Scenes from Ein-Gedi
| Ein-Gedi is an oasis in the Judean mountains, right across the road from the Dead Sea. David fled here when King Saul wanted to kill him. The sight of running water and lush greenery in the midst of a forbidding desert is truly awe inspiring. |
On the way down to the Dead Sea. These are the Judean mountains, in the Judean desert
The Dead Sea, as you very well know is the lowest point on Earth. As the road winds down, you reach this point, which is sea level. The sign tells you so, but it's too small to read in the photo. There's always an Arab with a camel here, waiting for tourists. Must be awfully monotonous, as there's not that much traffic here.
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The Judean mountains are very impressive, though this photo doesn't do it justice.. |
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A very unusual sight by the Dead Sea: a patch of green. There must be a hidden freshwater source about. |
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At Nahal David (David Stream) in Ein-Gedi. The first sight of cool running water is very exciting in the oppressive heat and arid surroundings. There are signs from the health department saying that swimming is not allowed due to some pollutants in the water, though no details were provided. We risked it anyway. |
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If you look carefully you'll notice that Laura is wearing a candy necklace; one of these elastic strands with "beads" of sucking candy; not ideal for what was about to come... |
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The first waterfall. The water is shockingly cold, which is a good thing. We kept cool by ducking in under every waterfall that we encountered. |
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I wasn't about to miss out on the fun. |
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The last waterfall above the Shlomit "Pool". There's actually a natural pool above, but getting there proved a task more difficult than Yoni and I could handle last year; after spending 45 minutes of a practically vertical climb, grasping at hot rocks and precarious foot holds, we were told by some hikers who were decending that we only reached the midpoint. This was too much for Yoni and we decided to turn back. He actually suffered from a mild sun stroke later on. I thought we were drinking enough. I was wrong. |
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The Shlomit Pool. |
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Hiking thru a passage cut thru thick bamboo growing on the stream. The wet bamboo has a strong not unpleasant odor. |
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Going back down. The Dead Sea is on the horizon, and you can barely make out the mountains on the Jordanian side of the sea. The greenery around the center of the photo is actually very far down, and this whole scene was quite impressive. Unfortunately it doesn't show in the picture. I wish I had a camera with a real lense.. |
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By the Dead Sea. All the rocks are coverred with thick salt deposits. So would you be if you went in for a swim and neglected to shower off when you came out.. |
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This dude is covered in black mud which he dug out of the sea. There were quite many others doing the same; it is widely believed that the mineral laden mud of the Dead Sea has many therapeutic qualities. Personally, you couldn't pay me to do this. |
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A view of the mountains from the "beach". The ground by the sea is rocky, dusty and lifeless. The sea itself is totally placid. It is very aptly named. |
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I did not go in, though everyone else did. I just hate the feeling of the oily water on my skin. It tastes horrible, and burns at every nick and scratch on your body, and god help you if it gets in your eyes. Otherwise it's just great! ;-) |
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On the way down to the Dead Sea. These are the Judean mountains, in the Judean desert