Cannoning up Wadi Ma'in

Waterfall at a nearby Wadi
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In preparation for this years Raid, the team hiked from Wadi Ma’in to the Hot Springs and into the town of Mukawir. The team consisted of Karim Kenzi, Didier Diroux, Jean Pierre Berland, and me. The hike began at the dead sea, elevation –380m, we traveled along the river in the wadi to the hot springs, elevation 100m with a total distance of about 5km. From the hot springs we hiked up to the town of Mukawir, elevation 800m, with a total distance of about 8km. The total trip took 4.5 hours with a total elevation change of about 1200m and a distance of about 12km.

Some rapids
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About a week ago I was able convince the team that we need to have at least one training session before the Raid. No one is very convinced of the extremity of the Raid, and thus no one really fears the race.

The trek consisted of rock climbing, rock jumping, swimming, and hiking

Starting at the Wadi entrance we began by swimming through a small reservoir and making our way to the river. The water was about ankle to knee deep. On either side of the wadi the cannon rose about 100 meters. The view was spectacular. The trek consisted of rock climbing, rock jumping, swimming, and hiking. This was by far the most adventurous trip I had attempted while living in this country.

Looking out across the Dead Sea from near the entrance to the Wadi
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Once we reached the hot springs we stopped in at the Hot Springs Hotel, a four star hotel. We walked in dripping wet and probably not smelling too good but the staff was friendly and let us in to purchase some water.

The rest of the hike, from hot springs to Mukawir, was almost a 15% uphill grade. With the sun beating down on us we slowly made our way up to the top of the mountain. There was absoutly nothing enjoyable about this leg of the journey. The important thing was that the other members of my team realized that they should do a bit more training.

We met up with the wives of Karim and Didier at the top of the mountain. As it was described to me, this was actually the site where John the Baptist was beheaded. At any rate we had a small picnic in which the food was good, the conversation was in French and most of the jokes were probably about my inability to understand the conversation.

I spent the rest of my day lounging around my hotel room watching movies and recovering from the trek.