EIN AVDAT- עין עבדת

Last year in February my husband and I visited Ein Avdat, a beautiful canyon in the Negev desert, located south of the kibbutz Sde Boker. It is two kilometers long and very narrow. The Hebrew word "Ein" describes a water source, usually a spring. Two deep pools are filled by several all year active springs, their origin still not completely understood, the water descending from falls. The gorge is splendid in many ways. 

The rock formations are fantastic and of different colors. Evidence of prehistoric inhabitant was found, and much later Nabateans from the nearby city Avdat, their station along the Incence Route, used the canyon. In Byzantine time Christian monks occupied  the caves in the gorge. Due to the ever present water supply the fauna is rich and the flora is lush for a desert. Many animals dwell there, among them the beautiful ibexes, who have no problem to climb the steep rocks. 

Special trees are growing at the edges of the ponds, some of them are very old. Among them are poplar trees and salt bushes, both of them accommodate to the slightly salty water. This canyon is truly magnificent!

Some weeks ago my friend Vered too had an outing with her family to the Negev desert, to the Maktesh Ramon and to Ein Avdat. She made wonderful photos of the area, so most of the pictures here are hers and I added some of my husband's from a year ago. Enjoy the views of the desert and of the Ein Avdat oasis!

Photographs by Vered and Gadi Skolnik and Uri Eshkar.