On the Gospel Trail

A month ago, Father Apolinary proposed a two day hike along the Gospel Trail in the period of the Sukkot holidays, a preliminary trip to study the area, before proposing a similar hike to the youth group, Desert Flower. As the response to the proposal of the trip was not very positive, the proposition remained open to all and to the members of the youth group too. In the beginning there were a number of volunteers for the preliminary walk but on the day we set off we were only four, Father Apolinary, Father Roman and two young women from the Tiberias kehilla, Jenny and Helena.

The hike from Cana of Galilee to Tabgha was divided into two parts, one 20 km long and the other 25. In the light of the request of Father Roman, who was not feeling so well, it was decided not to sleep outside as had been originally planned. The home base was to be the Franciscan monastery in Tabgha.

In the morning of the first day we set off after mass. Father Francesco from the monastery proposed to give us a lift to Cana. In order not to trouble him on the way back, Father Roman left his car at the destination point of the first day: Nabi Shuaib, to allow the group top get back to Tabgha by themselves.

The hike began in the narrow alleyways of the town where Jesus had turned water into wine during a wedding. After exiting the church, built to commemorate the miracle, we plunged into the alleyways. Our eyes noticed the many Islamic symbols in the town. Leaving Cana, the route took us through a hilly area to the Golani intersection. Along the way we were accompanied by the view of the town of Tur’an on our left side. After we had crossed the pedestrian crossing that runs under the Golani intersection, we crossed Kibbutz Lavi and we reached the foot of the peaks known as the Horns of Hittin. The ascent of the mountain was not really difficult and the view that was revealed from on top rewarded the effort. The descent from the mountain led us into the village of Nabi Shuaib. From there we returned by car to sleep in Tabgha.

The second day of the hike was very challenging. Again, we benefitted from the generosity of Father Francesco who took us to the point where we had concluded the day before. First we had to cross a flat, long zone from Nabi Shuaib to the foot of Mount Arbel. On the way, we checked out possibilities to sleep in tents when we do the walk again. The ascent of Mount Arbel includes moments that are very difficult but we succeeded in getting over them relatively quickly. The view from on high compensated the difficulties. This was a particularly beautiful experience for Jenny and Helena. Each day, they can be impressed by the beauty of Mount Arbel from far away, and this time they could ascend the mountain and be impressed by the view from it, looking down on Tiberias, on their own home and the area around it. It is a real experience to arrive at a place that seems far away and inaccessible and from there to have a vantage point on daily reality. Looking from the top of the mountain, everything seems miniscule and people are as small as ants.

After the amazement at the panoramas that can be had from Mount Arbel, the hardest part of the trip was waiting for us: the descent from the mountain. We had to clamber over rocks, not infrequently using hooks that allow a safe descent when there are sharp drops. When we reached the bottom we deserved a short rest. Thereafter, on a flat surface, we hiked through fields and orchards until we reached Tabgha. Waery, exhausted, but very happy, we reached the destination of our hike.

The trail is ready and the scouts that scouted out the area invite all the members of the kehilla to set off!