A downstream day through the perennial section of the stream, capped by the climb to Montfort and a final ascent to the Goren Park lookout.
Segments
- Down to Ein Ziv
Ein Ziv trailhead → Ein Ziv springs
Dirt track descending to the streambed
An easy drop off the plateau into the head of the canyon, where Ein Ziv emerges. Because the national water company draws from the spring, the channel just below here can run thin or dry — the walk earns its water further down. About 45 minutes.
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The green corridorEin Ziv → Mid-canyon narrows
Streambed, boulders, shallow crossings
The heart of the walk. The canyon closes in and the vegetation thickens into a genuine gallery forest — oleander in pink flower through spring, lilies in the damp margins, and the hills above holding classic Mediterranean maquis. Expect to cross the water repeatedly. Around 2 hours.
About this place
Nerium oleander, the oleander, is a shrub or small tree native to the Mediterranean region east to southern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal east to India and Myanmar; the Flora of China also cites it as native in Yunnan in China. It is the only species currently classified in the genus Nerium, belonging to subfamily Apocynoideae of the dogbane family Apocynaceae. It is also cultivated widely in temperate and subtropical areas as an introduced ornamental and landscaping plant.
Read more on Wikipedia Photo: Alvesgaspar · CC BY 2.5 -
Ein TamirMid-canyon narrows → Ein Tamir
Shaded streambed path
The most reliable water on the route, under big oriental plane trees — the classic Kziv picture. A good place to stop and eat before the only real climb of the day. About an hour, plus however long you linger.
About this place
Platanus orientalis, the Oriental plane, or chinar, is a large, deciduous tree in the family Platanaceae, native from the eastern Mediterranean to Iran. It typically grows along rivers, streams and springs, and has broad spreading crown, exfoliating bark, deeply lobed leaves and pendent infructescences bearing spherical fruiting heads. It can grow to 30 m (98 ft) or more, and in autumn, its deep green leaves may change to blood red, amber, and yellow. Long cultivated for shade and ornament, and extensive planting since antiquity has made precise limits of its original range difficult to determine.
Read more on Wikipedia Photo: uncredited · CC BY-SA 3.0 -
Climb to MontfortEin Tamir → Montfort Castle
Steep rocky switchbacks
Leave the water and climb hard up the spur to the castle — a long, narrow ruin strung along the rock, and still an active dig. Recent seasons have turned up gaming pieces and a grand hall, alongside clear evidence of the twelve days the Mamluks spent tearing it down in 1271. About an hour of climbing.
About this place
Montfort is a ruined Crusader castle in the Upper Galilee region in northern Israel, about 22 miles (35 km) northeast of the city of Haifa and 10 miles (16 km) south of the border with Lebanon.
Read more on Wikipedia Photo: Eran Feldman · CC BY-SA 3.0 -
Out to the lookoutMontfort Castle → Goren Park (Mitzpe Montfort)
Descent to the stream, then a climb through woodland
Drop back to the stream, cross, and climb the far side to the Goren Park lookout — the postcard view, with the castle standing on its spur across the gorge and the whole canyon laid out below. About 1.5 hours.
About this place
The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society c. 1190 in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to the Holy Land and to establish hospitals. Its members have commonly been known as the Teutonic Knights, having historically served as a crusading military order for supporting Catholic rule in the Holy Land and the Northern Crusades during the Middle Ages, as well as supplying military protection for Catholics in Eastern Europe.
Read more on Wikipedia Photo: Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
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