On top of the Jebel Akhdar, around two thousand metres up, the air is cool and the landscape changes completely. The Saiq plateau is a high, rocky tableland cut by deep gorges, and in the villages that cling to the edges of these gorges, terraces of fruit trees and roses step down the cliffs, watered by aflaj channels. The name Jebel Akhdar means Green Mountain, and after the bare rock of the climb, the green of the terraces is a shock. In winter it can be cold enough for frost, and occasionally snow, which draws excited crowds from the lowlands.
The plateau is famous for its roses. In spring, usually around April, the terraces around villages such as Al Ayn, Al Aqr and Ash Shirayjah are pink with Damask roses, and the villagers pick them at dawn and distil them into rosewater, using traditional clay ovens and copper pots. The rosewater is used in cooking, in perfume, and in religious ceremonies, and it is sold in small bottles all over Oman. The plateau also grows pomegranates, apricots, walnuts, peaches and grapes, and the pomegranate harvest in late summer is another highlight.
The villages are built of stone and mud, perched on the edge of the gorges, and some of them have been abandoned as people moved to the towns, while others have been restored. A walking trail links several villages along the edge of the gorge, past terraces, aflaj and ruined houses, and it is one of the best short walks in Oman. A viewpoint on the edge of the plateau is known as Diana's Point, after the Princess of Wales visited it in the 1980s.
The roads on the plateau are paved and winding, with steep sections down to the villages and fine views across the gorges. Weekdays are quiet; at weekends visitors from Muscat come up to escape the heat. There are hotels and a few restaurants, and fuel is available on the plateau, but a full tank from the plains saves worry. Summer up here is mild and winter properly cold, and remember that the descent is steep and the brakes need to be in good order.