Jebel Barisha Deirouné and Jebel Zawiyé 2 Rouweiha · 279 km from Ad Dānā

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Jebel Barisha Deirouné

   On the limestone ridge of Jebel Barisha, in north-west Syria near the Turkish border at Reyhanlı, lie the stone ruins of Deirouné, one of the hundreds of late Roman and Byzantine villages that UNESCO lists as the Ancient Villages of Northern Syria, often called the Dead Cities. Between roughly the first and seventh centuries, farmers here grew olives and vines on the uplands, prospered, and built houses, churches and olive presses in finely cut stone. When the trade networks that sustained them collapsed, the villages were slowly abandoned, and the dry climate left them remarkably intact.

   Read the complete Jebel Barisha Deirouné write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Jebel Barisha Deirouné is where the day begins. Next is Ancient City of Aleppo.

2. 2. Ancient City of Aleppo

   Aleppo has a claim to be one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, and for most of its history it was a great trading city at the western end of the Silk Road. Its old town, listed by UNESCO in 1986, grew around a massive citadel on a mound in the centre, ringed by a moat and entered through a fortified gateway and bridge, mostly the work of the Ayyubid rulers in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Around it lay the souqs, kilometres of covered markets, among the largest in the Middle East, and caravanserais, mosques, madrasas and fine courtyard houses.

   Read the complete Ancient City of Aleppo write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Ancient City of Aleppo comes up about 60 km into the recorded legs. Next is Jebel Zawiyé 2 Rouweiha.

3. 3. Jebel Zawiyé 2 Rouweiha

   Scattered across the limestone hills of north-western Syria, between Aleppo and Idlib, lie hundreds of abandoned villages from late antiquity, built of finely cut stone between the first and seventh centuries and then gradually deserted. They are known as the Dead Cities, and together they form the World Heritage site of the Ancient Villages of Northern Syria. Ruweiha, in the Jebel Zawiye, is one of the largest: houses, churches, tombs and oil presses spread over a wide area, and among them the church of Bizzos, named after a local notable whose domed tomb stands beside it, is one of the best preserved. These villages grew rich on olive oil and trade, and their stone architecture, with arched doorways, carved lintels and crosses, is remarkably intact.

   Read the complete Jebel Zawiyé 2 Rouweiha write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 138 km into the recorded legs you reach Jebel Zawiyé 2 Rouweiha. Next is back through Ancient City of Aleppo.

4. 4. back through Ancient City of Aleppo

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Ancient City of Aleppo write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Ancient City of Aleppo, late in the day. Next is Jebel Barisha Deirouné.

5. 5. Jebel Barisha Deirouné

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Jebel Barisha Deirouné write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at Jebel Barisha Deirouné. That is the ride.