 |  |
Click for Contents
|
P.O. Box 1805,Jerusalem 91017 Tel. 972-2-531-5440, Fax: 972-2-537-9489 Advertising Fax: 972-2-531-5425, Email Editorial: [email protected] Subscriptions: [email protected] Web site: http://www.jrep.com |
Mt. Bental Volcanic Park
Tamar Wisemon
Off route 9881, near KibbutzMerom Golan, Golan Heights Tel. (04) 696-0267 / 682-0664Open: Daily 9 a.m. until nightfall Free parking and entry to site
A life-sized metal silhouette peers through binoculars toward the Lebanese border, 23 kilometers (13 miles) away. Another is crouched, rifle poised, ready to shoot. Behind him rises the snowy peak of Mount Hermon. Entranced by the warren of trenches encircling the summit of this extinct volcano and dormant army strongpoint, my children run over sodden sandbags and into guard posts with genuine mounted guns. Inside the mountain, an extensive IDF bunker, open to visitors, comprises four rooms - a war room, kitchen, map room and sleeping quarters set up with army beds and weapons.
The tourism possibilities of the geological aspects of the park are still untapped. But the signpost in the circular plaza makes the strategic position of Mt. Bental resoundingly clear: "Damascus 60 km." Rising 1,154 meters (3786 feet) above sea level in the northern Golan Heights, the outpost overlooks the Vale of Tears (scene of a decisive battle during the Yom Kippur War) and the ruins of the Syrian city of Kuneitra.
An UNDOF camp is clearly visible, established to observe the Israeli/Syrian border, two kilometers (under a mile) away. In witty acknowledgment of this service to Israeli security, the caf� is named "Coffee Anan" both for its altitude ("Anan" is Hebrew for cloud ) and for U.N. head Kofi Annan. The attractive, wood-framed caf�, airy with huge glass windows to take full advantage of the views, serves dairy snacks prepared at Kibbutz Merom Hagolan, which runs the park (coffee 8 shekels [$2]; sandwich 12-18 shekels; cake 18 shekels). A wind turbine provides an independent source of electricity to the site.
Good Taste
|
 |
|
© The Jerusalem Report 1999-2003 |  |