Spring Eco Tours in and near

This spring Eco Tours offers open-enrollment, ecologically-focused tours in and around Jerusalem. These tours, which will be conducted between March and May 2014, will be conducted in English. Pre-registration is recommended and accessible by clicking here or at http://bit.ly/1ftvi6C For questions, please contact Liel Maghen at [email protected] or 052-529-9102. The meeting place for all of the tours is the Davidka light train station on the corner of Yafo and HaNeviim Streets.

Upcoming Tours

Eco Hike from from Ein Kerem to the Trail of Natural Springs

Wednesday, April 30th, 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Price: 70 NIS/ $20, which does not include public transportation (13 NIS/ $3.5). Participants should bring their own lunch, water, hat, and sunglasses.

This guided hike will go from , an ancient and quaint village on the outskirts to Jerusalem, through several springs to Hadasah Ein Kerem. This tour in parts of the Jerusalem forest will explore the natural environment just outside of Jerusalem, and look into issues of water, trees, and urban expansion.

Eco Hike from Ein Lavan to Aminadav

Thursday, May 15th, 3:30 p.m. to 8 p.m, Price: 70 NIS/ $20, which does not include public transportation (13 NIS/ $3.5. Participants should bring their own lunch, water, hat, and sunglasses.

Ein Lavan is a spring in the Refaim river nature reserve in Jerusalem that flows out of a cave with an arched stone entrance. This walking tour will explore this spring and its surrounding nature reserve which agricultural terraces, bike trails, and beautiful views, and explore environmental issues in relation to water, trees, and urban expansion.

Past Tours

Eco Hike at the Sataf Spring Nature Reserve

Wednesday, April 2nd, 9:50 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. 120 NIS/ $35, lunch and transportation included in price. The Sataf Spring Nature Reserve is one of the natural gems of the land of Israel, located just 20 minutes outside of Jerusalem. The site contains a natural hewn-out spring, an orchard of fruit trees indigenous to Israel, an ancient wine press, and organic garden plots cultivated using traditional techniques. Through a guided hike, we will discuss issues of water, trees, and Biblical agriculture. The tour will also offer to explore religious sources on water conservation in relation to the contemporary challenges, and consider possible solutions for Israel in the 21st century.

An Environmental Tour of the Kidron Valley

Wednesday, April 9th, 10 a.m. to 3p.m, 100 NIS/$30, lunch and transportation included in price. The Kidron Valley reveals some of Jerusalem’s most pressing environmental challenges. This tour looks at the environmental history of the Kidron Valley until modern days. The Kidron Stream flows from the northern part of Jerusalem past the eastern side of the Old City, into the Judean desert and to the Dead Sea. The tour will begin by observing the valley from one of its lookouts, continue with a discussion about its history and religious background and end with a walk along the stream to the north while discussing its modern pollution and current environmental initiatives to overcome it.

On Foot from Spring to Ramot

Wednesday, April 23th, 9.30 a.m. to 2.30p.m, 100 NIS/$30, lunch and transportation included in price. On a guided hike, this tour explores a range of environmental issues in the hills surrounding modern Jerusalem. From Jerusalem’s Central Bus Station, we will hike to Lifta, a former Arab village on the just outside of Jerusalem. During our hike in the Jerusalem forest, we will pass an organic farm, and a series of tunnels and bridges that will make up the new Jerusalem-Tel Aviv high speed rail line. The tour will examine issues like land use, access to nature, and the green-belt surrounding Jerusalem.