Mt. Zefahot, Eilat Traditional Cache
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A chance to experience the beautiful Eilat Mountains and the views. This is a steep climb up Mt. Zefahot - but well worth ti for the view! Best to hike in the late afternoon when the sun is in the West.
This is a steep ascent up to Mt. Zefahot. You must be prepared for this hike with water (3 liters per person in the summer - 1 1/2 liters per person when less hot) and although the trail is well marked, it is good practice to have have a trail map of the Eilat Mountains.
The nice thing about this hike is that it is accessible from the main southern road from Eilat which can be reached by car, bus or taxi.
There are two trails up to Mt. Zefahot.
1. The easier one is a loop and you can find 3 geocaches along the way. Ascend the blue trail that begins at the end of the road that goes to the "Club In" Resort. Along this trail you can also look for the "Red Sea, Eilat" geocache GC1601W .
The blue trail will take you up the ascent to Mt. Zefahot where there is a wonderful view of 4 countries: Eilat in Israel, Akaba in Jordan, Saudia Arabia which lies South of Akaba, the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt, as well as the Red Sea and the Eilat mountains. The real surprise and treat for us was the view of the Sinai Coast where you can see the Coral Islands and Ras Burka.
From Mt. Zefahot descend on the green trail which is also the Cross Israel Trail (white/orange/blue.) which descends East and will take you back down to the Southern Eilat Road, to the North of the Eilat field school about a 20 minute further South from where you began. . Above the field school you can find the other cache - "Israel Cross Trail End/Beginning " GC4R0W9
We would allow at least 2 - 3 hours for this loop trail.
You can also climb up to Mt. Zefahot from the field school, it is about 2 km but it is one hell of a climb straight up.
We did it for the first time this past weekend (Dec. 2016.) Depending on how fast you climb and how often you rest allow from 1/2 hour - 1 hour to climb to the top. You can leave a car in the dirt parking area behind the Beduin tent - which is a good place to stop at after your hiking adventure. Walk around the filed school fence and and then begin the ascent. Above the Cross Trail Cache you should see the first Green Trail Marker. As you ascdend you should always be on the look-out for either a green trail marker or the Israel cross trail marker (Orange blue white.)
The cache is hidden in a rectangular new container (Dec. 2016) in a blue plastic bag. The cache is a bit below the summit so it won't be found by muggle groups who tend to take a break and spread out in this area.
Cache is easy to walk to from trail. Please stay near the trail. There is no need to climb along the mountain ridge - which can be slippery and dangerous.
Finally - you might want to download a spoiler photo. It has only happened once, but it's a shame climb to the top and not find the cache.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Haqrearngu n ynetr obhyqre ba gur Rnfg fvqr (Frn Fvqr) bs vg.
Treasures
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