The desert is really an amazing place. I always find myself in awe of it, even when at times it can seem so barren. I spent one night in Mitzpe Ramon this week and discovered the true beauty and magic of the desert – even with it being the off-season (summer isn’t the best time to visit the desert…).
I arrived in Mitzpe Ramon at around 19:00, with enough time to get my bag situated in my room and clean up before dinner. I had already visited the Machtesh Ramon visitor center (the Machtesh is a huge crater that was caused by a geological phenomenon) during a previous visit- it’s a befuddling combination of a memorial to Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon, an explanation of the geological phenomenon, and an educational video on desert wildlife – so this time I spent the evening relaxing. I made this trip with a bunch of other students from Boston and so we had some educational programming after dinnerת however, afterwards in the darkness we climbed up the hill to sit at the crater’s edge and watch the stars.
I’ll admit it – it was slightly unnerving walking up to the edge of the crater at night when you can’t see, and realizing there is no barrier around the edge. I was glad to have been warned how quickly the edge sneaks up on you by my other friends and to have had the flashlight on my cell phone to guide the way. Once I was over the shock of feeling as though I was at the edge of the world, it was amazing to lie back and gaze at the sky and forget everything for a brief while. I don’t get to do this at home so it was a real treat for me. It’s hard – living in Haifa where I am for the summer, or Boston where I live year round – to watch the stars, because there is way too much light pollution.
Even Mitzpe Ramon isn’t completely void of light pollution, however there was plenty of darkness to be able to see an abundant amount of stars and even a hint of the milky way. Although as cool as the milky way is, the real star of the show (…get it? Star?) was the meteor I saw shoot across the sky. It’s not all the time that you get to see shooting stars and it was a really satisfying way to end the evening. After a while I felt sufficiently chilly (the desert gets cold at night, bring pants! Rookie mistake…) and I retired to my room to get some sleep before waking up for a morning hike.
The morning brought more wonders – nearby the crater dozens of Ibex were gathered! It was quite a sight. It was interesting, the color of their pelt matches the color of the desert sand and rock so well that and unobservant passerby might not even notice the desert-dwelling animals.
We hiked at a trail a short drive from Mitzpe Ramon, the whole of it taking us about two hours to complete. At the beginning of the trail, we saw an old water collection pit which was really cool and then started the hike by climbing a HUGE hill to get an overlook of the desert.
It was breathtaking, although the climb up and down was slightly terrifying. The rest of the actual trail was not very challenging. It was mostly downhill, with a couple shaded spots to rest along the way if need be; all of this was okay considering the heat of the summer. What truly made the hike worth it however, was the pool we found at the end of it.
One of my favorite things about hiking anywhere is finding some kind of oasis. The pool we found was shallow and not so big, but it was a very welcome sight and extremely refreshing. The water was crisp and clear and stretching out in the water to cool off after a long morning was very much enjoyed.
It’s the little things – hidden pools, interesting plants that taste salty, shooting stars, wildlife—that make the desert so special. There’s so much of it to see and explore and it’s so much more than just sand and heat. I look forward to my next desert adventure!
