OLD CAPITAL TRAIL

OLD CAPITAL TRAIL

A town-to-oasis crossing. The course leaves the historic centre of Nizwa and climbs steadily, with views back over the city, until the streets are gone. Then it moves onto technical mountain trails, rocky surfaces and narrow single track that needs precise footwork, faces a second sustained ascent and finishes with a controlled descent to the race village in Birkat Al Mouz. The organiser gives about 1,400 m of climbing for the 32 km.

Eight hours puts the race within reach of a trail runner who is comfortable on rough, steep ground, but not of someone who has only run on paths. It runs on the last morning of the event, so the finish in Birkat Al Mouz is shared with the end of the long races. The organiser lists the race in its 20K category with one Running Stone, even though its distance is 32 km. Supporters who have come for the long races can wait for this one at the same finish.

This page covers the 2026 Old Capital Trail. On Livebib a runner’s family open the link in a browser and see where between Nizwa and Birkat Al Mouz the runner is, how far they have come and a finish estimate that updates. If the phone loses signal on the mountain, the position is carried forward along the course and marked as estimated.