Oman Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX IT Services GmbH (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data), CC BY 4.0, with relief shading from Copernicus WorldDEM-30
The cut
1,359 metres, to scale.
A slice through Snake Gorge where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.
Standing on the floor, to scale: Eiffel Tower · 330 m · Burj Khalifa · 828 m
Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is.
1,359m
Depth
measured on the 30 m relief model
15.4km
Rim to rim
measured on the 30 m relief model
56°
Steepest wall
average over 300 m, from the relief
666m
Floor altitude
Rim to floor
11 °C warmer at the bottom.
In June the afternoon reaches 43 °C on the floor, against 32 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are from December to January. The floor passes 35 °C from April to October: walk at dawn and carry water.
- 25°14°Jan
- 28°16°Feb
- 31°20°Mar
- 36°25°Apr
- 41°30°May
- 43°32°Jun
- 42°31°Jul
- 42°30°Aug
- 40°28°Sep
- 35°24°Oct
- 30°19°Nov
- 26°15°Dec
Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.
Canyon in Oman
Snake Gorge is a canyon in Oman. The relief model measures 1,359 m from the floor to the lower rim, and 1,723 m to the higher one. Rim to rim it is 15 km wide where the cut was taken.
Getting there.
- Bayt al ‘Awābīnearest town · 18 km in a straight line
- Viewpointsnearest viewpoint · 1.3 km from the floor
- Muscat International Airport (MCT)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 101 km in a straight lineCar hire at MCT airport (Muscat/Seeb)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
- From December to Januarybest months to hike (estimate)
Plan the visit
Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From the sky.
The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.
N
6 km
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 24 × 24 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Around the canyon.
- 13viewpoints within 5 kmICE wildcampspot as well, مرشد سياحي, الجبل الشرقي and 10 more
- 2marked hiking routes within 4 kmW8, W8c
- 1campsites within 8 kmEntrance snake gorge wildcamp spot
- 13hotels and guesthouses within 8 kmبيت بيما, Hissen Al-Misfah, استراحة جبل هاط and 10 more
- via ferrata routes within 4 km
- climbing crags within 3 km
- footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 km
- rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 km
- swimming spots within 3 km
- named waterfalls within 4 km
- caves within 3 km
- car parks within 3 km
- information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
- bus stops within 2 km
- restaurants and cafés within 4 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Towns nearby
- Bayt al ‘Awābī18 km in a straight line
- Rustaq20 km in a straight line
In our other atlases
What else is around Snake Gorge.
The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.
Peakyas6 mountains within 15 kmFigures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Month by month
The weather, at the floor and at the rim.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon · floor | 25 | 28 | 31 | 36 | 41 | 43 | 42 | 42 | 40 | 35 | 30 | 26 |
| Afternoon · rim | 14 | 16 | 20 | 25 | 30 | 32 | 31 | 30 | 28 | 24 | 19 | 15 |
| Night · rim | 0 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 10 | 5 | 2 |
| Rain (mm) | 12 | 12 | 23 | 16 | 9 | 12 | 16 | 13 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 8 |
| Rainy days | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Sun hours/day | 8.5 | 9.1 | 9.6 | 10.1 | 11.0 | 10.9 | 9.4 | 9.5 | 9.7 | 9.8 | 8.9 | 8.4 |
| Afternoon · floor | Afternoon · rim | Night · rim | Rain (mm) | Sun hours/day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25 | 14 | 0 | 12 | 8.5 |
| Feb | 28 | 16 | 2 | 12 | 9.1 |
| Mar | 31 | 20 | 5 | 23 | 9.6 |
| Apr | 36 | 25 | 10 | 16 | 10.1 |
| May | 41 | 30 | 14 | 9 | 11.0 |
| Jun | 43 | 32 | 16 | 12 | 10.9 |
| Jul | 42 | 31 | 17 | 16 | 9.4 |
| Aug | 42 | 30 | 16 | 13 | 9.5 |
| Sep | 40 | 28 | 14 | 7 | 9.7 |
| Oct | 35 | 24 | 10 | 7 | 9.8 |
| Nov | 30 | 19 | 5 | 9 | 8.9 |
| Dec | 26 | 15 | 2 | 8 | 8.4 |
Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (666 m) and the rim (2,388 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.
Recent years
Wet years, dry years.
Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 650% | 0% | 926% | 2% | 3% | 0% | 7% | 38% | 23% | 0% | 34% | 4% |
| 2021 | 0% | 0% | 7% | 2% | 64% | 2% | 89% | 5% | 5% | 606% | 3% | 15% |
| 2022 | 95% | 49% | 0% | 2% | 3% | 0% | 139% | 2% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 257% |
| 2023 | 82% | 0% | 16% | 56% | 22% | 0% | 10% | 22% | 27% | 24% | 38% | 4% |
| 2024 | 5% | 165% | 59% | 537% | 232% | 137% | 40% | 20,737% | 9% | 432% | 0% | 7% |
| 2025 | 5% | 0% | 0% | 2% | 10% | 68% | 58% | 301% | 286% | 63% | 14% | 20% |
130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month
Compare with the neighbours.
Snake Gorge
Oman
- 1,359 mDepth
- 15 kmRim to rim
- —Length
- 56°Steepest wall
Where these figures come from
| Name, type, published depth and length | Wikidata (Q3487114) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Climate | NASA POWER, 1991–2020 |
| Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearby | Coastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit 
lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit 
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.You are here