Negev Mt' Biking Safari

The winter is the ideal time to visit the Negev Desert in the south of Israel for hiking, road biking and mountain biking. I just return from a week long MTB safari in Ezuz and the region, and what a week it was! The weather was perfect, cool mornings and warm afternoons, this is at the same time it was wet and cold in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, and allowed us to really enjoy the single track trails through the desert. We stayed at a small Eco-Lodge in the Village of Ezuz (population 70) and went biking from there every day. We followed the ancient trade routes that Nabatean and Bedouin caravans followed hundreds of years ago, through dry river beds, to hidden water holes. This was also the brief period in the year that the desert flowers bloom and we could see hundreds of red and yellow flowers everywhere, quite a sight for anyone who has been in the Negev desert  before. We also saw wild asses and ibex standing calmly, watching as we biked by. We returned every afternoon to enjoy a cold beer and home cooked pizza in the tiny restaurant at Ezuz, a delightful place it is. For those who like mountain biking, you need to know that it is one of the most popular sports in Israel today. The whole country is covered in well marked single track trails from the green Golan Heights to the yellow  Negev. Lucky for us, the trails were empty of other riders, and it seemed like we had the whole desert to ourselves. Check out our MTB safari for your next trip to Israel!

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