Stairway to Heaven Right bank Night Hike (Repeat)
Trail photos
Author
Trail stats
- Distance
- 7.75 mi
- Elevation gain
- 6,785 ft
- Technical difficulty
- Moderate
- Elevation loss
- 6,785 ft
- Max elevation
- 4,640 ft
- TrailRank
-
84
4.9
- Min elevation
- 824 ft
- Trail type
- Loop
- Moving time
- 6 hours 9 minutes
- Time
- 11 hours 37 minutes
- Coordinates
- 2138
- Uploaded
- September 3, 2021
- Recorded
- September 2021
near Ra’s al Waḩḩ, Musandam (Sultanate of Oman)
Viewed 5730 times, downloaded 180 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
Elevation gain is mentioned wrong, it should be 1200.
Highlander Event created one of the best Trail that covers almost 50 Kms and it is the best. The trail is well laid and manmade stairs in many places keeps your foot stable. Good job Highlander !! Thank you !!!
My personal non profit/ non commercial FB Page dedicated to UAE Hiking.
https://www.facebook.com/Patricks-Hikes-101251445547970
The Trail starts in Wadi Litibah. The last section of approach road is bit rocky and large pebbles, so a good clearance vehicle is required. Many hikers park their vehicles at Wadi Ghalilah Dam parking and walk about 3 kms to the Trail head. 4WD or AWD vehicle is an advantage although good clearance Sedan also can manage the graded road.
The Hike Start point is here.
You need a 4X4 to reach here as the 3 Kms Offroad from the Asphalt road is rough and full of pebbles.
https://goo.gl/maps/sJNHGHyrVwL9cyNz7
The Sedan Car Parking near Wadi Ghalilah Dam here.
https://goo.gl/maps/rjwhsTmfEtXaQKkU8
The below link is the Trail recorded as the Offroad section from Wadi Ghalilah to Hike start point.
https://www.wikiloc.com/offroading-trails/ghalilah-dam-to-sth-trailhead-82793544
This Hike is also known as Woh Village Hike ( false name ), but the Village at the summit of this trail is known as Ras al Ghash.
The Trail is well marked by its path, there are no Painted Flags or Trail marker stones. The path is very clear and visible as the farmers and the hikers have been using this trail regularly.
We started at around 9.30 pm and took about 4.5 hours to reach the summit taking well deserved breaks at every Stone bench Resting stations.
We carried more than 6 Liters of water and other Nutrients as the night was Humid.
Once you reach the Trail head, you simply follow the path, some steps, some ups and downs etc and the trail takes you through through the short Balcony walk and then to a dried Water fall and then later to the summit via a steep loose rocks path and then by some man made stairs to the Summit.
In between, you will get to rest on Stone table and benches in about 4 places.
The Ras al Ghash village on the summit is simply beautiful with farms and goats.
The farmers are friendly too.
While descending down, take care as the long distance and steep slope will take toll on your knees and ankles. A hiking pole is advantageous.
Best to start early in the morning so that you get maximum shade from Sun and longer daylight to enjoy and explore the hike.
Take minimum 5 Liters of water, suitable Hiking shoes, Head lamps and batteries and snacks.
Enjoy the Stairway hike.
As we reached heights, the weather changed immensely for the better and at the top village the weather was around 22 deg Centigrade.
We took a long break at the summit, had a good Nap and had a nice Tea with the Farm hands of the Village.
We returned back after the Sunrise, one of the best Views.
On our way back, we collected as much Trash ( water bottles and Cans ) that we could gather and carry.
It was heartening to see Hikers without common sense throwing away the Trash on the mountain instead of disposing them off in a proper manner.
When Hiking in the Night, best advantage is lower temperatures, less heat and bearable weather.
But the group should be small and led by an experienced Hiker who knows the area and who managed the Safety aspects. Lights, Water, food, Electrolytes and other important topics should be considered and followed strictly.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Do Not Try Any Mountain Hikes If You Do Not Understand The Mountain Terrains, Dangers From Wildlife, First Aid, Hydration And Snacks, Your Own Fitness, Remote Activity Preparations, Communication Tools, Mountain Geography, Topography, Risk Factors, HSE Requirements, Hiking Risks, Fitness Level Of The Group Members.
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.
Lately We Have Seen A Lot Of Unwanted Hiking Incidents That Could Have Been Avoided With Better Preparation.
Wish You All The Best.
Wikiloc, Only For Reference. There Can Be Errors On The GPS Recording Due To GPS Jumping In The Wadi Sections or Erroneous Recording.
Highlander Event created one of the best Trail that covers almost 50 Kms and it is the best. The trail is well laid and manmade stairs in many places keeps your foot stable. Good job Highlander !! Thank you !!!
My personal non profit/ non commercial FB Page dedicated to UAE Hiking.
https://www.facebook.com/Patricks-Hikes-101251445547970
The Trail starts in Wadi Litibah. The last section of approach road is bit rocky and large pebbles, so a good clearance vehicle is required. Many hikers park their vehicles at Wadi Ghalilah Dam parking and walk about 3 kms to the Trail head. 4WD or AWD vehicle is an advantage although good clearance Sedan also can manage the graded road.
The Hike Start point is here.
You need a 4X4 to reach here as the 3 Kms Offroad from the Asphalt road is rough and full of pebbles.
https://goo.gl/maps/sJNHGHyrVwL9cyNz7
The Sedan Car Parking near Wadi Ghalilah Dam here.
https://goo.gl/maps/rjwhsTmfEtXaQKkU8
The below link is the Trail recorded as the Offroad section from Wadi Ghalilah to Hike start point.
https://www.wikiloc.com/offroading-trails/ghalilah-dam-to-sth-trailhead-82793544
This Hike is also known as Woh Village Hike ( false name ), but the Village at the summit of this trail is known as Ras al Ghash.
The Trail is well marked by its path, there are no Painted Flags or Trail marker stones. The path is very clear and visible as the farmers and the hikers have been using this trail regularly.
We started at around 9.30 pm and took about 4.5 hours to reach the summit taking well deserved breaks at every Stone bench Resting stations.
We carried more than 6 Liters of water and other Nutrients as the night was Humid.
Once you reach the Trail head, you simply follow the path, some steps, some ups and downs etc and the trail takes you through through the short Balcony walk and then to a dried Water fall and then later to the summit via a steep loose rocks path and then by some man made stairs to the Summit.
In between, you will get to rest on Stone table and benches in about 4 places.
The Ras al Ghash village on the summit is simply beautiful with farms and goats.
The farmers are friendly too.
While descending down, take care as the long distance and steep slope will take toll on your knees and ankles. A hiking pole is advantageous.
Best to start early in the morning so that you get maximum shade from Sun and longer daylight to enjoy and explore the hike.
Take minimum 5 Liters of water, suitable Hiking shoes, Head lamps and batteries and snacks.
Enjoy the Stairway hike.
As we reached heights, the weather changed immensely for the better and at the top village the weather was around 22 deg Centigrade.
We took a long break at the summit, had a good Nap and had a nice Tea with the Farm hands of the Village.
We returned back after the Sunrise, one of the best Views.
On our way back, we collected as much Trash ( water bottles and Cans ) that we could gather and carry.
It was heartening to see Hikers without common sense throwing away the Trash on the mountain instead of disposing them off in a proper manner.
When Hiking in the Night, best advantage is lower temperatures, less heat and bearable weather.
But the group should be small and led by an experienced Hiker who knows the area and who managed the Safety aspects. Lights, Water, food, Electrolytes and other important topics should be considered and followed strictly.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Do Not Try Any Mountain Hikes If You Do Not Understand The Mountain Terrains, Dangers From Wildlife, First Aid, Hydration And Snacks, Your Own Fitness, Remote Activity Preparations, Communication Tools, Mountain Geography, Topography, Risk Factors, HSE Requirements, Hiking Risks, Fitness Level Of The Group Members.
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.
Lately We Have Seen A Lot Of Unwanted Hiking Incidents That Could Have Been Avoided With Better Preparation.
Wish You All The Best.
Wikiloc, Only For Reference. There Can Be Errors On The GPS Recording Due To GPS Jumping In The Wadi Sections or Erroneous Recording.
Waypoints
Summit
4,638 ft
Intersection
Comments (14)
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I have followed this trail View more
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Moderate
One has to do this hike at least once! We drove as well the off road section to shorthen the hike, which is indeed in a bad state; I personally like the improvements with the safety rails they did on the trail from the Highlander competition, it gives a more achievable feeling! It was a killer for my knees at decending( but that is because for me was a personal best, never achieved this elevation gain while hiking in UAE), but the views totally worth it!
Yes Elida, indeed it's a nice Hike.
Glad to know you enjoyed it.
Keep hiking !!
I have followed this trail verified View more
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Thank you for all the trail info. We conquered this in 7.5 hours. 3.5 to get up and 4 to come down. We found coming down a lot harder! Some very cute mountain goats 🐐 along the way. Both here and my wilikok have the distance wrong, it’s actually 16km, 8 going up and down, thighs still hurting 3 days later! 😆
I have followed this trail verified View more
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I followed this trail. Highly appreciated the details
Congratulations
Hi Michelle,
Hi Iulian,
I am happy that my trail recording and its details were helpful to make your hike a pleasant one.
Keep hiking and enjoy the wilderness !!
Hi Patrick!
Thanks for all these precious informations.Planning to do it with some colleagues on Saturday 12th.
Hi miriensita,
It is indeed a great trail with best views, different terrains, Gradient, Endurance and feeling of achievement.
Wishing you a pleasant and safe hike.
Go well prepared.
Please remember to update once done !!
Hi Patrick,
Thank you for the detailed information.
I would like to ask you if this trailer is good to be done solo ?
I wouldn't recommend a solo hike on this trail, but I have seen many solo hikers on the trail.
Night hiking solo is definitely not ok for me.
But it's too warm now for a day hike.
I attempted this solo today, in the middle of summer—hands down the worst decision of my life. Everything was fine until the sun came out. Then it wasn't fine. I made the smart decision of turning back 3/4 of the way there. I brought 2 liters of water with me and ran out on the way back. I was shaking and tingling by the time I got to my car (very dehydrated).
The hike is beautiful however and the trail is marked amazingly, if not for the sun I think it would be a great hike.
Dear Van_baghdasarian,
Your comment is self explanotory and I will not extend this topic too much as you have covered your errors, observations and possibilities with better preparations.
Just want to share with you our general strategy for summer hikes in UAE.
If we are hiking short trails of upto 10 Kms, we usually start early in the morning like 4am, and end the hike before 8am.
We hike our known hike trails / previously hiked trails.
For longer / higher elevation hikes, we hike at night fully, (again, on known trails) and complete the hikes without any daylight, views or fun, BUT achieving our endurance targets.
Hope this strategy helps you in your UAE summer hikes.
Enjoy hiking and be safe !!
I have followed this trail verified View more
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Easy to follow
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Moderate
I was able to cover this trail today with a buddy. We started at 8:20am from the Wadi Galilah dam parking and finished the trail by 06:30pm. Thanks Patrick for the accurate trail recording!
Hey Joel,
Nice to know that you enjoyed the hike, one of the most scenic yet enduring ones.
Keep it up and enjoy more hikes.
Keep following me for more trails.