Summers call for hiking, and Jabal Moussa is the perfect place where you can experience adventure and history at the same time!
Apart from being magnificent and full of interesting sites to visit, the five new hiking trails in Jabal Moussa Biosphere Reserve just gave us one more reason to visit it!
The Association for the Protection of Jabal Moussa’s ecotourism project and Lebanon Industry Value Chain Development created these 5 new trails.
The goal is to promote the beauty of the reserve while contributing to the sustainability of the surrounding villages. These villages are Yahchouch, Qehmez, Jouret El Thermos, Nahr El Dahab, Ghbale, Aabri, and Chouwan.
Through 10 different hiking trails, visitors can make approximately a full loop around the reserve. This reserve aims to protect its biodiversity which comprises 750 species of flowers and trees.
It benefits nearby villages by contributing to their financial growth by offering job opportunities to villagers. Also, it sells locally made products.
However, launching the program wasn’t easy: it was hard to convince the locals of the positivity of tourism and conservation. For the project to work, locals should fully understand, accept, and support the initiative.
Anyway, the project got embraced. In 2009, Jabal Moussa Biosphere Reserve and the surrounding villages became part of the UNESCO Network of Biosphere Reserves.
In addition to that, it is also a Global Important Bird Area (GBIA) where one can find 137 bird species. In fact, Jabal Moussa is rich in cultural and historical sites.
You can find there: Roman stairs, an abandoned Ottoman settlement, an olive press, a Byzantine Church, and many more interesting sites.
It’s summer and the majority of people have time on their hands. So take that as an opportunity to go on a hike in Jabal Moussa.
If you’re into adventures and enjoy history and culture, you’ll certainly not be disappointed. After the hike, you’ll add this reserve to the
7 wonders of Lebanon that should be on the World Wonders list!
