Hi,
We were looking for a good view point over the Nokhila, which the savanna on north to the Hasbani valley, and the best point for it was Tel Dan.
The Tel is about 12 m above its surroundings and on it feet flows Dan Springs (the main and largest Jordan river water source), along with other springs on top of the Tel that allows a unique “moist forest” to grow on the Tel.
The Tel is also an archeological site, as one of the largest ancient cities developed here. It make sense – flowing water, large flat field, and high point easy to defend made it a good location for a city.
Take Care
Gad
Looks close when looking from far away
The entrance gate to Tel Dan
The Israelite Gate from outside the reserve
The road from the entrance gate to the cash
The cash and paying point
The Nature reserve and parks authority kept an emergency gate for the IDF to enter through
Wading pools, the only place in the nature reserve you can enter the water
With a path for people with disabilities
Pistacia tree lookout
Climbing to the lookout
Fighting tunnels near the Pistacia lookout
The eLLA (Pistacia) lookout
The Pistacia tree lookout
Looking East
The villages of Kafr Kila and Odaisseh in Lebanon (where anti-tank missiles we fired at Qiryat Shmona)
A closer look on the villages of Kafr Kila and Odaisseh in Lebanon
A route in which the members of the Palmach smuggeled illegal immigrants from Iraq, Lebanon, Nd Syria to Israel
Escape route
The water of one of the springs on top of the Tel in a tunnel
Winnie’s the Pooh tree – large, old narrow-leafed ash with hollow trunk. Other large trees on Tel were burned in fires set by uncarefull visitors.
Dear visitor – do not walk in the water, in order to protect the dozens of animals and plants breeding in here
Paradise
Keep walking only on the stones
Ein Leshem (The Tel springs)
Water flows from Leshem springs
Paradise spring – the only place in Israel where wetland forest grows
Fighting tunnels along hiking route. Those are from the time before the Six Day War, when the border between Israel and Syria was below the Tel.
To the ritual site
The route paved with stones
To the ritual site
Ritual site
A ritual site from the Israelite period. The city was one of the two major worship centers in the kingdom of Israel (after the kingdom was divided). Jeroboam, son of Nabat, made the change, and set the golden calves, after the diviaition of the kingdom.
General view of the ritual site
The sacred precinct
The entrance gate
The Altar chamber
And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire feom off the altar
A reconstruction of the Altar
The stage
The top (not accessible)
The stones craved in a specific way
Archeological excavation
The altar from another point of view
The sacred precinct from above
The stage from above
General view
To Dan Springs (I did not visit them this time, but came back again for a small hike)
To the Post Lookout
The post lookout
Chemical toilets for the visitors/soldiers
The view of the Nokhila and Mount Dov on the right
What can be seen from the lookout
More detailed view from the lookout
ABRAHAM GATE
Abraham gate, the Canaanite Gate. Not only the gate impressive, but also the construction above it, built to defend it from rain.
The 7m high gate and the wall were built from mud bricks (This is what the the construction is for, kind like what was build over the churches in Lalibela). It contains 3 arches considered to be the earliest in the world.
Unreadable sign
A 3D model of the gate and smaller model of the
5,000 old structure still standing…
Mount Dov, behind it Mount Hermon, on the right is Nimrod fortress
Reducing the number of Eucalyptus trees in nature reserve
THE Israelite Gate
A view when coming from Abraham gate
The walls of the Israelite time, made drom Basalt stones
Looking on the gate from above
The entrance gate to Dan from time of Israelite kingdom
A look one on the gate from above
One of the rooms of the gate
Looking south to Kibbutz Dan
The road into the city
To the Cultic site
Looking out of the gate
At the gate: Dan in the days of the Israelite kingdom, Dan after the fall of the kingdom of Israel, Laish become Dan, Early Dan
The seats of the elders in gate