Israel National Trail: Five-Day Highlights

Nahal Amud, also known as the Wadi al-Amud, is a stream in the Upper Galilee region of Israel that flows into the Sea of Galilee.

Photo: Pacman · Public domain

Mount Meron, also known as Mount Jarmaq or Jebel Jarmaq, is a mountain in the Upper Galilee region of Israel. It has special significance in Jewish religious tradition and parts of it have been declared a nature reserve. At 1,204 metres (3,950 ft) above sea level, Mount Meron is the highest peak in Israel within the Green Line. The mountain is a major motif in the art of the artists' quarter of Safed.

Photo: Lior Golgher • ליאור גולגר · CC BY-SA 3.0

Mount Carmel, also known in Arabic as Mount Mar Elias, is a coastal mountain range in northern Israel stretching from the Mediterranean Sea towards the southeast. The range is a UNESCO biosphere reserve. A number of towns are situated there, most notably Haifa, Israel's third largest city, located on the northern and western slopes.

Photo: Chadner · Public domain

Ein Avdat or Ein Ovdat is a canyon in the Negev Desert of Israel, south of Kibbutz Sde Boker. Archaeological evidence shows that Ein Avdat was inhabited by Nabateans and Catholic monks. Numerous springs at the southern opening of the canyon empty into deep pools in a series of waterfalls. The water emerges from the rock layers with salt-tolerant plants like Poplar trees and Atriplexes growing nearby.

Photo: Hanan epstein · CC BY-SA 4.0

Avdat or Ovdat, and Abdah or Abde, are the modern names of an archaeological site corresponding to the ancient Nabataean, Roman and Byzantine settlement of Oboda or Eboda in the Negev desert in southern Israel. It was inhabited with intermissions between the 3rd century BCE and the mid-7th century CE by Nabataeans, in their time becoming the most important city on the Incense Route after Petra, then by Roman army veterans, and Byzantines, and habitation continued well into the Early Muslim period. Avdat was a seasonal camping ground for Nabataean caravans travelling along the early Petra–Gaza road in the 3rd – late 2nd century BCE. The city's original name was changed in honor of Nabataean King Obodas I, who, according to tradition, was revered as a deity and was buried there.

Photo: ZeevStein · CC BY-SA 4.0

Makhtesh Ramon is a geological feature of Israel's Negev desert. Located some 85 km south of Beersheba, the landform is the world's largest "erosion cirque". The formation is 40 km long, 2–10 km wide and 500 meters deep. Despite its appearance, it is not an impact crater from a meteor nor a volcanic crater formed by a volcanic eruption.

Photo: Hagai Agmon-Snir حچاي اچمون-سنير חגי אגמון-שניר · CC BY-SA 4.0

Makhtesh Ramon is a geological feature of Israel's Negev desert. Located some 85 km south of Beersheba, the landform is the world's largest "erosion cirque". The formation is 40 km long, 2–10 km wide and 500 meters deep. Despite its appearance, it is not an impact crater from a meteor nor a volcanic crater formed by a volcanic eruption.

Photo: Hagai Agmon-Snir حچاي اچمون-سنير חגי אגמון-שניר · CC BY-SA 4.0

Makhtesh Ramon is a geological feature of Israel's Negev desert. Located some 85 km south of Beersheba, the landform is the world's largest "erosion cirque". The formation is 40 km long, 2–10 km wide and 500 meters deep. Despite its appearance, it is not an impact crater from a meteor nor a volcanic crater formed by a volcanic eruption.

Photo: Hagai Agmon-Snir حچاي اچمون-سنير חגי אגמון-שניר · CC BY-SA 4.0

The Eilat Mountains are a mountain range within the southern Negev in southern Israel. The ranges of the Timna Valley belong to the Eilat Mountains. Among the central block of mountains, Mount Hezekiah is the highest, followed by Mount Solomon. The mountains overlook the Gulf of Aqaba, which is part of the Red Sea.

Photo: Haya831 · CC BY-SA 3.0