Golan Heights and Mount Bental

View from Mount Bental, Golan Heights

On December 30th we arrived in Tiberius, after a few wrong turns (more on getting lost in Israel later).   Tiberius is a jumping off point to explore the Galilee area and today we went to the upper Galilee, after a huge Israeli breakfast and and a few wrong turns. (Are you sensing a pattern here?)  We wound our way up to Mount Bental along surprisingly green hillsides.  When I think of Israel, I tend to think of arid landscapes and hot humid temperatures.  But it was quite green and I don't think I would have immediately thought I was in Israel.  Of course the signs by the side of the road that said Danger - Mines! did give me pause.  I noticed a few cattle grazing in the minefields so perhaps the signs are old and were just never taken down.  But I decided not to test that hypothesis.

Minefields (old?) on the way to Mount Bental

Syrian bunker at top of Mount Bental

At the top of Mount Bental is a windy outpost of bunkers and turrets once held by the Syrians and now part of Israeli territory. 

Mount Bental sits on top of the Golan Heights, and in the topmost picture you can see snow capped Mount Herman in the distance.  Below Mt. Herman is Syria, not a country we will be visiting anytime soon. You will be interested to know (I was) that the Israeli/Syrian border is the "quietest" of all Israel's borders.  A series of UN buildings sits between the Israel border and Syrian border and if you pay a few shekels and use one of the telescopes at Mount Bental like we did, you may see a UN truck or two traversing the roads there.