Tel Kesalon

On a beautiful day in December we decided it was time for us to start hiking again. We used to hike often, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, but since losing Gadi it has been hard to find the will. The bright sunny weather on this particular weekend gave us the extra push to get up and start walking, along with the knowledge that Israel's winter flower season was just beginning.

I chose a short but beautiful hike on Tel Kesalon, in the Jerusalem Hills. Kesalon is a biblical site mentioned in the Book of Joshua as part of the northern border of the territory allotted to the tribe of Judah:

Then it curved westward from Baalah to Mount Seir, ran along the northern slope of Mount Jearim (that is, Kesalon), continued down to Beth Shemesh and crossed to Timnah -  Joshua 15:10

Kesalon was a large Jewish village during the Roman period in Israel. In 1596 Kisla, as it was then known, was a village in the subdistrict of Ramla with a population of sixty-one. It paid taxes on wheat, barley, sesame, and fruit trees as well as on goats and beehives. Most of what is visible on Tel Kesalon today is the remains of an Arab village called Kasla, which was conquered during the War of Independence in 1948. The ruins, including crumbling walls and terraces, add a historical charm to the natural landscape.

The nearby modern moshav of Kesalon, founded in 1952, is named after this site. New immigrants from Yemen, brought to Israel in Operation Magic Carpet, were given farmland there, but abandoned the moshav a few years later to join members of the Yemenite community living in Rosh Ha'ayin. Their place was taken by Jewish immigrants from Morocco.

We started our hike by climbing the tel itself. A tel is a mound or small hill that has been formed over time by layers of settlement. The view from the top, of Moshav Kesalon on one side and Moshav Beit Meir on the other, was fabulous. A Jewish National Fund forest was planted around Tel Kesalon and the surrounding area, named Ya'ar Hakdoshim (Forest of the Martyrs). It commemorates the victims of the Holocaust and contains six million trees, symbolizing the six million Jews who perished. Planting began in 1946 and memorials for perished communities are set throughout the forest. There are various springs in the area and the Kesalon stream passes on the north side of the hill, more than 200m below the summit. Almond trees grow on top of the tel and cactuses grow along the site's southern slopes.

We climbed back down Tel Kesalon and began our hike. I immediately spotted pale pink sitvanit hayoreh (Steven's meadow saffron), one of the first flowering plants of the autumn, and clusters of rakefot (Persian cyclamen). As we hiked further along the path I glimpsed karkom (winter crocus) and bunches of white narcissus blooms (Narcissus tazetta or Paperwhite) growing among the rocks. We passed a spring, its water tinted green by algae, and headed towards Ein Kesla, a stone pool carved around a natural spring. In late December the pool was still dry.

After a while it was time for us to retrace our steps and head back towards Tel Kesalon and our car. The rocky path along the side of the valley was precarious at times, but the views over the deep valley of the Kesalon stream were once again breathtaking. We then returned to the path we had started our hike on, but this time it circled around the other side of the tel, ultimately reaching the hilltop where we had started out earlier in the day.

It was time for lunch in one of the many picnic areas of the Forest of the Martyrs. Although it was December, just a few days before Christmas, the pleasant weather had drawn many people outdoors. As we picnicked, we spoke about Gadi and how much he would have enjoyed the hike. Pushing ourselves to return to the great outdoors felt right, and we were glad we had taken that step.

* This post has been shared on Floral Friday Fotos, Nature Notes, Mosaic Monday, Through My Lens, Busy Monday, Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday), Tuesday Turn About and Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop.

Shvil HaMaayanot

Israel is at war and we are living through sad times. I have posted a couple of blogs about the situation but have decided now to share some posts about the beautiful side of the country I live in. A country filled with nature trails and historic ruins, gorgeous birds and flowers. The posts were written a year and a half or even two years ago, before I lost my youngest son. I haven’t felt like sharing them but now think that the time is appropriate to show you another side of Israel, a side that you will not currently see on the news.
This is Israel.

I am really not sure why it took me so long to hike Shvil HaMaayanot (The Springs Trail) in the Jerusalem Hills. It was the perfect route for me. The views over Nahal Sorek and its tributaries were spectacular and the spring flowers were at their very best. Perhaps the only downside was that the maayanot, springs, which give the hiking route it's name, were too full of swimmers for my liking, due to it being the Passover holidays. No matter, I will just have to hike the route again!

We passed several springs on the trail, just some of the many small hidden springs which flow out of the hills to saturate the surrounding vegetation. Over the years, man has learned to cultivate the water from these underground springs to irrigate agricultural areas. Villagers would dig tunnels into the rock to obtain a flow of water. The pools in front of the entrance to these tunnels became small reservoirs, used to supply drinking water to livestock and humans. Sometimes the water would be directed downhill from the pool by aqueducts to irrigate vegetable gardens. You can see terraces, now forested, on both sides of the trail.

The trail took us along the side of a mountain ridge and past several caves and springs and other cool things to explore. I dipped my feet in the cold water leading into one cave, then climbed out the back of it to continue on our way. Soon we reached the first big spring on the trail, Einot Uzi. It was clearly a warm weather favourite and was rather busy! We found a spot to rest and to enjoy a kosher for Passover snack, before returning to the trail. Our next stop was Ein Tamar, a shallow spring surrounded by a palm tree and a shaded picnic area. The spring is named after Tamar Natan, who died at a young age. The pool was built by her friends and other organisations.

We continued on the green-marked trail, stopping for a picnic with wonderful views and surrounded by beautiful flowers. It was a very hot day and we could have continued towards Moshav Even Sapir, on the last part of what is officially Shvil HaMaayanot, but at this point we decided to turn back. This time the hike was uphill and a little harder in the heat, but the flowers and views made it all worthwhile. I spotted beautiful red poppies, Pink Butterfly Orchids and some very late Persian Cyclamen. The pink and white rockrose, below, were abundant.

The trail starts near Yad Kennedy, a memorial to John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, who was assassinated in 1963 at age 46. This memorial was built 3 years after his death. It is shaped like the stump of a tree to symbolise his life cut short. The memorial has 51 pillars representing the 50 states of the union plus Washington DC. The emblems of the states are on the outside of each of the pillars. Inside the memorial is a bronze facial outline of John F. Kennedy, and in the centre of the memorial an eternal flame.
Also nearby are Horvat Saadim, the Seadim Ruins, which we visited back in 2020. The ruins were called Khirbet Sa'ida, which means "Fortunate Woman Ruins" in Arabic and are the remains of a Byzantine agricultural farm and an ancient mosque. They can be visited - if you still have the energy - before returning to your car.

* This post has been shared on Little Things Thursday and Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday).

The Best of 2021 - Part II

1. Lifta  2. Tzora Forest  3. The Burma Road and Outpost 21  4. Nahal Sorek  5. The Hanut Ruins and Ein Mata  6. HaHamisha Forest and the Harel Brigade Monument  7. The Tzuba Spring and Belmont Fortress  8. Tel Tzafit  9. The Sorek Stream and Samson's Cave  10. Ein Kerem and the Beit Zayit Dam

My second review of 2021 covers my top 10 favourite places that I visited during the last year. There were actually too many places to decide on just 10 this year, so I split my top 10s into two. You will find my top 10 favourite places but also my top 10 favourite hikes. Mister Handmade in Israel and I really made the most of our limited ability to travel further afield this year and have continued getting to know the area around us, exploring the hills and lowlands around Jerusalem and beyond.

We started off the year visiting the Tzuba Spring and Belmont Fortress, the remains of a Crusader period fortress in the Jerusalem Hills. Another hike in the Jerusalem Hills, along Nahal Sorek, was one of the hardest hikes we did, though it was also an extremely beautiful one and perhaps the most satisfying. We visited Tel Tzafit, thought to be the site of the ancient Philistine city of Gath, and walked the historic Burma Road, an unpaved road built during Israel's War of Independence. The road was built in order to bypass Jordanian forces and to renew supplies of water, food and equipment to the Jewish community in Jerusalem.

We got lost in the Tzora Forest and saw beautiful spring flowers around Ein Kerem. I have driven past the remains of the Arab village of Lifta hundreds of time in the almost 27 years that I have lived in Israel but never knew the ruins were there! Hidden down below the road in a steep valley, it was wonderful to explore the old buildings and take some magical photos!

Basically, I have discovered a real passion for gentle hikes around my little country. I was once hesitant to hike without a guide but now we regularly pull on our walking boots and set off on a new route. I am loving it! I tell Mister Handmade in Israel that he should appreciate that I am happier with a flask of coffee and a sandwich in the hills, rather than an expensive restaurant or a spa.

1. Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience  2. Nature 'n Nosh  3. Migdal Tsedek National Park  4. Khan Sha'ar Hagai  5. Zadok Ben-David: People I Saw but Never Met  6. "The Ball", Design Museum of Holon  7. The Hula Nature Reserve and Rosh Pina  8. Safed (or Zefat, Tsfat, Zfat, Safad, Safet, Tzfat)  9. Harrogate, Hull and London, 2021 10. Human Forms

Now, having said how much I enjoy hiking, I also love going to exhibitions and seeing new places. In 2020 I only managed to get to one indoor exhibition, POP-UP Museum TLV 2, a graffiti event in an old apartment building in central Tel Aviv. In 2021 I was able to see more, though we still go masked up, to protect myself and others at risk, and have to show our Tav Yarok (Green Pass), proving that we have been vaccinated or recovered from Covid-19 in order to gain entry.
In 2021 I saw the wonderful "Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience" at Peres Park in Holon. I particularly enjoyed the virtual reality tour, where we were guided through a virtual, colourful depiction of Van Gogh's life. In June Mister Handmade in Israel and I went to see the Italian artist Ivo Bisignano's "Human Forms" exhibition in a cave at Beit Guvrin. In July I made a return visit to the Tel Aviv Museum of Art to see Zadok Ben-David's incredible installation, "People I Saw but Never Met" and was delighted by the amazing "The Ball" at the Design Museum of Holon.

But the best thing I did in 2021? I finally got on a plane and visited the UK to see my niece get married and to spend time with my dad! We had a wonderful time together.

I have blogged about all of these amazing places and more. Please click on the names above and enjoy exploring Israel (and a teeny tiny bit of the UK) with me!

* This post has been shared on Little Things Thursday, Friday Bliss, Funtastic Friday Link Party, Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday), Sharon's Souvenirs, Our World Tuesday and My Corner of the World.