Adventure Travel in Lebanon: Skiing, Hiking & Hidden Gems | With Gilbert Moukheiber

Visit: adventurediaries.com/go

In this highlights reel, we revisit Gilbert Moukheiber’s incredible adventures across Lebanon. From the unique ability to ski and swim in the same day to joining shepherds on their transhumance journey, Gilbert showcases a side of the Middle East few get to see. Discover the "Switzerland of the Middle East," explore Roman temples on Mount Hermon, and learn about the deep human connection found in slow tourism.

Link to FULL Episode 

Chapter Markers

00:00 Beyond Tourism - Human Connection
01:00 Four Seasons - Ski & Swim Same Day
01:24 Eternal Snow - Skiing in June
02:01 Winter Expedition - Only in Middle East
03:00 The 400km Trail - Transhumance with Shepherds
04:25 Respecting Shepherd Life - Slow Tourism
05:41 Shepherd Food - Fresh Bread & Mountain Cuisine
07:34 Mount Hermon Tour - Sacred Mountain & Roman Temples
09:03 Call to Adventure
10:07 Outro & Season 5 Updates

Transcript

 
Beyond Tourism - Human Connection

As we prepare for the launch of the Adventure Diaries Podcast, season five in February, 2026, we are revisiting the highlights and called adventure from each episode in Season four to keep you entertained and inspired to get you outdoors. Now here are some of the short highlights from my episode with Gilbert Moukheiber and his adventures across Lebanon.

Enjoy.

 When I spoke to the Shepherd, the idea was not only to promote tourism, the idea is a human interaction. And this is what, this is the first thing that I tell to our clients. So it's not tourism, it's beyond tourism. Because for the chef, tourism is not primary. What's primary for them is to take care of their herds or their goats, and we are here to support them.

  
Four Seasons - Ski & Swim Same Day

And the good thing about Lebanon, as I have mentioned previously, that we have the fourth season that in April and in March and May, you can ski in the morning and swim in the afternoon with a driving time, only 40 minutes or 30 minutes. You go down from 2000 meter up to sea 11. You can swim or you can, you can dive.

  

Eternal Snow - Skiing in June

We have what we called eternal snow. So when you reach the high points in Lebanon, which is called the or, if you translate it, which is the Black Peak 3088 meter, you can find eternal snow. So you can find snow from year to. Every year in June the 6th of June, there is a Nordic skiing competition that takes place in June.

 So the sea, the snow season starts in December for the alpine skiing. It ends by end of April, March, and April.

Winter Expedition - Only in Middle East

 And for snow sewers and back country skiers till June, we can still ski on the highest plateau. So it give us a great adventure, terrain and Lebanon. And this is how also we, we have created the Lebanon Winter Expedition.

Which is only, which is the only winter expedition in the Middle East. It is a combination of snow sewing polka. So you have to drag your Pul Q Sledge behind you for five days and pitch the camp and then the sun get there, remove the cab. And it's not only a expedition, it's also a training camp. So where participants have the chance to get trained on safety, what I mean by safety, the use of Stu, how to read map, use, how to create anchors, to do self arrests, to use crampons.

So all the technique that that you need to acquire or to have in order to have a safe travel in the back country.

  
The 400km Trail - Transhumance with Shepherds

 So I've told myself I want to give a theme or the physical aspect of crossing the 400 kilometers, and this is where the idea came of crossing the whole train in May and in November, because in May and the November the shepherds go for the transmen, that means they move with their herd summer to winter and winter to summer.

So in May they go from low range to higher plateau, up to 3000 meter. And in November they go from 3000 meter, they go back to 800 meters. So the walk itself we call ster, Hal track, expedition, ter, Hal means str. So the crossing of the tray. So you are doing this with the shepherds. So you We are having this human interaction, we are having this interaction as well with their goats.

And we have them opening the ing the task. They prepare the food. So it's a full, it's a, it's smaller than a height. It's smaller than a track. It's small than expedition. It's like a, it's like highlighting this aspect and participants will have the opportunity to meet these nutrient features.

 The shepherds.

Respecting Shepherd Life - Slow Tourism

 So they don't dress in all kind of environment that the heart. And so when I talk to the Shepherd, the idea was not only to promote tourism, the idea is a human interaction. And this is why, this is the first thing that I tell to our clients. So it's not tourism, it's beyond tourism, because for the chef, tourism is not primary.

What's primary for them is to take care of their herds or their goats, and we are here to support them. So let's say, I'm gonna give you an example if for we planning to have a breakfast at seven and we ask the shepherds to do it, I don't know, maybe they have another, something urgent to deal with. So maybe they won't be able to prepare the breakfast at seven.

So have to do it ourself because the priority itself is not only for tourism, and whenever we understand this concept, it makes it fun and it takes us out from the context of tourism. And you have a client and it's okay. It's like sty. And for the shepherds, it's slow.

Shepherd Food - Fresh Bread & Mountain Cuisine

 Yes, so the typical breakfast is a typical Lebanese breakfast, which is created from daily product, several types of cheese, several types of white cheese, along with what we call leni.

Leni is like a creamy cheese and yogurt, definitely, uh, shoppers. They drink lots of tea. They drink free with lots of sugar because this is, these are day, this is what also what give them energy time, which is mixed with olive, Mediterranean, olive oil that we call the time, we call it in Arabic, uh, Zaha eggs because also they have chicken.

They do scrambled eggs sometimes also they serve raw meat or dry meat that prepared that we called, that we call it, and bread. And here the bread is prepared directly in front of you. So they create the dough and they have the, the steel plate and they put fire under it and they put on top. And then you have this warm bread to eat and this bread as well.

It can be served with time on top or tea. And then we call it manu. So the breakfast itself takes an hour preparation and it's also a moment, a warm moment in order to sit all together and, and enjoy. And this is, this is for the morning and definitely during the hikes, I don't know, every two hours they stop for either cup of coffee or tea.

We do coffee, but mainly for shepherds, they always drink tea. And at night when that is, you have moment to sit all the group. This is where we do the cooking at Lebanese cooking. It can be a combination of rice, potato, a meat with salad, and with other serving,

  Mount Hermon Tour - Sacred Mountain & Roman Temples

 And I was inspired by the tour. I said, why don't I create, why don't I create this concept of walking next to Mount Herman, which was a sacred mountain by the times of the Romans, and it has many Roman temples. So the Mount Herman to trace takes you like a week in order to cross it. And why crossing it?

You cost more than a 12 landmarks, historical landmarks. And eight of these historical landmarks are Roman temples. So imagine this. How would it is it? And, and, and come. And if you want to climb the summit itself, you can reach out to up to eight, 2018 17, 2,817 meters, which is also a back country and snow sewing destination, which is also a culinary, it can be a culinary tourism destination, it can be a religious tourism destination.

So the trail itself. It's not only for hiking and tracking, you can go visit the tray with your TA for half an hour, go visit the temple of, and then go eat in, or any culinary faculty in the area, or usan, I don't know, couple of days with the shepherd or visit the biggest Juniper area of Lebanon or a nature.

Call to Adventure

Yeah. Awesome. Excellent. It's, it sounds inviting, so call to adventure. So an opportunity to recommend an adventure, an activity or something to get people inspired to go and do something this weekend.

I would say too, it's either the Transmen, which is in May and November with the Shepherd, the Lebanon Winter Expedition. To experience. They used to call Lebanon the Swiss of the Middle East, Switzerland of the Middle East. 

It blows my mind that like that Switzerland to the Middle East. I just can't believe I didn't know that, that you have four seasons, that you have winter, proper winter.

That's crazy. 

Sometimes when you camp in the ERs, the temperature goes down up to minus 20. 

Wow. Wow. 

So it's extra mountains. So I would say go to adventure. I would say yes to join the al, which is the trans with the tappers, or any experience with the supper or even win in Lebanon.

 Outro & Season 5 Updates

 So I hope you enjoyed these short highlights from my episode with Gilbert Mackay, and if you haven't listened to the full conversation yet, then a link to that in the description of the show notes.

And I highly recommend you go back and give it a listen. There's some fantastic insights about adventures. In Lebanon now, if you're enjoying Adventure Diaries Podcast in general, then please consider leaving a quick rating or review. It helps more than you think, and it's the simplest way to, to support the show for free.

Now, one other important update. Season five launches at the end of February, 2026, and a new Patreon launches on the same day. With one simple single tier, $5 or three 70. If you join, you'll get season five after shows quickfire q and a. From each of the guests, plus a new monthly extended newsroom where we deep dive into stories of adventure, exploration and the natural world, the occasional short audio stories and two supporter meetups each year.

So if that sounds interesting to you and you want to support and get on Patreon, then go to adventure diaries.com/go and follow the link to Patreon and get ready for its launch

Now next up on the highlights reels is Albert Weckman and his adventures in Finland. Look out for those. Those are pretty epic. Peace. Okay.