A Long Drive for a Short Walk

JULY 15, 2020 : Yesterday we drove north to the Golan. Our destination was the Majrase Nature Reserve. The Majrase is one of the rivers that feeds Lake Kinneret. At the Nature Reserve, the main trail is a one kilometer walk in the cold river water. Perfect for a hot day. It’s a long drive – two hours each way – for a short walk, but great fun!

On the way up, the sky was very hazy, but that did not stop me from enjoying the beautiful views. The further north we went, the more magnificent the scenery. The yellow mountains of the Golan, the blue waters of the Kinneret, and the green of the many agricultural fields made for a memorable landscape.

We reached the Nature Reserve at noon and got our first hint of how crowded it was going to be, as we waited in a long line of cars at the entrance booth. This should not have been surprising – after all, it is summer vacation, and this is a great family summer activity. Considering you need to buy tickets for the National Parks in advance because of the corona virus, we thought that this would limit the amount of people. Maybe this was less people than a usual summer day, but it was still pretty crowded. We parked in an overflow parking lot.

There were plenty of shady picnic tables, so first things first – we had lunch.

Before starting out, in the middle of the picnic / parking area is a snack kiosk that also serves as an information booth. I was worried about my camera getting wet, and stood in line to ask about the height of the river water. This constantly changes depending on how much winter rain the Golan has had. I was told that towards the end of the walk, the water reaches 1.5 meters. In other words, backpacks get wet. The man in line ahead of me was buying a waterproof pouch for his phone (20 shekel), so I decided to also get one of those, leave the camera in the car and use my phone for photos. We already had one waterproof pouch (thank you Tali!) and used that for the car keys, our money and credit cards. We were ready to begin.

There are basically two trails at the Majrase Nature Reserve – the wet trail and the dry trail. You walk down the river in the wet trail, and then return to the car along the dry trail.

Our oldest grandchild, Lavi, joined us for this trip. Once we reached the wet trail, and entered the wonder of the narrow water shaded by many trees, he said “If I were a duck, this is where I would want to live”. It was wonderful, despite the crowds.

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The trail is marked by sections, and at each section marker there is an exit back to dry land if you do not want to continue. There are four sections, each one getting deeper as you go along. Some people came prepared with inner tubes for the deep water. Families with small children exited after the third section.

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We continued to the end, with Lavi hanging on to Mark’s back over the deepest parts.

Inside the plastic cover, with the camera constantly in use, my phone gave me warnings a few times that it was overheating. I would then stop and place the bottom half of the phone in the waterproof pouch in the cold water to let it cool (Mark’s idea). I was proud that I managed to hold the phone above water and avoid getting it wet for the whole way, even as I slipped a few times.

Despite the many people there, we did have a few moments when the crowds disappeared, and it was only us, the water and the trees. Magical.

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Although the walk is short, the pace was very leisurely – to avoid falling on the rocky river bottom we walked slowly and we stopped often just to enjoy (and to let the crowds pass). Occasionally we played in the overhanging trees.

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Once we reached the end, the walk along the dry trail back to the car was quick. The overflow parking is near the end of the trail. There are shady tunnels along the walk – so you are not fully out in the sun on the return trip. Next to the parking lot are changing rooms, to get into dry clothes before driving on.

By the time we were ready to leave the Nature Reserve, we were thinking about dinner. On the internet, it was very unclear if the fish restaurant in Ein Gev is kosher or not. Some websites say it is, and others say it is not. A phone call gives a recorded message without the information. We decided to go and see. Turns out that the restaurant has two buildings – one is open Sunday to Wednesday and is kosher. The second, is open Thursday, Friday and Saturday and is not. An interesting way to be kosher and operate on the Sabbath at the same time.

Ein Gev is on the eastern shore of Lake Kinneret. At the kosher restaurant, we had a table outside, next to the Ein Gev harbor. Lavi had fish and chips and for vegans there was a falafel basket. It was nice to sit there and hear the sound of the water hit against the pier. As the afternoon got later, the waves got stronger, and the noise got louder. In the distance, on the other side of the Kinneret, was Tiberias, the Galilee mountains and the setting sun.

From Ein Gev we headed home. Lavi asked me, why every time we leave somewhere, I always say “Bye Bye Nice Place”. I did not even realize I do that – but thinking about it, I guess I do. Now he has taken up the habit.

Bye Bye Nice Place.