The cliffs of the nothern shore of Waddy Kziv, to the east of the small
village of Abdun,
are in a large beautiful forest, in which there is a large untouched
area of wild fauna and flora.
Wild boar (Hazir-Bar), deers (new in town...) and nothern gazelle,
together with wild cats, wolfs ,
crying jackals, and foxes are spread all over the valley of the Kziv.
The fauna is also untouched, and you can find the northern regular
forest trees of oaks and ficus (Ela),
but also rare species of the local orchideas.
The water cistern is found on a hill, hidden in middle of a densed forest
of old oaks, between other remains
of a town from the bizantine or crusader's period. Among the ruins,
there is an archade of three-four rooms,
which reminds of the knights sitting in large wooden tables with their
armours...
The cistern itself is a long rectangular room, caved in the rock, suppported
by a set of beautiful archades
made with large stones. A nice stairway leads to the cistern, a bit
dangerous to step.
It should be interesting to see the cistern in the last days of the
summer, but it is a good assumption
to guess that the water remains (although not for drinking) until next
winter.
Have a look at the cistern. Watch the head of Erez wathing from above
through a small hole in the roof:
Water Cistern
How to find the place:
Drive from Nahariya to Abdun, and pass through the village. After 4-5
km,
you'll see a 90 degrees turn to the left in the road, with a small
path to the right.
This is where you stop the car. From here walk about 1km in this path
(~south).
To the left there is an Avokado plantation. When it ends, turn left,
and walk about 300m,
and then to the right, look for the cistern in the woods.
It is hard to find, so don't get frustrated. Enjoy the forest, the
other archelogical remains,
and the forests of the southern part of the Kziv, together with
a small glance at Monfort.
What else to do:
Continue on the same road, and you'll find yourselves in the forest
of Monfort, just in front of the fortress.
Have a nice walk !!
Haggai, June 2001.
