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Today, the first day, was supposed to be the easiest, shortest on the walk but we ended up walking twice as far. This I make no complaints about because we went around Ehden Nature Reserve, the first of its kind in Lebanon. One of the group members helped to set it up and he is from Ehden so it was a pleasure to be guided by a local. He was obviously very passionate and knowledgable about the reserve and took us on a route that he learnt when he was 12 years old. We learnt many things about the types of trees that grow there and he pointed out a number of the baby cedars which we were careful not to crush underfoot because they take so long to grow.
We came across a couple of other interesting things as well - a kiln and a cave. The kiln was in quite a state of disrepair and you would probably miss it if you didn't know. It was, as far as I can gather, for getting the carbon dioxide out of limestone to produce quicklime which could be used to fertilize soil or build stuff. The cave we were shown was apparently about 50m deep. We didn't go down it. It was actually quite small compared to some of the other caves we saw on the walk - you'll see one with a river flowing out of it for example. It turns out the leader of the walk is a speleologist. He has a few stories to tell about adventures looking for caves on cliff faces and the like. There is a lot of fun to be had in Lebanon!
On the first day there were two things that really stood out. The first was simple. Views. Kuwait, where I have spent the past 6 months, is a small patch of flat desert. The highest point is Mutla Ridge, 100m above sea level. The steepest (tarmac) ascent is here, takes 5 minutes on a bike and is 600m long. On the other hand, we spent much of this trip at around 1800m, and regularly walked up and down very steep hills and skirted the odd cliff face. As you will see from the photos, there were so many vistas to take in. It was overwhelming. I found myself just marvelling at there simply being so much detail in the landscape. You could sometimes see many sedimentary layers exposed in the hills, one every metre or so. They formed natural terraces in places, with grass and shrubs growing on them. I just found myself looking intently up and down mountain slopes checking out how so much life was packed in everywhere. That's what nothing but flat sand and malls does to you after half a year.
The other thing that happened was I got on TV. I am self conscious and so this was not a pleasurable experience but still it was a nice way to kick things off. It was all a bit staged but that was ok. I was told by the reporter to borrow a couple of walking poles from another member of the group then a few others walked behind me as I came up to the camera. The reporter just asked me if I thought it was safe to be in Lebanon. You can see my soundbite here.
All in all it was a fantastic way to start the trip, the weather was amazing, the views were amazing and the people in the group whilst a lot older than me had a lot of experience and a great sense of humour. Naturally! They are hikers! It was great to be outdoors with other fit, enthusiastic, adventurous types.
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