After a long while, Avi got his bike and insurance in order and was able to go out on a ride. So we decided to challenge him by going up Rosh-Pina stream. Avi and I met at Glilot at 07:00 and since it was just the two of us for this ride, we took off immediately after gassing up. Instead of taking the shortest route to Rosh-Pina, we decided to ride through some of the more enjoyable roads that we have. <h2><a href="http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=1740424">Shisvil-Afula to Jish (via Rosh-Pina)</a></h2> <object width="700" height="600" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/swflash.cab"><param name="movie" value="http://www.everytrail.com/swf/widget.swf"/><param name="FlashVars" value="units=english&mode=0&key=ABQIAAAA_7wvFEi7gGngCZrOfos63hSN1xyBy-BzBD--25ZLXpVi3GfbehTQlZCXdpUFII2A5CGeExVTCyX1ow&tripId=1740424&startLat=32.640188333&startLon=35.343916667&mapType=Hybrid&"><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://www.everytrail.com/swf/widget.swf" quality="high" width="700" height="600" FlashVars="units=english&mode=0&key=ABQIAAAA_7wvFEi7gGngCZrOfos63hSN1xyBy-BzBD--25ZLXpVi3GfbehTQlZCXdpUFII2A5CGeExVTCyX1ow&tripId=1740424&startLat=32.640188333&startLon=35.343916667&mapType=Hybrid&" play="true" quality="high" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed></object> We arrived at Rosh-Pina after roughly 2 hours and stopped for breakfast. Sausage and coke. Breakfast of champs. After a short rest we headed into Rosh-Pina and up Rosh-Pina stream. The trail up the stream is anything but simple, especially for a heavy bike like the Africa Twin. The long ride up to Rosh-Pina, combined with Avis lack of riding hours and the weight of the Africa Twin, took its toll and Avi dropped his bike about 300 meters into the trail. Then he decided that it might be better to take off the mirrors. He wasnt about to quit so early, and braved on up the mountain. And then got stuck. Thats when he figured that if well keep going up, hell break either his bike or a limb. So he turned around. Caution is the better part of valor. Or something like that... After Avi shook off the disappointment, we found a trail that takes an easier route into Biriya forest. Half way up the mountain. View to the Sea of Galilee We stopped for coffee next to Biriya fortress. This gave Avi a chance to check if theres any damage to his bike. There wasnt. That thing is built like a tank. The tower of Biriya fortress View to the Hula valley We rested from the heat of the day, and took off towards Dalton. Thats when the advantage of riding dual-sport bikes came into play- We left the trail and got on one of my favorite roads. We followed the road for a short distance until it crossed over the Dishon stream, where we took the trail heading south. Ive never rode in this area, so navigation was done mostly by guesswork. We found a nice shaded spot and stopped to figure out where to go next. We found the markings for Israels National Trail and decided to see if this pass was wide enough for our bikes. I crossed the dry streambed, and stopped so I could take a picture of Avi crossing it. Before I got off of my bike I heard a loud thud. I turned around and saw that Avi needed a rest. After he picked up the bike, we walked down trail and found out that theres no way well be able to get our bikes over. So we turned around and looked for another way south. At this point we selected trail pretty much randomly. Avis adventurous character got the better of him, and he went up a steep hill. I, the chicken.. err.. cautious (ye, thats it) man that I am, stopped at about a quarter of the way up to see if Avi makes it up. He didnt. Riding a gear too high caused his bike to stall. This was followed by an interesting display of manoeuvring that mammoth of a bike, by hand, down a dusty, crumbling, steep hill. Resulting in a horizontal Africa Twin. Third time's a charm. Eventually, Avi was able to get the bike to a place where he could turn it around, and raced down the slope. At this point we were close to Jish. So taking our tiredness (caused by the heat and picking up the bike several times) into consideration, we decided to head out to the road. We stopped at a gas station outside of Jish, and took some comfort in a big bowl of Hummus. And Tabbouleh salad. And that was the end of Avis comeback ride. Which turned out to be a little tougher than we thought it will be. See more of our RRs at our blog: www.shishvil.com
Nice Leviathan!! Good to see you back at it! No fair riding your light KTM while Avi is on his elephant. Do you still have your XT?
Thanks! I never really stopped Sold the Tenere about a year ago and had a piece of crap DRZ for a few months. Then I scraped the money and traded it in for a second hand Katoom that I now have. And trust me- On most days, Avi on the AT is never to far from me. In fact, there are places where I slow him down :eek1