Day three of our hike was not only to be one of the longest in terms of distance, but it would end up being the day in which we were all tested and pushed to the limit physically. We left the goat farm around 8 AM, and I was happy it was going to be another sunny day. Unfortunately, I forgot to use my sunscreen, but that's another story. According to our book, we were supposed to walk to Moshav Arbel, which would be almost 12 miles, but we made reservations for a hostel in Tiberias a bit further away, again to save money. Not far from the goat farm is a highway, and our markers led us there. Hiking along busy roads is not my favorite to say the least; not only was it very busy in terms of traffic, but Israelis love to honk! In no time, I was missing the serenity of green fields and the sound of occasional chirping birds in an otherwise quiet setting. Thankfully, our adventure on the highway was short-lived and soon we were back in the midst of nature.
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| Mine and Becca's shadows |
We first walked through a forest area with (mostly) paved roads. Of course, it was beautiful, and there was plenty of shade. Once out of the forest, we ended up on a paved road that took us through farmland. For a little while I forgot I was in Israel; it looked and felt as if I was walking on my beloved country roads back in my home state of Indiana; however, the mountains in the distance snapped me back to reality. Nevertheless, it seemed two worlds, though thousands of miles apart, coexisted for a brief time.
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| A walk in the park |
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| I thought I was in the Lord of the Rings when I walked through this area |
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| Wanted to show how large the cactus plants get |
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| I'm staring off in the distance, as usual, resembling the stack of rocks behind me |
My favorite part of the hike this day was walking through a wheat field. It was vast, green, and waved back and forth in the breeze. I couldn't help but run my hand along the top of the wheat almost the entire time along the path...my "Midwesterny" was showing, but I didn't care. Though the markers took us back to the road, it soon led us off into a pasture. And we weren't prepared for what was about to happen.
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| Path along the wheat field |
The pasture was full of little rocks, some bigger here and there, and off in the distance we saw some cows and a tractor near a pond. At this point we were slowly and gradually climbing in elevation, as I could feel my breathing getting heavier. We had to watch where we walked, trying not to walk through evidence that proved cows had been there recently. The part we weren't prepared for was coming up. Enjoying the view yet a little weary of the warm sun, I started noticing flies. They buzzed around my head, so I swatted at them a few times. They were relentless. My shirt sleeves were pulled up by this point, the heat increasing as the hours wore on. My right arm tickled; it took a few minutes to realize why. After scratching my arm several times, I finally looked: my arm was coated in flies. Dozens. I turned my neck as far as it would go, and I noticed they also were starting to crowd my shoulders, left arm and backpack. I looked ahead toward Koichi and Amanda--they were swatting, too. I stopped and looked for Becca behind me--the same. Biblical plague #4 descended upon us there in that cow pasture. No matter how much we swatted, they came right back. (I have a picture depicting this, but it needs to be emailed to me and I am waiting on it; I hope to have it posted soon.) They seemed to arrive out of nowhere, and it would be at least two miles (or more) later before they disappeared mysteriously. Talking with my friend Keith, who hiked this trail weeks before we had, I asked him about the flies...he and his group never encountered any. On a positive note, the view was so beautiful I couldn't stop taking pictures. I think at this point Becca was in too much pain, thanks to the blisters and a bad knee, and overwhelmed by the flies to take very many (if any at all).
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| Rough rocky patch in the pasture |
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| Amazing views coming up |
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| They were a little skittish about our invading their territory |
When I saw snow-capped Mt. Hermon in the distance, I suddenly longed for a sled and mittens; a far cry from the steamy, fly-inviting climate we currently found ourselves in. Shortly after, the Sea of Galilee came into view, resting behind the Horns of Hattin. Seeing the Galilee renewed my hope that I would make it to Capernaum the next day, which resides on the north side of the sea. The Horns of Hattin, a name I had never heard of before this hike, is possibly the location of two events:
1. Where Saladin, first sultan of Syria and Egypt, defeated Guy de Lisugnan and annihilated most of the Crusaders in 1179 (you can watch this event portrayed in the movie
Kingdom of Heaven...excellent movie); shortly thereafter he captured Jerusalem.
2. Possible location of the Sermon on the Mount given by Jesus in the New Testament (there are so many "possible locations" here in Israel I can no longer keep track...still, I love exploring the possibilities).
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, we would be greatly challenged physically. I have already mentioned Becca's plight; she said later she was going to check herself into the hospital when we returned because she was sure she was falling apart. I was the only one in the group to never develop any blisters during the whole hike, but something else started to bother me: my backpack. I have already written about the weight I toted around, and on this day my body said "no more." It was in the cow pasture, while swinging in vain at the hordes of flies, that I noticed my shoulders starting to ache. Once we arrived at the Horns of Hattin, it became almost unbearable. I had been using the waist belt, allowing the bag to rest more on my lower back and waist, but it wasn't enough. I slipped the shoulder straps down off the tops of my shoulders, and I realized I couldn't lift my arms. When we stopped to take a much needed (and much deserved) rest, I needed help putting my backpack on. I was no longer able to swat flies, so they got the free ride they desired. I didn't care anymore.
When we came near the highway we stopped to eat lunch under a single tree that offered patchy shade, and thankfully no spiders. It was here that Becca decided she could no longer walk. I wanted to encourage her to continue, as I did not want us to lose anyone in the group, but it was clear taking a bus to our hostel in Tiberias would be in her best interest; it wasn't worth her risking further injury. It was also under this little tree that we realized something--the flies were gone. We have no idea when it happened, but they disappeared as mysteriously as they had arrived. I couldn't help but wonder if this was a spiritual attack, it was so bizarre. When we arrived to the highway about a 1/4 mile away, we were split on which way to go. We had left the path to get to the highway, so we weren't able to determine our position on the map. Koichi said Becca should go to the bus stop on our side of the road, but I and Amanda noticed it ran in the opposite direction of the Sea of Galilee, which we could clearly see now to our left (east). The bus on our side would take her west, in the direction of Tel Aviv and Haifa, as the signs indicated (in Hebrew, of course), and that we needed to cross the highway to the other bus stop. He didn't agree with us, because the map was a little confusing; he thought we were at a different spot. Not only did he think the bus would get her to Tiberias, but that we should also walk in that direction. I agreed the map looked right, but logically it made sense to go the other way. It took us a long time to explain that we needed to walk in the direction of the Sea of Galilee, since that is where Tiberias is located. In the middle of this soon-to-be-heated discussion, a bus pulled up, so Koichi stepped on to talk to the driver. The driver confirmed that we needed to be on the other side of the highway, so we ran across and climbed over the cement barricade to the other side. The air was not only thick with hot air, but also with tension at this point. I just wanted Becca to get to our hostel safely and I wanted us to walk in the right direction. Once the bus arrived, Becca got on and Koichi followed to ask the driver; he said we needed to walk towards the Galilee. So with that being settled, we waved bye to Becca and we started walking down the very busy highway. Apologies were given and all was well again in the world. Because we left the trail, we were not sure how to get back on without markers and having no clue where we were on the map. Keith and his group had also gotten lost in the same area and also walked the same highway. We all agree the trails should have a few more markers, otherwise it's a pretty good system. We walked a little over three miles, stopped to get ice cream, and arrived to Tiberias, a bustling city with breathtaking views.
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| View from the highway; Mt. Arbel, an optional walk-to destination off our original path, is seen in the background |
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| Sea of Galilee; Golan Heights seen to the north |
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| Tiberias |
Once we got to the city, we had to walk to our hostel. I have no idea how much further we had to walk, I just know it was too far. We were a stubborn trio who refused to take a bus or taxi; we wanted to say we walked to our hostel. One of the annoying things about trying to get around in cities here in Israel, is that street signs are not always, well, there. Sometimes it's a sign on a post like normal, sometimes it's a plaque on the side of a building, and sometimes it's not marked at all. I say this in our defense of not being able to locate the hostel. I called Becca and she gave good, detailed instructions, as she now had access to wifi. We had been going the right direction, just hadn't gone far enough. About thirty minutes later, we found it. This place was the cheapest hostel we found on the trail at 50 shekels a person, which equals to about $13.50. The statement "you get what you pay for" rang true here. Sleeping out on the balcony probably would have been more sanitary, but we didn't care. We were still hot, still tired, freshly sunburnt, and thankful for a place that had a pillow (at least it resembled one...I'm still not sure if it was). My chief complaint was my feet had no where to go but over the edge. Beds are really small here in Israel. Our hostel was located on the main strip, so the road noise was incredible. I (somewhat) slept with earphones, and I could still hear people and trucks and cars and horns over my music. I'm not even sure I slept at all. Except for the nap I didn't mean to take when we first arrived. The view from the balcony was nice, you could see part of the Galilee. I went to the balcony to make a phone call, and while there a guy walked up and said "the TV in my room isn't working"; I thought he was going to ask me would I mind if he watched the TV there on the balcony. I looked at him expectantly, but when he continued to stare silently at me I said "ok", and he then said "could you fix it for me?" I couldn't help but laugh before I said no; I'm not sure if he thought I worked there or if I look capable of repairing TV's.
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| The blue dot showing our location in the hostel and how far south we walked once arriving to Tiberias |
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| My bed, with the "pillow", and I think that's a "mattress" |
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| Classy place! |
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| This main strip was loaded with shops, places to eat, and a small outdoor market |
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| View from the balcony |
After resting for a while, we walked the strip in search of food. We found an amazing restaurant that served glorious red meat for a carnivore such as I, but the menu offered little for Amanda, the lone vegetarian of the group. My heart sank as I returned the menu to the nice hostess, and I walked on with my head hanging low. I perked right up when we passed a pizza place, and Koichi, Amanda and I planted our stakes there (vegetarian pizza of course (has to be kosher), but I'm capable of compromise). Becca opted for a salad next door, and soon the four of us were seated at a table on the sidewalk with our dinner. Chances would have it while sitting there, we saw someone we know here at school. I had a Shabbat dinner at his apartment one night (he's a great cook and is from France); so we talked with him for a couple minutes. And then it happened. Koichi was sprinkling seasoning on a beautiful piece of pizza when the lid popped off.
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| They love to sneak corn in and on a lot of different foods here...I still can't believe I'm eating mushrooms |
After a good, hearty laugh at his expense, we finished dinner, walked to a convenience store to get necessities like water and (for me) chocolate milk, and walked back to our hostel. How far did we walk this day? I have no idea, probably 12-15 miles; all I know is we walked for 7 1/2 hours and I was getting anxious to arrive to Capernaum the following day.
