Today was our second riding day with Yair and the two Australian ladies. For that one we had to drive 45 minutes towards Haifa, where we would be staying for our three last nights in Israel. So we packed everything and loaded the car in the morning.
Emil, our very nice host at the Michel House Boutique Hotel made us a breakfast to go bag which was really nice of him. We can only highly recommend Michel House as it‘s central, charming and very welcoming.
Having its own parking lot was an added bonus and made things much easier for us since the old town has only few parking spots. The view from our terrace over Nazareth was superb and a perfect location for Chris to fly his drone. For anyone planning to bring a drone to Israel, this is worth knowing: registration with the Israeli Drone Club is compulsory in order to import and operate a drone legally. As part of the process, pilots must pass a basic competency test covering airspace rules, safety procedures, and no-fly zones. Without this registration, drones can be confiscated at the airport. Done properly, though, flying a drone in Israel is entirely possible—and the views can be spectacular (but avoid to fly near military bases and in Jerusalem).
After the morning flight, off we went to Karmel heights and surrounding national parks. Tucked away in a former Kibbuz we saw a surprisingly large riding stable, complete with Arena and large stalls. Yair told us he rents stalls on a day by day basis from his various locations he starts rides from. He is trying to keep his fixed costs as low as possible, as most tourist businesses are still hurting badly. At least he has some Israeli tourists coming to him, international business is close to zero still after Covid followed by the war in Gaza.
Chris got a new horse, called Rocky. A feisty grey Arabian horse that was quite forward. We others kept our horses from yesterday. Esther had Maple, which is a laid back little quarter horse, perfect for a leisurely ride.
This time the ride was more through wooded areas, lots of cattle pastures and gates. It’s Israeli law that all ways must have a gate for riders/ hikers when a cattle grid is being used to block the road for cattle.
There is no such thing as blocking off private land for riders. Only military areas are off limits. We rode though forests, full of pine and eucalyptus trees, across many streams and over mountain ridges. We must have climbed as many meters and descended as many as the day before.
Lunch was on a beautiful hilltop overlooking Mount Tabor in the distance.
We saw numerous flora and fauna. Foxes, guinea fowl, small antelopes running away from us, and as a sign of winter/spring vivid red and violet Anemones were blossoming on the pastures. It was a beautiful sunny day again and we all were in great spirits.
Stopping for a quick break at a fenced memorial dedicated to kibbutz members who fell in Israel’s various wars, we let the horses graze while we visited the site. Kibbutzim have long been disproportionately affected by conflict. Traditionally, they produced some of the country’s most politically engaged and socially active citizens—people who were often among the first to serve, to volunteer, and to lead. Not by chance, several prominent figures in Israeli history emerged from the kibbutz movement, including Moshe Dayan, Ehud Barak, and Golda Meir.
We were without any chance of stopping them and saw ourselves already walking home from the furthest place of the ride. It would have been hours.
Luckily the gate was closed and none of the horses was brave enough to jump it. Yairs horse the chief mischief maker skidded to a stop just in front of the gate, turned around and galopped back where they came from, looking for another way out. The herd followed and all horses galopped the other way around us. Luckily we got them into a corner and they were quickly caught by their trailing lead ropes. How lucky we were! We had a hearty laugh, mounted again and started our way towards home with another gallop this time on top of our horses.
During our ride, we occasionally heard the distant explosions from military training a few kilometers away. We also encountered Israeli special forces moving through the area in Range Rovers—vehicles not typical for the Israel Defense Forces, but often used for low-profile operations in Arab regions. We even came across a team testing a military drone, which Chris found particularly fascinating.
In Israel, one is reminded almost daily of the country’s particular situation—of the need to remain constantly alert and prepared to defend itself. At the same time, the actions and the sheer scale of the Israeli military operation in Gaza is controversial even among some Israelis. It is a deeply charged subject whose full complexity cannot be reflected in a travel blog.
Making our way through forest, streams, and bicycle paths, it was once again 4 p.m. by the time we arrived back at the trailer.
We said a heart felt good bye to Yair, the Australians and our horses and headed to our new hotel in Haifa. Sore from so much time in unfamiliar saddles we were delighted to see that our little Templers Boutique hotel (Shout out to Chris for selecting superb small boutique hotels during our trip!) had a big white lion clawed bathtub in our room.
Submerging sore muscles in hot foamy water is what we needed now! Needless to say that we fell asleep at 7 PM.
