OK so we went down to Eilat for a romantic break, no kids, no demands, just me and the Mrs. It just so happens that I arranged to upgrade our bikes avoiding the V.A.T. slapped on up here in the rest of Israel, saving a considerable amount of cash along the way! So 2 new Specialized bikes were waiting for us, 1 bordeaux Stumpjumper for me and a red an XC Comp for H, (yeh, so? Gimme abreak, so what if mines better then hers!!) Well my friends I can only begin to tell you the joy of rear suspension, hydraulic brakes and the smooth gear shifts, after the past couple of months on my Hard Rock. Its another planet!!! These bikes are amazing, they react to your actions with lightning speed and glide through stuff my old bike would have sunk in! In short we are chuffed!

So our first trip was in the late evening after getting the bikes, just to break em in, from the Ambassador hotel up Wadi Shlomo, not far, as it was getting dark, we then charged through the promenade along the beach towards Taba and back, we decided to complete Wadi Shlomo in the morning. So at 6am we set off towards Taba to warm up on the flat road hugging the glorious Red Sea. Reaching the border with Egypt we did the return run to the entrance to Wadi Shlomo, from here on its a continuos uphill ride through this fantastic canyon, with the sunrise behind us casting long shadows and clear blue sky on red mountains in front of us. 6km up we reached the western road out of Eilat, I am not sure but I would say its at least a 400m climb, so the ride back down is fantastic and as fast as you want it! Total distance 21Km, 2.5 hours.

The next morning we drove out to the outskirts of town, past the airport and the industrial area, and just past Kibbutz Eilot. Parking on the eastern side of the road we set off past Vinyards on the Israel Jordan border, working our way north to the Duane Palms right in the middle of the Great Rift Valley. Completely alone in this incredible landscsape apart from some gazelle running in the distance. The return run was made easier by the northerly wind we had battled on the way out, so we flew back reaching 40km/hour on the flats. This time though on the eastern side of the vinyards we rode along the rim of the resevoirs on the border with Jordan.

Total Ride 21Km, in 2hours.

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Givat Nili, 4 April

Golan gets his feet wet! The sky was incredible, roaring clouds and occaisonal rain. From Givat Nili we rode north, turning right for the uphill towards Regavim, and down the newly paved road to Givat Ha Rakafot. Opposite is the resevoir that was over flowing sending water cascading down into the fields below. Continue on the road to Kibbutz Dalia, a fabulous winding and steep road! Past the kibbutz and into Nahal Dalia, which was full of deep black mud that filled up the forks! Finaly reapearing at Har Horshan for the last couple of kms back up to Nili.