Tel Aviv - Eilat bicycle tour
thurs 3th. may: Packed my 45 L + Salomon backpack with a down sleeping back, mosquito net, 3/4 Therma A rest mattress, a few t-shirts, extra shorts, towel, toothbrush+ past, sunglasses, a few extra tubes and tools money passport and digital Pentax camera + lens and left Tel Aviv for a 4-days bicycle tour that would end up in Taba the Sinai, Egypt. I decided to travel very light without my Ortlieb front - rear panniers, which I have been travelled with in Asia. Only my Ortlieb handlebar bag for camera and a MSR drome 6 L bag placed on the bicycle frame close to the front tire.
Around 13:00 I left busy Jaffa, Tel Aviv and bicycle from Jaffa Old Hostel to Jerusalem street and south towards Bat Yam for taking the fast road out of Tel, to get a feeling off being on the road. Went on road #20 south passing Holon and went into road #4 south for heading towards Ashdod, Ashkelon and Gaza. I only had 4 days to reach Eilat 365km from Tel Aviv so I decided not to get on the small trails or roads but keep to the bigger roads in the beginning. 35 km south I passed Ashdod and decided to get off the very traffic road #4 and went left on road # 232 at Nitsanim, to Hodiya and Giv'at Junction and continued south for another 20km, passing a few Memoral monuments on the way and ended up in Sderot. Went left on road #34 south towards Beer Sheva, passing a very green landscape and farm country. Road became #25 the Beer Sheva road that goes through the town. Passed the market and stopped to buy some bananas for my further tour south. Stopped at a shopping center just outside Beer Sheva to buy some water. Here I had a flat tire and I had to buy a 15" ranch for taking the back tire off, due to it didn't have a quick release. I was lucky that there in the same neighborhood was a Citrone sale shop and here I bought a key for NIS 20,- (USD 5 )so that I could continue with out waisting time for finding a ranch at the market. So around 30 min. later I was on the road again and took #406 to get out of Beer Sheva, where I found a place to sleep. A kind of green house close to the road, where I made camp.
Around 13:00 I left busy Jaffa, Tel Aviv and bicycle from Jaffa Old Hostel to Jerusalem street and south towards Bat Yam for taking the fast road out of Tel, to get a feeling off being on the road. Went on road #20 south passing Holon and went into road #4 south for heading towards Ashdod, Ashkelon and Gaza. I only had 4 days to reach Eilat 365km from Tel Aviv so I decided not to get on the small trails or roads but keep to the bigger roads in the beginning. 35 km south I passed Ashdod and decided to get off the very traffic road #4 and went left on road # 232 at Nitsanim, to Hodiya and Giv'at Junction and continued south for another 20km, passing a few Memoral monuments on the way and ended up in Sderot. Went left on road #34 south towards Beer Sheva, passing a very green landscape and farm country. Road became #25 the Beer Sheva road that goes through the town. Passed the market and stopped to buy some bananas for my further tour south. Stopped at a shopping center just outside Beer Sheva to buy some water. Here I had a flat tire and I had to buy a 15" ranch for taking the back tire off, due to it didn't have a quick release. I was lucky that there in the same neighborhood was a Citrone sale shop and here I bought a key for NIS 20,- (USD 5 )so that I could continue with out waisting time for finding a ranch at the market. So around 30 min. later I was on the road again and took #406 to get out of Beer Sheva, where I found a place to sleep. A kind of green house close to the road, where I made camp.
Went into #40 some kilometers south, in the direction of Mitzpa Ramon. Passed Sde Boker, Ha- Tsinim cliff and around 88 km later arrived in Mitspe Ramon.
On the way south I was running out of inner tubes but was lucky to buy some pads at a rental store in Mitspe, even though the shop was closed. For NIS 10,-(approx. USD 2,5) I called the owner and a guy came to open the shop, which was closed due to Sabbath. before Mitspe I met a Israeli, who was going to bicycle in the crater and he told me about the shop. The first road into the industrial area before coming into town and the first left. In the same area you will find one of Israel's best known dance companies, Adama and a very nice place to sleep for NIS 80,- per night in a kind of Bedouin camp. I didn't have time to stay there but had something to eat in the same area and continued south on road #40 going down in the amazing crater, all downhill very nice. I didn't bring enough water or food and was slowly running out but was lucky to pass a kind of plant where and israeli/ arab was guarding and asked for water. He was even so kind to get me some cold water from his frezer and a cup of tea. I continued south and past and area where
two English guys some years ago got attach by arabs and there is a monument for them on the way up the only mountain from the crater and arrived at the junction Ne'ot Smadar where I had to make a desition either to continue on #40 or to take the longer road #12 through mountains before reaching Eilat. Due to I was out of food and needed a sandwich I took the #40 down to #90 where I found a shop in Yotvata. Got on the bicycle again and bicycled the last 50km to Eilat, past the check point where soldiers were sitting, so I stop some distance away and called them so they would not take me for a suicide bomber attacking them on a bicycle with bags full of explosives. They were very nice and laughed when they heard that I have been bicycling from Tel Aviv. From the check point I could really see the siliuet of the big hostels in Eilat that are different than the ones on the other side of the Golf in Aqaba. I was in Eilat at around 15:00 and went to the ATM machine in town and got something to eat and was heading for the border to Egypt, which is another 9 km. I was just going to cross into Sinai, so I didn't need a visa, only to pay the Israeli exit fee of NIS 67.50 and entry fee of LE 46,00 to get into the Sinai.(around 1:1 compared to the Shekel) To cross with the bicycle was no problem no signing papers or alike, but went to the Israeli and Egyptian custom just to be sure.
In Taba I bought some bread and cheese and went a bite south on the beach and tried to settle in but was told to leave so I went more south when I have decided not to bicycle down to a camp close to Nueiba, which I in the first place had decide to go to, another 40km. I didn't have the time, due to I have promised to be back in Tel Aviv Sunday. I found a nice piece of beach for myself and put out my sleeping bag and mattress and fall asleep under full moon.
Next morning I woke up early and packed my stuff together and bicycled back to Taba Village
and was surprised how easy it was to cross the border not to many questions.
At the Israeli border I had to take apart the bicycle ,wheels off due to they wanted it through the x-ray machine to make sure it was not a bomb. Went to the bus station at 8:30 and bought my ticket back to Tel Aviv including my ticket for the bicycle so NIS 65,00 + NIS 32,00 and another 5,5 hours until I would be back in civilization.
Long distance buses would alowe you bicycle on the bus for around half price, so instead of bicycling up hill back to Tel Aviv I took the easy way.
On the way south I was running out of inner tubes but was lucky to buy some pads at a rental store in Mitspe, even though the shop was closed. For NIS 10,-(approx. USD 2,5) I called the owner and a guy came to open the shop, which was closed due to Sabbath. before Mitspe I met a Israeli, who was going to bicycle in the crater and he told me about the shop. The first road into the industrial area before coming into town and the first left. In the same area you will find one of Israel's best known dance companies, Adama and a very nice place to sleep for NIS 80,- per night in a kind of Bedouin camp. I didn't have time to stay there but had something to eat in the same area and continued south on road #40 going down in the amazing crater, all downhill very nice. I didn't bring enough water or food and was slowly running out but was lucky to pass a kind of plant where and israeli/ arab was guarding and asked for water. He was even so kind to get me some cold water from his frezer and a cup of tea. I continued south and past and area where
two English guys some years ago got attach by arabs and there is a monument for them on the way up the only mountain from the crater and arrived at the junction Ne'ot Smadar where I had to make a desition either to continue on #40 or to take the longer road #12 through mountains before reaching Eilat. Due to I was out of food and needed a sandwich I took the #40 down to #90 where I found a shop in Yotvata. Got on the bicycle again and bicycled the last 50km to Eilat, past the check point where soldiers were sitting, so I stop some distance away and called them so they would not take me for a suicide bomber attacking them on a bicycle with bags full of explosives. They were very nice and laughed when they heard that I have been bicycling from Tel Aviv. From the check point I could really see the siliuet of the big hostels in Eilat that are different than the ones on the other side of the Golf in Aqaba. I was in Eilat at around 15:00 and went to the ATM machine in town and got something to eat and was heading for the border to Egypt, which is another 9 km. I was just going to cross into Sinai, so I didn't need a visa, only to pay the Israeli exit fee of NIS 67.50 and entry fee of LE 46,00 to get into the Sinai.(around 1:1 compared to the Shekel) To cross with the bicycle was no problem no signing papers or alike, but went to the Israeli and Egyptian custom just to be sure.In Taba I bought some bread and cheese and went a bite south on the beach and tried to settle in but was told to leave so I went more south when I have decided not to bicycle down to a camp close to Nueiba, which I in the first place had decide to go to, another 40km. I didn't have the time, due to I have promised to be back in Tel Aviv Sunday. I found a nice piece of beach for myself and put out my sleeping bag and mattress and fall asleep under full moon.
Next morning I woke up early and packed my stuff together and bicycled back to Taba Village
and was surprised how easy it was to cross the border not to many questions.At the Israeli border I had to take apart the bicycle ,wheels off due to they wanted it through the x-ray machine to make sure it was not a bomb. Went to the bus station at 8:30 and bought my ticket back to Tel Aviv including my ticket for the bicycle so NIS 65,00 + NIS 32,00 and another 5,5 hours until I would be back in civilization.
Long distance buses would alowe you bicycle on the bus for around half price, so instead of bicycling up hill back to Tel Aviv I took the easy way.
In general an amazing tour through the Negev dessert which I can highly recommende, with a lot of change in landscape and sceneri. From green to dessert mountains and best off all quiteness and no people. The tour is easy to medium difficult not because of up and downs but because of the heat. The best time is beween March to May, before the heat really starts setting in. Also in that periode you still have water in the area around Barak Plateau on the road from Mitspe Ramon south and Eilat is not to hot and not to many tourists. Distance around 375 km or 290 miles in 2,5 days, which were a couple of days to short. I am leading and offering the same tour of 5 days with a stay in bedouin tent half way and a stay in Mitspe Ramon, to see more of the Crater and the surroundings.
posted by Unknown @ Wednesday, May 09, 2007
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