Eliat Tour

Saturday, Nov. 12:  Our tour today is with Desert Eco Tours. It was really great and we enjoyed the day very much.  Our guides met us at the pier and they were very nice.  We paid and went on our way in two open air 4x4 jeeps with soft tops.  We were with Zion and 6 others.  The other half of our group was with Gil or “Gilly” as Zion called him.  Both men were very nice, knowledgeable, and accommodating.   Setting off from Eilat about 8:30 in the Jeeps, we journeyed off road into the sandy Arava Valley passing salt pools that are home to a flock of Flamingos. They are white, I guess because of their diet.  I was surprised that they live in these salty flat beds.  We also saw this desert dragon (giant lizard) From here we headed north and even got back onto they freeway for a quite windy ride before beginning our visit to the Hai-Bar.

Some facts about the Hai-bar reserve:  Thanks to the acacia tree, the reserve maintains a green savanna-like landscape year round. The acacia’s leaves, flowers, and fruit are an essential source of food for the large herbivorous. The climate in this region is characterized by daytime highs in July of up to 47.9º C (118º F); and lows at night in January down to 7.2º C (45º F). Average annual rainfall is an unusually low twenty-five (25) millimeters.  The Hai-Bar is attempting and also successful in restoring what the use of automatic weapons have destroyed since the turn of the century when animal populations shrunk drastically and some were eradicated completely.  This is a non-profit organization with two objectives: to reintroduce the types of wild animals that had become extinct both in this region and in this country and to bolster populations of endangered species. Animals that disappeared from the desert landscape include the Arabian oryx, the onager, and the ostrich. Predators, such as wolves and populations of birds of prey (carrion-eaters) were adversely affected by this and their numbers subsequently were reduced in size.  The reserve has introduced desert birds and ungulates, some of which are mentioned in the Bible.  We didn’t have time to see the predator area as we had to move along to have time for the Timna Valley. But we did watch these two males fighting a bit.  

From the reserve we headed to the Kibbutz Yotvata.  Israel's collective communities called Kibbutzim are world famous.  Our visit gave us a little insight on life in a kibbutz both currently and how it was when it began.  Gilly grew up in this kibbutz as did another young woman who gave us the brief tour.  Kibbutz Yotvata - the oldest and largest of the Arava region of which Eilat is part. Like many Kibbutzim it has a farming background but we were surprised to learn that they produce half of the national milk production with only 550-600 cows.  The kibbutz also has an important role as an agricultural experimental station, so you can learn about the research being carried out into the most productive ways of growing crops in these very difficult desert conditions. The last stop at the kibbutz was just across the highway from the main part where there is a roadside restaurant and picnic area. 

Gilly and Zion prepared a lovely picnic lunch for us including:  Pita breads, luncheon meats, fresh tomatoes and red bell peppers, pickles, olives, humus, and fresh fruits of apples, tangerines, and persimmons.  They only have what we term the Fuji persimmons here, not the other type.  They had several choices of drinks as well.  We also enjoyed a complementary the taste of the Kibbutz's famous chocolate milk.  

We had a nine hour tour to the Timna Valley, Eilat Mountains, the ancient sites of the Timna Park and the scenic desert canyons of the Southern Negev and Arava Valley. The picturesque Timna Valley is a UNESCO site. It's copper mines are amongst the earliest in the world and date back 6,000 years. We saw Solomon's Pillars, the Mushroom, and ancient rock inscriptions. These sites were wonderful but the the dramatic scenery and fascinating sites just driving through the park from place to place are amazing as well. Copper was mined here by and for the Egyptians 6000 years ago with other groups of people following them in the mining process. By now it is time to leave Timna and head back to our ship. The time is all so short but at least we saw a lot of remarkable sites. I am glad our visit is this time of year. The weather was perfect today!

The last of the guests rushed aboard a bit after our departure time of 8pm.  Then we departed and as we departed Israel we could see both ports of call for the last three days at once.  A lovely site in the moonlight, seeing Israel and Jordan at the same time.  Farewell…