Once again continuing with my adventures in the Golan, where I seized every opportunity to explore the historical and natural riches that the grassy plateau has to offer. This time I was temporarily staying at a base across from Kidmat Tzvi, just minutes from Qatsrin, the “capital of the Golan”. I had noticed a sign on the side of the road telling of a place of antiquities called “Ein Nashut Synagogue”. So, one afternoon I took my essentials and struck a path for this place, mapping out that it was roughly a kilometre and a half away (or, a mile) if I were to directly walk there through the fields.

Bumblebee in the wildflowers

Leaving the base’s rear gate, my walk was going rather pleasantly until suddenly a creature leaped out of the grass beside me. I was nearly paralyzed with excitement as the beautiful mountain gazelle daintily bounced up a man-made hill and disappeared from site. I wish my camera would have been on-hand to capture the moment, but it was snug in my pocket, doing nothing constructive. Hoping to spot the gazelle on the far side of the hill, I carried on around the hill, enjoying the walk. When I reached the other side, I didn’t see the gazelle but then, I spotted approximately ten gazelles racing across the land, crossing the dirt road I had walked on earlier. Refocusing on my destination, I climbed the final hill and looked out at the rolling landscape, hoping to pinpoint the ancient synagogue ruins. I was unable, however, I was standing beside some old graves which, if they are all like the one with a discernible inscription, belong to Arabs.

Old Arab grave

Crossing a seasonal stream, reduced to oozy mud deceptively covered in grass, I shortly came upon a barbed wire fence. Undeterred, I overcame the fence and continued, now approaching huge swathes of wildflowers which painted the immediate landscape in yellow, white and purple. Here the walking got tougher, swishing through the flora which alternated between knee- and waist-deep.

Calendulas underfoot

Pausing here and there to take pictures, the ruins then came to view. Built in the Talmudic Era sometime between 400 and 600CE, the Ein Nashut Synagogue is smaller but more beautiful from an architectural aspect than the other ancient synagogues of that time elsewhere in the Golan. The site was excavated in the 1980’s and an olive press was uncovered as well – the production of olive oil being the main industry for the Jewish villagers at the time. Although a fair amount of carved stones and pillars were left in their natural state in the ruins, the most ornate sections were transferred to the Golan Archaeological Museum which I would eventually go visit several days later.

Looking down at Ein Nashut Synagogue

After spending a few minutes in the ruins, I decided to go a little further, not wanting to miss anything. What I found was several tumuli or cairns of small stones piled up in a surprisingly stable manner. Perhaps over time the stones settle into one another. While walking from tumulus to tumulus I gazed at the soft green landscape across Nachal Meshushim towards the town of Qatsrin. At a small circle of rough rocks, I found a tortoise rustling through the undergrowth. Swinging back, I walked along the same small seasonal stream, heading for the barbed wire fence. Just as I reached the base, having been escorted by the chirping of birds, two chukars rose into the air with a heavy fluttering of wings. My adventure at Ein Nashut was over, but the upcoming Sunday led me to another site, the Golan Archaeological Museum in Qatsrin.

A ladybug larva on a calendula flower

I was heading home and the driver who relieved me dropped me off at the centre of Qatsrin for me to catch the bus. However, I noticed the sign for the museum and figured I might as well visit the museum while I’m already in Qatsrin. And so I trudged over to the museum, bearing a heavy burden on my back – my 95L backpack. Inside, I received the excellent soldier discount and began to browse the displays of artefacts, items found all over the Golan. I was pleased to see quite a few remains brought over from the nearby Ein Nashut Synagogue – including arch stones, a part of the aron (or synagogue ark) and even a sarcophagus lid inscribed: “Shimon son of Abun 26 years old”.

Arch-stone from Ein Nashut Synagogue

One thing that really intrigued me was the skull, tusks and molars of an elephant found on the banks of the Jordan River at the B’not Ya’akov Bridge, a historically significant crossing site. Looking at the other animal remains, it would be interesting to see the Golan filled with lions, cheetahs, hippos and bears – some of which have only recently gone extinct in the area.

26 Tyrian shekels

Browsing the rest of the displayed archaeological finds of the Golan, from ancient to more modern times, I headed into the museum’s little theatre to watch a video about the rise and fall of Gamla during the Roman era, a sad tale of valour and pride. Essentially the “Masada of the Golan”, Gamla was a heavily fortified Jewish town located on a strategic horn jutting out between two streams. During the Jewish revolts against the Roman tyranny, Gamla became a stronghold and was the subject of three Roman sieges led by Agrippa II, Vespasian and Titus. At last, with a act of Roman sabotage on a guard tower, the town slowly fell to the Roman forces. With the battle lost, some two-thousand Jewish men, women and children were slain in the ensuing carnage and some three-thousand plunged to their deaths in the surrounding ravines. With Gamla in ruins, the Romans then turned towards Jerusalem and then the final Jewish stronghold, Masada. Interestingly enough, Gamla fell in the year 67CE and was only recaptured by Jews in 1967, with the successes of the Six Day War. Just as the film ended, a tour group from Colorado filed in and I exited the building to see the gardens exhibitions, with many stone lintels, columns and other ornate building sections on display – several from Ein Nashut Synagogue.

Golan Archaeological Museum’s garden exhibit

Finished with the museum, I stopped for a quick lunch before beginning the long journey back home.

With my last post covering my spontaneous adventure to Juchader – from the khan to the tel to the spring pool – this post is about a planned exploration of the basalt ruins of Nafakh. Noticing the site on the map, and seeing the ruins from the road, I decided that this nearby site would make a great Friday afternoon trip. So, properly packed with gun, phone, camera and water, I set off to walk the kilometre and a half from Sa’ar, the base I was in. Nestled in a grove of eucalyptus trees near HaShiryon Junction on Road 91 in the centre of the Golan, the Nafakh ruins are the remains of a Syrian village built on the remains of a Roman era, and later a Byzantine era, village – a chronological layering of human settlement.

Nafakh’s levels of ruins

With the spring wildflowers in full bloom, and the snowy peak of Mount Hermon partially visible, the walk was rather refreshing. Before long, I left the road and reached a makeshift gate with some ominous bones dangling from the fence post. I opened the gate and stepped into the thick grass, already seeing some house-like structures up ahead. Similar to the situation at Juchader, the grass was absolutely filled with silky caterpillar nests – and the caterpillars littered the grass. I reached the first house complex and entered the courtyard, heading straight for the dark first floor rooms.

Interior construction

Slightly fearful of encountering a foul beast in the darkness, I proceeded slowly, using my camera flash to illuminate my path. Relieved that the only trace of beast were the few scattered porcupine quills laying about, I left darkness’ cool embrace and headed up the steps to the clearly newer section of the house. With the local Arabs living in this village up until 1967, there are a few modern sections of concrete and metal, however it was the old hewn basalt blocks that interested me more.

Gecko

Standing up on the second floor, I surveyed my immediate surroundings and mapped out a logical route. Feeling like a kid in a candy shop, I explored the ruins, house after house, enjoying the peace and solitude. Surveying from on high, swishing through the tall grass down below, I made my way through the western side of the village rather quickly.

Panoramic view of just a part of Nafakh

Then, after exploring a single house at the northwest corner, I heard several loud crashing sounds in succession – the sounds of a large beast breaking dry sticks. Consumed with adventurous curiosity I crept forwards towards the brush from whence the noise originated, always mindful of my retreat path if said beast were to materialise in the shape of an angry boar. I wondered to myself about what it would like being chased and then treed by a foul pig with deadly tusks, and if I’d be able to shoot my way to safety before it was too late. Tenaciously advancing, past the point of a safe retreat, I circled the brush which partially concealed a walled courtyard, and, not seeing anything, climbed up onto a wall to look down at the brush. Nothing. Slowly my heart returned to its normal tempo and I begrudgingly returned to exploring, still unsure where the noisemaker disappeared to. Beginning a whole row of old houses connected one to the next, I came to another courtyard. Peering into a dark room, I noticed a shedded snakeskin draped against the rock wall.

Discarded snakeskin

With the feeling that this village exploration might not end before Shabbat were to start, I put a pep in my step and hurried on to the next set of houses, spending less time peering into dark windows. Hearing a strange sound, I spotted a rock hyrax running along a walltop. I pressed on heading east, reaching a structure that didn’t look quite residential. Beyond it, some three kilometres away, Mount Shipon – an extinct volcano – was visible, and below it, a more modern structure. It was then that I noticed the large basalt bunker in between the trees.

Mount Shipon

I made a beeline for the warlike building, wondering if I’d see any bats inside. I crossed Nachal Gilbon, a small stream, but found myself greeted with coils of rusty razor wire which impeded my process. I then thought back on what I had read earlier that week about a battle during the Yom Kippur War where a team from Sayeret Matkal, under the command of Yoni Netanyahu, were brought in to resist an air-dropped Syrian commando attack on the base Nafakh (just across the road). It was for this battle that Netanyhu received the Medal of Distinguished Service for his valiant efforts in protecting the Golan.

Posing among the ruins

Walking along the razor wire I saw no gaps and decided to turn away and save the bunker for another visit. Heading back to the ruins I came upon a little pool and then more recent ruins of concrete. Making a full circle, and fairly certain that I had covered all, or at least most, of the ruined village, I took a few more pictures and began to head back, enjoying the sounds of songbirds flitting about. It was when I was just about to open the gate that I spotted this interesting display of insect bravado – who will be king of the flower?

King of the flower

Next up: Ein Nashut & the Golan Archaeological Museum.

A few weeks ago I transferred from the Shomron to the Golan, where I plan to finish off my army service. One night, during that first week, I had a drive and saw a beech marten for the first time in my life, albeit briefly, as it dashed across the headlight-illuminated country road directly before me. The next day I drove some more and had the opportunity to visit a collection of curiosities known as Juchader (or Orcha, in Hebrew) along Road 98, not very far from the amazing megalithic site of Gilgal Refa’im.

Khan Juchader

Parking at the side of the lonely road just two kilometres from the first Israel-Syria border, I exited my Safaron and immediately spotted tawny creatures moving in the distance. Scrunching up my face in effort to see better, I verified to myself that I had spotted two mountain gazelles – I just love spotting unique wildlife! Leaving my parked Safaron behind, I began my explorations at the dirt road between the visible ruins of Khan Juchader and Tel Juchader. The name “Juchader” originates from a Mamluk honourific title for the “holder of the polo sticks”, presumably of the Sultan’s. Opening a makeshift gate, I walked alongside a narrow minefield (clearly marked and fenced off) until I reached the first of the khan’s structures, built of local basalt.

The khan’s many rooms

A khan, also known as a caravanserai, is an inn for both humans and their beasts of burden. Some khans are large and impressive, such as the Khan El-Omdan in Akko‘s Old City with its large granite pillars, and others are a simple affair tending to the base needs of weary travelers, such as this khan. Built in the 1300’s during the Mamluk period, this particular khan was built along a historically important road, going back to the Roman era, connecting the cities of the Holy Land with Damascus and other important cities in Syria and further east. Today, the TAP Line (Trans-Arabian Pipeline) for the transferring of crude oil from Saudi Arabia to Lebanon runs just past Juchader. Built between the years 1947-1950, it was the longest pipeline in the world (1,214 kilometres or 754 miles long) at the time but today the section that runs through the Golan is no longer in use.

Tel Juchader

As I swished through the tall grass, inspecting the grey walls of basalt and pausing to photograph insects here and there, I kept leery of unsuspecting wild beasts in the grass or structures. With the warmth of spring upon us, snakes are also a bit of a worry – particularly as the Golan is the second most snake-populated regions in Israel. I admired the fine archwork, surprisingly intact, along the southern external wall of the rectangular complex and then rounded the corner. With the grass nearly waist-high and scattered with silky caterpillar nests, I cautiously stepped forward, being careful not to slip on hidden rocks underfoot. Approaching a particularly pleasing-looking arched room with a living roof, I caught a fleeting glance of a long reptilian shape slither into the cracks between the stones – a snake or perhaps a glass lizard.

Home of the reptile

Inspecting the wall I could find no trace and carried on, walking along the central courtyard of the khan. When I finished exploring the northern and eastern sides of the khan, both inside and out, I felt ready to press onwards. As I left the complex, shutting the makeshift gate behind me, I spotted the bleached pelvic bone and spine of a long-dead cow in the grass. Shortly afterwards, I came across this puddle teeming with tadpoles – I hope they finish developing before the puddle dries.

Tadpoles in a puddle

Crossing the road, I stood at the foot of Tel Juchader, a volcanic formation, and imagined the view from the watchtower looking out at Syria. On the tel are scattered remains of settlements from the usual periods of Holy Land history, most notably the Romans whose village was destroyed in the 300’s, either by earthquake or Jewish revolt. Bedouins built houses in the late 1800’s, using cut stones from the earlier ruins, but the village was abandoned after the Six Day War. During the Yom Kippur War, the Syrians conquered the area and the tel was recaptured by IDF tanks, but not without fatalities. I stopped at the memorial built for Yonatan Guberman, a reservist tank officer who fell in battle recapturing Tel Juchader. His memorial is one of many in the area, dedicated to both individuals and units who paid the ultimate price in the wars for freedom. Returning to the Safaron, we then drove to the Juchader Pool on the northern side of the tel. Hidden in a small grove of eucalyptus trees, the pool is a hotspot for hikers and soldiers alike.

Juchader Pool

Fed from an underground spring, the pool was recently reconstructed and improved from its previous capacity as a pool for Syrian army officers – dedicated in memory of Raziel Nagar, a teenager who was killed in 2005 by a dud artillery shell. The soldiers I was with eagerly ripped their clothing off and dove into the cold water. A minibus of religious high school girls, arriving just minutes after us, made for a socially humorous situation. I ended that day’s trip with a quick visit to the peak of Mount Avital, overlooking Mount Bental – but the Golan adventures were just beginning!