Nahr Ibrahim

 It used to be one of my favorite spots on the Ibrahim River; the part under Yachouch and right behind the little hydro dam.  There is no traffic, no houses, and very little garbage. They’ve made it a little harder to get to the river; a sturdy wall blocks us now, and they’ve strung barbed wire over the fence. I assume it was done by the people of the hydro plant. But some thoughtful hikers have hung some ropes in which you can put your foot, and with some effort you can climb over the fence. Better not lose your balance though, because the rebar will skewer you like shish-taouk. 

Now that it is harder to get there, it is slightly cleaner, always a good side effect. The only garbage is the plastic bags stuck in the trees, like Buddhist prayer flags, from when the water ran much higher.  The river is still flowing strong, but the snow has pretty much all melted, and the water is quite cold.

They’re in the process of damming up this river somewhere upstream, near Janneh, not for generating electricity purposes but for conserving water. But ti seems that studies show the rock surrounding the project is porous, and so you end up losing quite a bit anyway. Fixing the existing water infra structure would probably be cheaper and more efficient, if you ask me. But fr the meantime, it is still a quiet and secluded river at this spot.