Sunrise. It is 6:30am, and the sun just came out over the Moab Mountains. Kibbutz Ein-Gedi, down by the Dead Sea, is still in the shadow.
I woke up at 3:30am, both to see the total lunar eclipse of April 3-4, and to get to Ein-Gedi in time for the pre-dawn ascent. It was very foggy, and I could see neither the moon nor much of the road in front of me, until I reached the entrance to the Jerusalem Corridor, near the monastery of Latrun. By that time, the eclipse was nearly over; in the hills, the moonlight was strong enough to drive by. I succumbed to the temptation, and switched off the headlights for a few moments. The hills and the highway looked desert-like in the moonlight, but the real desert did not start until after I drove through Jerusalem, over the watershed at Mt Scopus, and down the Jericho road. At 4:30am, I was at the "Sea Level" marker, halfway between Jerusalem and Jericho, and also half-way between home and Ein-Gedi.
Half way up. Breathing hard... Must go on - it will be getting too hot for this kind of climb quite soon.
A view to the south, looking back down
the path, which clings to the wall of the Rift Valley, on the
right. Note the green path marker, flanked by white lines 
at the bottom of the picture. The
markers, which are
very clear when the path is out in the open, may be difficult to find
on the scree slopes. Watch out: if you miss a marker and take a wrong
turn, or try a shortcut on the scree, you can precipitate a minor
avalanche. Never attempt the ascent or the descent at night,
unless the moon is out and you can discern the path.
Massada is the foremost mountain in the background.
A desert flower. I have placed a 0.38" special revolver cartridge alongside, to help you estimate the size of the flower.
Mountains of the Moon. This is the view that opens up when you reach the top of Mt. Tseruya and look to the South-West.
A panoramic view. This is a composite of four snapshots, covering the estuary of Nachal Arugot, as seen from the head of the Maale Issiyim (Ascent of the Essenes).
The valley. A look down into Nachal Arugot, where I am heading next.
The water! Finally, I have reached the stream at the bottom of the valley. Climbing down proved to be much more difficult than I thought. It took me over an hour to descend about 400 meters; by the time I was down at the water my knees were shaking from exertion, and I was very hot - the wind, relatively cool at this time of the year, which blows over the Judean desert plateau, does not reach down into the wadi.
First waterfall. To get here, one has to pass the first two "great pools" - basins carved by the water in the limestone. The main stream runs through the pools, onwards and downwards (I know of only one river that flows uphill). There is a drop of 2 or 3 meters between the pools, with a conveniently placed small waterfall, and there are several secondary channels and rivulets joining the main one; water also trickles from the walls of the canyon in some places. Most people settle down by those first pools, and do not bother to go further. To do that, you must climb up the right-hand (northern) side of the canyon (there are some steel rungs driven into the rock, but you have to jump to get hold of the lowest one), or wade through the pool and scale the side of the small waterfall. The climber is swiftly rewarded: the canyon narrows down, twists left and right, and after a few dozen meters opens up, and you see the waterfall shown in this snapshot. I got into the pool and swam up to the waterfall. Ever had a shower coming down from the height of 10 meters or so? Try it.
The secret stream. I am now on my way back, down the canyon, to the Dead Sea and to my car. The going is still beautiful, although soon there will be too many people around.
On the left, you can see a small caper bush, hanging on to the wall of the canyon.