After making our way to Arad on Thursday evening and getting settled in at the guest houses, we met for breakfast on Friday morning.
After breakfast we got in our cars and drove to the Nokdim Ranch on the road from Arad to Masada (route 3199). Most of the group waited there while the drivers drove the cars to the end of our hike at the entrance to Masada.
After the drivers returned, we started walking towards Upper Nachal Rachaf.
Along the way we saw a group of camels, including newborn calves, a herd of goats and sheep and a donkey, all belonging to Bedouins living in the area.
After a short walk we entered the canyon portion of Nachal Rachaf. We bypassed several dry waterfalls until reaching the large 60 meter waterfall. We had to climb out of the Wadi to bypass this waterfall. After stopping to admire the great view we started our descent back down to Nachal Rachaf. From the top we say the Nachal Rachaf’s other two canyons.
At the bottom of the descent we turned onto the red trail which would take us all the way to Masada.
The trail had its ups and downs, some of them quite steep.
After stopping for lunch and tea prepared by our guide, we continued towards Masada.
Our last ascent ended at the Roman wall that surrounds Masada. We saw Masada from the south, and then climbed down a very steep descent that ended up at the western entrance to Masada and our cars.
On Friday night we had a great dinner, organized by Craig and Judith.
On Shabbat we had a selection of city walks to go to, including a short walk through a wadi. Others walked to the Point led by Craig for a beautiful view of the desert and the hills. We also visited fiber artist/ceramacist Adena Ben-Ner's home/studio invited by Jane, and later had a medical massage short talk and demonstration by our 'baal bayit' Meir Weiss. Phyllis was turned into a human pretzel and Joel experienced the method, while Chana demonstrated that energy/tension can only go in one direction.
The dark night was a perfect opportunity for stargazing
Thanks to Judith and Craig for organizing a great weekend including all of the meals, and to Eshchar , our guide.
Michael's Pictures
Gadi's Pictures
Alan's Pictures
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Hirbet Itri - February 19th 2010
Whoever started a story, "it was a dark and stormy night", wasn't thinking about the Mosaic walk on Friday the 19th. In spite of a rather murky Thursday the 18th, Friday was gorgeous, with only a slate blue sky short of being perfect.
Everyone from Jerusalem who gets individual mails from the jrsmosaic mailing list, as opposed to the digest, gathered at one side or the other of Binyanei HaUma in Jerusalem. We all found each other, and pulled out by 8:15.
Tova, our guide, walked us through some of the reconstructed digs of Hirbet Itri, a ruin from the 2nd temple period and Bar Kochba revolt. The brave-hearted crawled through a tunnel from the synagogue. The tunnel came out in one of the private houses. Actually, Alan came out somewhere else. I don't know, ask him.
I'm not sure who said that they must've dug the escape route as a way to to get away from long sermons, but he should probably change shuls, or at least find one with a tunnel out the back.
Our exploration of Hirbet Itri ended at one of the most beautiful wine presses I've ever seen. One of the hikers (Marty, I think), explained to us the that the two openings in the upper pool were for straining the refuse out of the stomped grapes.
The walk from Hirbet Itri to Hirbet Borjin was a short and easy, but beautiful. The spring flowers have come out. It's great to see them every year, after the winter.
Hirbet Borjin was great. We started by visiting a bell cave at Hirbet Pitum, spent some time watching the birds, and visited another bell cave, wher Alan tried to get us all to beam up.
After a panoramic view of the whole area, we started home.
Thanks to Tova for a different kind of hike in a place I personally have never heard of before. Looking forward to going back again.
Pictures:
Steve, Alan
Everyone from Jerusalem who gets individual mails from the jrsmosaic mailing list, as opposed to the digest, gathered at one side or the other of Binyanei HaUma in Jerusalem. We all found each other, and pulled out by 8:15.
Tova, our guide, walked us through some of the reconstructed digs of Hirbet Itri, a ruin from the 2nd temple period and Bar Kochba revolt. The brave-hearted crawled through a tunnel from the synagogue. The tunnel came out in one of the private houses. Actually, Alan came out somewhere else. I don't know, ask him.
I'm not sure who said that they must've dug the escape route as a way to to get away from long sermons, but he should probably change shuls, or at least find one with a tunnel out the back.
Our exploration of Hirbet Itri ended at one of the most beautiful wine presses I've ever seen. One of the hikers (Marty, I think), explained to us the that the two openings in the upper pool were for straining the refuse out of the stomped grapes.
The walk from Hirbet Itri to Hirbet Borjin was a short and easy, but beautiful. The spring flowers have come out. It's great to see them every year, after the winter.
Hirbet Borjin was great. We started by visiting a bell cave at Hirbet Pitum, spent some time watching the birds, and visited another bell cave, wher Alan tried to get us all to beam up.
After a panoramic view of the whole area, we started home.
Thanks to Tova for a different kind of hike in a place I personally have never heard of before. Looking forward to going back again.
Pictures:
Steve, Alan
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Nachal Gishron - January 29th 2010
We gathered at the Eilat Field School on Thursday night.
After breakfast on Friday morning, we got on the bus for the short ride to the Nachal Gishron, trail head.
We picked up Dan, our guide for the day, at the back entrance to Eilat.
The cycling leg of the Israman Eilat triathlon was going through the intersection, so we had to wait until most of the competitors came through.
We drove up to the trail head where we go off the bus and started walking.
The trail went mostly downward. On the way we past and old leopard trap, an engraving in Arabic, the remains of a camel that was eaten by a Hyena, and then some more engravings on the walls of the canyon.
Along the trail we saw puddles, wet spots and mud that remained form the rain and floods two weeks ago.
Towards the end of the trail, we crawled through a very narrow passage, The Tzafra passage. We all managed to come through, some with more difficulty that others.
We that started to climb, at first through a lovely sand stone canyon, and then on an exposed trail.
Towards the end of the ascent, we saw a group of male Ibex, who thoughtfully posed for our pictures.
We got back to the bus after one final descent.
While waiting for the last people in our group, we saw the Israman competitors finishing their run.
On Friday night, we walked over to the Orchid hotel for Shabbat dinner.
Thanks to Judith for organizing a great weekend, Alan for the dinner at the hotel and Dan, our guide.
Pictures:
Gadi's Picture: http://picasaweb.google.com/gadi.ben.avi/20100129MosaicNachalGishron
Haya's Pictures:
John's Pictures
After breakfast on Friday morning, we got on the bus for the short ride to the Nachal Gishron, trail head.
We picked up Dan, our guide for the day, at the back entrance to Eilat.
The cycling leg of the Israman Eilat triathlon was going through the intersection, so we had to wait until most of the competitors came through.
We drove up to the trail head where we go off the bus and started walking.
The trail went mostly downward. On the way we past and old leopard trap, an engraving in Arabic, the remains of a camel that was eaten by a Hyena, and then some more engravings on the walls of the canyon.
Along the trail we saw puddles, wet spots and mud that remained form the rain and floods two weeks ago.
Towards the end of the trail, we crawled through a very narrow passage, The Tzafra passage. We all managed to come through, some with more difficulty that others.
We that started to climb, at first through a lovely sand stone canyon, and then on an exposed trail.
Towards the end of the ascent, we saw a group of male Ibex, who thoughtfully posed for our pictures.
We got back to the bus after one final descent.
While waiting for the last people in our group, we saw the Israman competitors finishing their run.
On Friday night, we walked over to the Orchid hotel for Shabbat dinner.
Thanks to Judith for organizing a great weekend, Alan for the dinner at the hotel and Dan, our guide.
Pictures:
Gadi's Picture: http://picasaweb.google.com/gadi.ben.avi/20100129MosaicNachalGishron
Haya's Pictures:
John's Pictures
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Jerusalem Trail - December 25th 2009
The weather was beautiful on Fri. Dec. 25, 2009, for the last hike of the Gregorian calendar year.
Although we couldn't visit inside the churches because of services, Shelly the guide (whom we last "saw" in the darkness of the Armon Hanatziv aqueduct and at sunset) took us through the Jerusalem Trail, the city walk not covered by the Israel Trail, marked with blue/gold/blue striped trail signs with the Jerusalem Lion symbol.
We met in the parking lot of the Mormon University on Mt. Scopus and began our city walk by descending the "Flintstones" wadi, Nahal Tzurim.
Resting under an old olive tree to hear about the archaeological sifting project and about King David and his troublesome children.
We then continued down the trail, which gave an incredible view of the Old City walls, St. Stephen's Gate (The Lions Gate), the al-Aksa mosque and the Dome of the Rock, old cemeteries, and heard an explanation of how the Trail was landscaped and developed.
The intrepid Mosaic hikers, with several new faces joining us, continued downhill past the Church of All Nations, Gethsemane, and onward to Absalom's Pillar, then through Silwan, where we saw the exit from City of David (where we ended a previous tiyul). A little climb up Gey Ben-Hinnom and an explanation of the Sambusak cemetery added information, exertion and a beautiful view. We continued up hill to the "back" of Abu Tor, where we said goodbye to Shelly and found ourselves under the bridge of the Cinematheque where everyone parted for the weekend.
A good time was had by all, thanks to Joel's first-time coordinating and the good moods everyone brought to the outing.
Although we couldn't visit inside the churches because of services, Shelly the guide (whom we last "saw" in the darkness of the Armon Hanatziv aqueduct and at sunset) took us through the Jerusalem Trail, the city walk not covered by the Israel Trail, marked with blue/gold/blue striped trail signs with the Jerusalem Lion symbol.
We met in the parking lot of the Mormon University on Mt. Scopus and began our city walk by descending the "Flintstones" wadi, Nahal Tzurim.
Resting under an old olive tree to hear about the archaeological sifting project and about King David and his troublesome children.
We then continued down the trail, which gave an incredible view of the Old City walls, St. Stephen's Gate (The Lions Gate), the al-Aksa mosque and the Dome of the Rock, old cemeteries, and heard an explanation of how the Trail was landscaped and developed.
The intrepid Mosaic hikers, with several new faces joining us, continued downhill past the Church of All Nations, Gethsemane, and onward to Absalom's Pillar, then through Silwan, where we saw the exit from City of David (where we ended a previous tiyul). A little climb up Gey Ben-Hinnom and an explanation of the Sambusak cemetery added information, exertion and a beautiful view. We continued up hill to the "back" of Abu Tor, where we said goodbye to Shelly and found ourselves under the bridge of the Cinematheque where everyone parted for the weekend.
A good time was had by all, thanks to Joel's first-time coordinating and the good moods everyone brought to the outing.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Har Masor - November 19th - Novmber 21st 2009
We all got together at the Hatzeva Field School on Thursday evening. After a bit of schmoozing, Noshing and just plain catching up, we went to bed to rest up for Friday's hike
After breakfast on Friday morning, we got in the cars and started driving towards the trail head. During the drive we passed through an air force firing range. The ground was pock marked where bombs had fallen, and there were remains of planes and other vehicles. After a short stop, we continued on.
After parking below Har Masor, we started our climb. The first section was a regular climb. The next section of our climb was very steep, with a sharp drop off on one side, and the cliff on another. One hiker had to be escorted back to the trail head.
Once we got to the top of the hill, we had a great view of the surrounding area.
For our next leg, we walked down the mountain, and at one stage had the option of going through a hole in the rocks. We arrived at the bottom of the hill in one piece, and had a break under an Acacia tree.
We continued on our walk. Since we were not pressed for time, our guide led us off the trail to lengthen the hike. We ended up in a very nice Canyon.
Further on, where we stopped for lunch, we saw a snake on the other side of the canyon. A great photo opportunity.
We ended our hike at the cars and had to drive the same 10 kilometers on the same dirt road back towards the field school.
On Shabbat, various groups organized and took walks in different directions.
Thanks to Ephraim and Rachel for organizing a great weekend and to Eschar, our guide.
Pictures:
Gadi: http://picasaweb.google.com/gadi.ben.avi/20091120MosaicChatzeva
Steve: http://picasaweb.google.com/steve99il/2009_11_20MosaicHatzeva
After breakfast on Friday morning, we got in the cars and started driving towards the trail head. During the drive we passed through an air force firing range. The ground was pock marked where bombs had fallen, and there were remains of planes and other vehicles. After a short stop, we continued on.
After parking below Har Masor, we started our climb. The first section was a regular climb. The next section of our climb was very steep, with a sharp drop off on one side, and the cliff on another. One hiker had to be escorted back to the trail head.
Once we got to the top of the hill, we had a great view of the surrounding area.
For our next leg, we walked down the mountain, and at one stage had the option of going through a hole in the rocks. We arrived at the bottom of the hill in one piece, and had a break under an Acacia tree.
We continued on our walk. Since we were not pressed for time, our guide led us off the trail to lengthen the hike. We ended up in a very nice Canyon.
Further on, where we stopped for lunch, we saw a snake on the other side of the canyon. A great photo opportunity.
We ended our hike at the cars and had to drive the same 10 kilometers on the same dirt road back towards the field school.
On Shabbat, various groups organized and took walks in different directions.
Thanks to Ephraim and Rachel for organizing a great weekend and to Eschar, our guide.
Pictures:
Gadi: http://picasaweb.google.com/gadi.ben.avi/20091120MosaicChatzeva
Steve: http://picasaweb.google.com/steve99il/2009_11_20MosaicHatzeva
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Bike Ride - October 30th 2009
After the bike ride was postponed because of the heat (riding in 3 degrees is no fun), we all got together for a bike ride around Mesilat Tzion.
We met near the pool in Mesilat Tzion. Once everyone arrived, we had a short lesson on using the gears and breaks on the bikes and were each given a bike.
After a very short section on the streets of Mesilat Tzion, we started climbing up the Eshtaol Scenic Path.
The rest of our route took us through Rabin Park, parts of the Burma Road and back to Mesilat Tzion.
Some riders even had a chance to try out a Tandem Bike.
Luckily, the skies opened up just as we finished the ride.
Thanks to Phillip for organizing the ride.
We met near the pool in Mesilat Tzion. Once everyone arrived, we had a short lesson on using the gears and breaks on the bikes and were each given a bike.
After a very short section on the streets of Mesilat Tzion, we started climbing up the Eshtaol Scenic Path.
The rest of our route took us through Rabin Park, parts of the Burma Road and back to Mesilat Tzion.
Some riders even had a chance to try out a Tandem Bike.
Luckily, the skies opened up just as we finished the ride.
Thanks to Phillip for organizing the ride.
Golan - September 10th-12th 2009
This is a place holder. If anyone would like to write up a short description of the hike, please let me know
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