A few miles north of the mountain fortress of Masada is En Gedi, the desert oasis where David hid from King Saul (1 Samuel 23:29). After lunch on Wednesday, we visited this site, which is now a nature reserve. We walked about a quarter mile along the scenic trail, observing wildlife such as the ibex and the hyrax. At the end of our hike was a small, beautiful waterfall, known as David’s Falls.
Hyrax
Ibex
Bill Luter, Ken Sheppard, Ron Scarbrough &
Eddie Brown at David's Falls
A trip to the Judean wilderness would not be complete without an excursion to the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth (approximately 1200 feet below sea level). Several members of our group were eager to swim in the mineral-saturated water. In fact, the salt & mineral level is so high that your body can almost float on top of the water instead of down in it. The black mud on the bottom of the Dead Sea is also said to provide deep cleansing and rejuvenating effects when applied to the skin. And, as you can see below, we definitely applied it to the skin!
Holiday Makers At The Dead Sea
Bathing in the Dead Sea is so cool! You exert less effort in swimming because it is a lot easier for a person to float due to the high salt content. Although it's just one of the great places in Israel, that place is truly wonderful!
ReplyDeleteConstance Todd