There are lots of ways to tour the Holy Land. Motor coach and car are the most popular. But if you really want an intimate view of these historic lands – and you’re up to it – bicycling might be your best bet. Feel the change in temperature as you climb an ascending road, smell the land as it transitions from desert to fertile soil. Be you a hard-core cycling aficionado or just a casual cyclist, you know what we’re talking about. Bicycling remains the closest thing on earth to flying.
And the Holy Land, according to many, remains the closest thing to heaven. Thus a set of new ‘Biking the Path of Jesus’ treks. These cycling sojourns are bookable as either two-day or week-long deals. Depart from northern Israel, from places with names that jump out of the Bible and into real-life relief, names such as Nazareth. Then, peddle the paths leading to Mounts Carmel, Gilboa and Tabor. Ride on through the rolling, redolent hills and olive groves encircling Kibbutz Lavi.
Choose the two-day adventure and start out from Kibbutz Lavi. Then, travel through the Horns of Hattin fort and on to the Druze pilgrimage site at Nebi Swe’be. From there it’s on to the Arbel Valley, the immortal Sea of Galilee and Capernaum.
That’s the two-day foray. The week-long tour is a trek better suited for advanced cyclists. Go from Mount Herman in the north to Mount Carmel near Haifa, then on through Ceasarea, Jerusalem and Masada. Experience the Holy Land this way, up close and intimately, and nothing else quite measures up.
Israel’s Commissioner for Tourism puts the proposition succinctly: “The new bike tours around Galilee are a new and innovative way to experience Christian holy sites,” says Haim Gutin.
For more information on particulars contact Genesis Cycling or Gordon Active.
(Image: leah.jones)
