and also added an Edit on the section of the trail.
The answers to your query.
1. This is part sun exposed and part shaded hike. We started early and in January, so we had good shade during our Ascent almost until we reached the Ras al Ghash ( STH summit ) village. The Mountain wall on Eastern side (Omani) gives a lot of shade in the mornings. Now being April, you may get shade till you reach the dry waterfall ( midpoint of STH trail) and from there I feel you will have exposure to the sunlight all the way and all the time.
There are not many trees on the trail further.
You may have shade on your descent on Ghaf - Ghalilah trail due to setting sun in the West and the Wadi effect.
Basically you need to give an early start to take advantage of gaining the elevation as fast a s possible without effect of Sun.
2.It was my mistake in description and I have corrected it. We started from STH start point in Wadi Litibah and ended the hike there. The last 3 kms was flat walk from Ghalilah dam till Litibah. You could avoid it if you have 2 SUVs and park them at both points. Then the trail would be 3 kms shorter.
3. You could do this hike in reverse too, but same logisitics will be needed.
Yes, you will hike up all the way till the big flag on Ghalilah trail till you hit the Jais road (Puro 1484) and then continue till Ghaf summit, continue further the Palace and Jais and then turn left. (true summit is optional) The trail is well laid and very visible. You can't get lost. The trail will lead you to the Ras al Ghash village and down to Litibah start point.
4. If at all you want to cut short, you have option only at Ghaf Summit / Puro 1484 restaurant areas ). You still need to reach the last public parking or View deck park area and call the Arabia Taxi on 8001700 and drive back to your car parking. This option is always a back up.
The Taxi will cost you about aed 1.7 per Km.
Hope I have clarified your queries.
Please study the trail and map for better planning and Plan B and C.
Carry enough supplies considering the weather.
Worse to worse case scenario, you may find drinking water in STH village, The Palace security guard or the Puro restaurant.
PRECAUTIONS;
DO NOT TRY ANY MOUNTAIN HIKES IF YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE MOUNTAIN TERRAINS, DANGERS FROM WILDLIFE, FIRST AID, WATER AND SNACKS, YOUR OWN FITNESS, REMOTE ACTIVITY PREPARATIONS, COMMUNICATION TOOLS, MOUNTAIN GEOGRAPHY, TOPOGRAPHY, RISK FACTORS, HSE REQUIREMENTS, HIKING ALONE, NOT HAVING A GROUP WITH SIMILAR FITNESS.
STUDY ALL ABOVE MATTERS WELL BEFORE FOLLOWING ANY TRAILS THAT YOU FIND ONLINE. PLEASE DO NOT OVER ESTIMATE YOURSELF.
BETTER BE SAFE THAN PUT YOURSELF / GROUP IN DANGER AND REGRET LATER.
2020 has Seen a lot of unwanted Hiking Incidents that could have been avoided with better preparation.
Wish you All the best.
Please follow below trail for the actual path as designed by Highlander 2021 as I had hiked this older trail by exploration and without proper trail in about 8 Kms area at upper Jais.
https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/ghalilah-dam-sth-rb-jais-summit-jebel-raharah-peak-ghalilah-loop-159440843
*******************************************************************************************
About 8 Weeks ago, I set myself a Challenge to Hike Jebel Jais from various directions and reach its True Summit at 1935 meters Peak, which Technically lies with our Neighbours.
The Challenge to self was to complete 5 Trails from various directions at the base of Jebel Jais mountain of various difficulties and elevation gains of upto 2200 meters well before my Birthday in March.
Here I am today, I managed to complete all the hikes in my list.
Ranking by difficulty level.
6. Jais View Deck Park to Jais True summit and back. 16 Kms
5. Wadi Shah to Jais True Summit and end at View Deck Park. 24 Kms
4. Wadi Ghalilah to Jebel Jais True Summit and end at View Deck Park, 24 Kms
3. STH Right Bank to Jais True Summit to Ghalilah Dam to Wadi Litibah. 24 Kms
2. STH Left Bank to Jais True Summit to Ghalilah Dam to Wadi Litibah. 24 Kms
1. Al Rams to Jais Summit 21 Kms through Exploration Hike by Abdeslam of Adventure Extreme Group.
In my 2 years 4 months of Hiking life, I am so proud and Happy that God has been so merciful and generous in his blessings so that I could achieve my dream.
I have been fortunate to be in the company of some Ace Hikers of UAE who taught me so much about Hiking, Terrain, Methods and Geography.
God Bless All.
BETTER LATE THAN NEVER
Please read all details in the Description, including Safety related Topics below.
This Trail is my Dream Trail #3 / 6.
My Hiker friend Imran agreed to join me.
We started from Wadi Litibah in RAK at 6.30 am at the usual start point of STH right Bank.
Hiked up on STH Right Bank till the Ras al Ghash village in 3 hours using Standard STH Right bank trail.
Continued till True Summit of Jais at 1932 Meters Elevation in 1.5 hours ( Total 4.5 hours to the Summit ). There was no Trail, so you need to have a sense of direction towards the Summit, in addition to it you need to maneuver the mountain to avoid Valleys and choose to hike up the Slopes towards the top.
Edit:
After our hike in early 2021, the Highlander 2021 organisers developed this section and they created a properly laid trail from Ras al Ghash village all the way to Jais summit (3 Kms) and further to connect it to the Ghalf Summit trail.
Once at the True summit of Jais, we turned Right towards HH Sheikh Qassimi palace, and then further towards the Ghaf Summit Trail.
Closer to 1484 Restaurant, we reached the link to the Glalilah trail.
Then descended towards the Ghalilah Dam via the Ghalilah Trail.
Reached down to the Dam and walked flat Wadi 3 Kms to our cars parked at Wadi Litibah ( STH Strat point )
Total 23 Kms distance, covered in 9 hours ( including breaks ) and 46,000 Steps during the Trail.
Total Elevation gain 2,300+ meters.
I also met the Owner of the STH top village of Ras al Ghash Mr. Ali Salem Shehhi at the Wadi, he was courteous enough to have a short conversation with us and pose for a picture.
May 2023 EDIT:
Few clarification from my end.
I had made an error in my trail description and corrected it and also added an Edit on the section of the trail.
The answers to your query.
1. This is part sun exposed and part shaded hike. We started early and in January, so we had good shade during our Ascent almost until we reached the Ras al Ghash ( STH summit ) village. The Mountain wall on Eastern side (Omani) gives a lot of shade in the mornings. Now being April, you may get shade till you reach the dry waterfall ( midpoint of STH trail) and from there I feel you will have exposure to the sunlight all the way and all the time.
There are not many trees on the trail further.
You may have shade on your descent on Ghaf - Ghalilah trail due to setting sun in the West and the Wadi effect.
Basically you need to give an early start to take advantage of gaining the elevation as fast a s possible without effect of Sun.
2.It was my mistake in description and I have corrected it. We started from STH start point in Wadi Litibah and ended the hike there. The last 3 kms was flat walk from Ghalilah dam till Litibah. You could avoid it if you have 2 SUVs and park them at both points. Then the trail would be 3 kms shorter.
3. You could do this hike in reverse too, but same logisitics will be needed.
Yes, you will hike up all the way till the big flag on Ghalilah trail till you hit the Jais road (Puro 1484) and then continue till Ghaf summit, continue further the Palace and Jais and then turn left. (true summit is optional) The trail is well laid and very visible. You can't get lost. The trail will lead you to the Ras al Ghash village and down to Litibah start point.
4. If at all you want to cut short, you have option only at Ghaf Summit / Puro 1484 restaurant areas ). You still need to reach the last public parking or View deck park area and call the Arabia Taxi on 8001700 and drive back to your car parking. This option is always a back up.
The Taxi will cost you about aed 1.7 per Km.
Hope I have clarified your queries.
Please study the trail and map for better planning and Plan B and C.
Carry enough supplies considering the weather.
Worse to worse case scenario, you may find drinking water in STH village, The Palace security guard or the Puro restaurant.
PRECAUTIONS;
DO NOT TRY ANY MOUNTAIN HIKES IF YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE MOUNTAIN TERRAINS, DANGERS FROM WILDLIFE, FIRST AID, WATER AND SNACKS, YOUR OWN FITNESS, REMOTE ACTIVITY PREPARATIONS, COMMUNICATION TOOLS, MOUNTAIN GEOGRAPHY, TOPOGRAPHY, RISK FACTORS, HSE REQUIREMENTS, HIKING ALONE, NOT HAVING A GROUP WITH SIMILAR FITNESS.
STUDY ALL ABOVE MATTERS WELL BEFORE FOLLOWING ANY TRAILS THAT YOU FIND ONLINE. PLEASE DO NOT OVER ESTIMATE YOURSELF.
BETTER BE SAFE THAN PUT YOURSELF / GROUP IN DANGER AND REGRET LATER.
2020 has Seen a lot of unwanted Hiking Incidents that could have been avoided with better preparation.
Wish you All the best.
Waypoints
Summit
6,308 ft
Intersection
Comments (15)
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Scenery
Moderate
Done this time as a loop.. Bit deviated here and there and ended up with 25km hike.. We started from the Galilah dam at 7:00 AM and walked initial flat 3km as a warm-up before picking up the elevation.. Reached summit point at 12:30 PM.. and reached Galilah dam by 5:00 PM..
Some error happened in the wikiloc and the peak elevation shows as 1892m only.. In my previous trail it was 1926!
While coming back the Galilah trail is really slippery at various points cz of the lose rocks.. I have seen many people struggling there without poles and proper hiking shoes..
Nice and challenging hike overall.. We took 7 hours moving time and 10 hours total time.. Next aim is through left bank ✌️
Hi Muhaissin,
Nice to know you hiked this Trail.
Yes, GPS jumps sometime and gives errors.
For your next hike via Left bank, please stay as close to the border lines.
All the best!!@
Hi Patrick, i am planning to do this hike on coming saturday and have few questions:
1. Is this fully exposed hike or has some shaded points making it suitable for this weather
2. It says you started from Wadi ghalilah and ended at Wadi Litibah. Did you use two cars?
3. If starting at Wadi Ghalilah, Do we start from Ghalilah all the way up to jebel jais high point
Sorry, wikiloc acting funny and posting half comment. If at all, we want to cut short, can we return midway as its a loop. Thanks for replying
Hi Rob,
I will respond in few hours with details.
Thanks.
Hi Rob,
Few clarification from my end.
I had made an error in my trail description and corrected it and also added an Edit on the section of the trail.
The answers to your query.
1. This is part sun exposed and part shaded hike. We started early and in January, so we had good shade during our Ascent almost until we reached the Ras al Ghash ( STH summit ) village. The Mountain wall on Eastern side (Omani) gives a lot of shade in the mornings. Now being April, you may get shade till you reach the dry waterfall ( midpoint of STH trail) and from there I feel you will have exposure to the sunlight all the way and all the time.
There are not many trees on the trail further.
You may have shade on your descent on Ghaf - Ghalilah trail due to setting sun in the West and the Wadi effect.
Basically you need to give an early start to take advantage of gaining the elevation as fast a s possible without effect of Sun.
2.It was my mistake in description and I have corrected it. We started from STH start point in Wadi Litibah and ended the hike there. The last 3 kms was flat walk from Ghalilah dam till Litibah. You could avoid it if you have 2 SUVs and park them at both points. Then the trail would be 3 kms shorter.
3. You could do this hike in reverse too, but same logisitics will be needed.
Yes, you will hike up all the way till the big flag on Ghalilah trail till you hit the Jais road (Puro 1484) and then continue till Ghaf summit, continue further the Palace and Jais and then turn left. (true summit is optional) The trail is well laid and very visible. You can't get lost. The trail will lead you to the Ras al Ghash village and down to Litibah start point.
4. If at all you want to cut short, you have option only at Ghaf Summit / Puro 1484 restaurant areas ). You still need to reach the last public parking or View deck park area and call the Arabia Taxi on 8001700 and drive back to your car parking. This option is always a back up.
The Taxi will cost you about aed 1.7 per Km.
Hope I have clarified your queries.
Please study the trail and map for better planning and Plan B and C.
Carry enough supplies considering the weather.
Worse to worse case scenario, you may find drinking water in STH village, The Palace security guard or the Puro restaurant.
Wishing you all the best.
Hi Patrick, Thanks for your prompt response. We will do the right bank option as I have done both STH and Ghalilah and personally, I don’t like Ghalilah much😂. My knees hated me after that but still were ok with STH full loop.
Your explanation is very helpful, if there is anything, I may bother you again☺️
Does full summit mean going into Oman? Do you need to get a visa? 😁 I hear there are border guards around by the main road? Thanks
Hi there,
On this specific trail, you cross the imaginary border line into Oman but there is no fence and no border controls.
No need of Visa.
The true summit of Jais is about 500 meters away from the borderline.
I have not heard of any border guards stationed at this point.
Happy Hiking!!
Great, thanks. I’m going to have a go this Saturday.
When I hiked this trail, there was no laid trail.
Highlander UAE laid a proper trail after the Ras al Ghash village at STH summit and that trail may not be exactly like my recorded trail, but will be towards general direction.
You will be able to make out the target and achieve it.
All the best.
Thanks for sharing this.
I was attempting to finish this loop yesterday but ended up against 3-4 m vertical wall when going down to Wadi Ghalilah (it is after “6500m left “sign). I spend a couple of minutes walking around to find other option to go down but then i decided to go up to the restaurant as I was quite short on water and get taxi to wadi ghalilah where i left my car. Wadi Ghalilah descent (last part of this loop) is indeed challenging even with very good boots (because of loose rocks/ steepness/ markings on the trail) but does it involve bouldering as well?
I guess on the three options happened:
1) i missed the actual path to go down
2) it is not maintained in the summer season and some rail or any fixed support got destroyed
3) it is actually requires bouldering but I would not attempt without a helmet
Dear Lukasz,
Looks like you missed the path on Ghalilah descent section.
Its a fully visible trail section, nowhere there are boulders to manouvre.
The path is steep down and can be loose at places.
I checked your profile to refer your recording, but you have not posted it, so I cant advise if you took a wrong turn.
We hiked that descent section some months back and the path was hikable safely with no need of barriers or bouldering in Ghalilah descent section..
https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/sth-lb-jais-summit-ghalilah-dam-loop-124577884
I think i got it now! Cannot really share the path because i did not use wikiloc but by looking at strava iI ndeed took wrong way. Funnily enough there were markings there as well with “hiking trail 7500 m” then 6500 m etc signs
Hi Lukasz,
Thank you for the clarification.
Those trail markings (meters in distance from Ghalilah Dam) are actually not very much fixed and its possible they have been moved or misplaced by people.
My trail recording is pretty much accurate, so next time you can refer it in case you need it although the whole path is very well visible.
Take care and enjoy your hike.