Automotive

While the country offers spectacular sights along the coast, the roads are not exactly much to write home about in terms of driving there (maybe another post eventually). At the same time if you want to drive up the Lebanon and Antilebanon mountain ranges, quite some automotive fun can be had, paired with yet more historical sightseeing. 

The trip started in Beirut but the first part - even though it offered a sinuous ascent into the mountains was forst of all full of traffic and then also within the city speed limits, so not that enjoyable. You do rise above the Mediterranean quickly but it’s only once you cross to the Bekaa Valley side of the mountains that driving becomes somewhat freer and more interesting. 

Local vehicle modifications abound - call it skeletonizing or lightening in this particular case 😉

If you go in summer the temperatures will be searing, on the other hand in winter the amounts of snow are unbelievable for the Mediterranean basin - with up to 16 meters possible 😱❄️

The descent into the Bekaa valley is where the traffic reduces and where you can have your car stretch its legs somewhat. There will still be the odd slow truck but the roads are actually in surprisingly good shape and the odd overtaking maneuver is not that hard to accomplish, as speeds are generally modest. 

We had a light breakfast (second one of the day 😉) before proceeding into the sightseeing area… can practically never go wrong with Lebanese cuisine. 

And unlike the pictures one mostly sees, where the vintage cars there are those breaking mileage records, there’s some in spectacular shape to be seen, too 👌🏻

Entering the outskirts of Baalbek, the former Heliopolis, the superlatives of ancient engineering begin, including the possibly heaviest single block of stone ever cut (over 500 metric tons). This one was then not moved into position but the mind boggles at the ambition, given ancient possibilities of moving and lifting something such. 

If you have not been, Heliopolis has the amongst the largest and best preserved ancient ruins. It used to be a frontier town and the Romans wanted to make sure it exhibited a marketing message of their prowess to traders that came from Asia, hence they invested heavily and fortunately for us, much of it is in a surprisingly good state millennia later. 

The temple complexes can fill a day or more, depending on how deeply you want to explore but for us it was unfortunately time to move on. Not with the classical conveyance from the past (below) 🐪

On the road again, first you need to traverse the plains before returning back to the mountain ascent towards Cedars. 

For fans of vintage Mercedes, it’s a Mecca 🙌🏻

The French feature, too - not all so low riding as the one below 😉

Leaving the endless apple orchards behind, you start the ascent back up the Mount Lebanon range. The roads don’t look great on the picture but they are smooth enough, without significant potholes and with a great combination of corners. 

The higher you get, the less frequent the villages that you encounter and the more intense the driving joy. 

Mostly the ascent is not too steep but then again you get to over 2,8 kilometers, so there’s plenty to enjoy. 

And then there are those truly epic sections, too. The good thing is that traffic is practically non existent here (or at least was, when we were there), so you can thoroughly enjoy it even without a super highly powered vehicle. 

The vistas also offer a distant view of the other mountain range, bordering Syria but that was not accessible back then. 

Once past the top, back towards the coast, you descend somewhat before turning off the main road onto a gravel track towards Cedars. It’s a skiing resort in winter and has some of the oldest and tallest cedar trees in Lebanon (even if there are other cedar forests that are significantly larger). 

Walking amongst these ancient giant trees is truly a mesmerizing experience. I might be somewhat biased, loving the trees since my childhood but in reality they are more impressive than I imagined. 

On the way back there was more in terms of interesting old cars…

And while the roads were pretty good in terms of potential, the traffic on this side was much heavier, so not so much fun from the motoring perspective. 

So overall a great trip combining the potential of driving fun, plenty of fabulous sightseeing - and as always in Lebanon - great food. 

Not sure if the situation currently permits a trip like this but it’s definitely something I can highly recommend, when it becomes feasible again 👍🏻

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