Relentless sunlight baked the air to 100°F. We pushed forward in the heat, one foot in front of the other across the barren Negev desert, hiking Israel’s National Trail.
Never waste good shade in the desert.
Over the next week I would learn to respect the importance of this golden rule. Because shade is hard to come by in the Negev, a massive desert in southern Israel.
I was here to hike the Israel National Trail, or INT, with a group of international journalists, bloggers, and Israeli university students.
At 1000 kilometers (620 miles) long, walking the entire trail takes 6-8 weeks. Zig-zagging through much of the country, it’s a collection of ancient local trails that have recently been merged into one.
Inspired by the Appalachian Trail in the United States, the INT was the brainchild of journalist Avraham Tamir who hiked its US counterpart back in the 1980’s. Israel’s trail is relatively new, officially opening in 1995.
My plan was to sample 3 different sections of the trail over the course of a week. A few days in the Negev, a few days in the Jerusalem Mountains, and a few days in the North near the Golan Heights.
