John and I have improved our packing skills to the point that we can get everything but one medium sport bag into the rear of the van. Our timing for travelling this day was perfect as it was too windy to ride. In fact, there was so much debris on the roads from tree branches, leaves and dirt, that it would have been hazardous. We did see many cyclists on the road though, fighting the wind and trying to avoid the road debris. It seems Saturday is the day for road cyclists.
Our drive was interesting - travelling south through the desert of rough, course gravel mountains with winding roads, Bedouin camps, and small Arab villages along the way. We reached our destination of Masada along the Dead Sea - 320 metres below sea level. It was noon when we arrived, in the heat of the day ( 32C). However we braved the elements and made the climb on the Snake Path, on foot up this steep mountain of over 340 metres in about 35 minutes. Naomi, our historian now, gave us detailed background on the amazing biblical story of the Jewish rebels who held off the Roman army for 3 years. We spent a few hours walking through the ruins of Herod's palace and identified the Roman bath houses, the rebels' synagogues, storehouses, water cisterns and living quarters on the top of the mountain.
