Day Fifteen

We leave Sapir after a wonderful two days of rest. We head out of the Arava and back into the desert for a five day hike to Mitspe Ramon, Israel’s largest Machtesh. Its an easy day of only 12km. A few ups but nothing very difficult. Everytime I take a break from hiking its so good to get back on the trail. I enjoy a lovely conversation with an elderly woman who has joined the walk about love. She comes from Germany and is 71 years old. It amazes me that she has the power and will to do such a tough hike. We talk about spirituality and the need to except your feelings, to allow them the space to exist and to channel them in the right direction. Her name is Crysta, but she added Rachel to it after converting to Judiasm many years ago. She has lived in Israel for over 20 years and does a lot of work with poor communities in the south. I add her to the list of interesting people I have met so far. We camp in Wadi Geled a beautiful area filled with soft sand from years of flash floods that run through the area in the rainy season.