Nature’s monkey bars

March 14, 2011 - 6:58 PM by Brian Blum

The cliffs at Upper Nahal David

As regular readers know, our family loves to hike and, over the course of the last 12 months, we have hit the trails every month as part of a pre-bar mitzvah project for our youngest son. As we reached the time for our final hike, we wanted to make it good. Our choice: Upper Nahal David – a trail that climbs far above the popular David’s Waterfall at the Ein Gedi nature reserve in the Dead Sea area.

This was not the first time we’ve hiked this path: several years ago, we went as part of a large group and were stunned by the breathtaking views that look out towards the mountains of Jordan. There was no question that this would be the concluding hike of our “official” project (although I’m sure the hikes will continue…for a lifetime).

There was another reason this route was important. The highlight of the hike is a spot called the “chalon” – Hebrew for “window” – which you get to by traversing a challenging canyon until it opens up into an impressive arch at the edge of a cliff; an oversized stone portal to the outside world.

When we last did this hike, though, I chickened out. Our tour guide explained that reaching the “window” required swinging along a long set of metal rungs drilled in the side of the canyon walls. I was never very good at the monkey bars in school. So I stayed at the entrance to the canyon and ate my lunch while the more macho members of our crew – including our son who was only 9 at the time – climbed there and back before I’d even made it to dessert.

This time, I was determined to conquer my fears and see what all the fuss was about. After all, if I managed to climb down the “ladders” at Nahal Og (which I described in my post “The Most Terrifying Tiyul”). I could handle a few horizontal rungs, right?

The first set of rungs was well spaced and easy to navigate. Piece of cake, I thought.

The rungs weren’t the hard part, in turns out; it was when there was nothing to hold on to but bare rock above a bone-crushing drop that I started to freak out. But the kids were great – they guided me on where to place my feet, what to grab onto, and even where to situate my butt when standing was no longer an option for the weak willed.

The climb was often above pools of water (they vary in size depending on how much it’s rained in the weeks prior). At one point I just said – forget it, I’m going in and I waded instead of scaling the rocks. Sure my shoes were soggy, but it was a small price to pay for safety.

When we finally made it to the “chalon,” the view was as spectacular as promised, making the “adventure” ultimately worthwhile.

We weren’t alone for long, however. A young American tourist, volunteering in the Ein Gedi area, unexpectedly gallivanted into our picnic grounds with a confidence that suggested hidden super Spidey powers. Nathaniel said he’d been coming to this spot every day for months. He then proceeded to strip down to his underwear in front of us, climbed up to the top of a natural rock slide and plummeted feet first into the murky green pool in front of us. Nathaniel was truly my opposite, exhibiting no fear whatsoever (not to mention a pronounced lack of modesty).

Thoroughly refreshed, he then sat in his briefs and ate his lunch while chatting us up about the Biblical origins of a particular black bird with bright orange wings that longingly eyed our Doritos.

I’m not sure if I was trying to show off to Nathaniel (or prove to my family that I was not quite as wimpy as I appeared, in contrast to our muscular young acquaintance), but I swung through the return trip in half the time it had taken to get to the “chalon.” Clearly, climbing up is less treacherous than sliding down, but I emerged at the other side of the canyon a new man – bold, self-assured (and only a little bit smug).

The tiyul above Nahal David is a loop (you can park your car at the Nature Reserve parking lot) and takes just under five hours at a decent clip. And, if you’re brave enough to tackle the “chalon” yourself, feel free to treat yourself to an ice cream at the end from the mini-market and snack bar. Don’t worry about the calories – you deserve every bite. I know I did.

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