A 1000 mile walk through Palestine, Jordan & Israel
In the winter of 2023 I made a 1000-mile solo circuit of the Jordan river watershed. My journey took me through two deserts, three nations and opened my eyes to the human impacts of conflict in the region.
Distance
1050 km
Time
39 Days
Elevation Gain
31,000m
The following is an extract from an article titled "Between the Lines" I wrote about my experience on this trip for TGO Magazine - Britain's original mountain magazine.
"I squatted next to Mohammad on the floor of his mountain hut, watching as this elderly shepherd etched lines with a stick into the ash covered concrete beneath. Rain hammered down on the tin roof while the room filled with smoke from the rickety wood burner beside us. Slowly, the lines took shape and formed a crude map of the region, centred around the Jordan River. He pointed to a place just west of the river and then tapped his chest. This simple gesture showed me where was from.
Now, I traced the outline of my intended route on the floor. My finger drew a line through Jordan, across into Israel and then through the West Bank. He looked at me wistfully. Despite the unhealthy amount of smoke stinging our eyes, I realised his tears were real. They told me everything that my non-existent Arabic could not - he longed for his homeland but could never go back."
Walking to learn
The first time I thought about a long-distance walk in the Holy Land, I was listening to a news report about the latest outbreak of violence in the region. It suddenly occurred to me how little I knew about such an important area. I wanted to see this place for myself, to view things outside the prism of extremist opinion and media bias. A few months later I boarded a flight to Amman and did the only thing I know how to do when my curiosity gets the better of me - grab a backpack and get walking. The idea was to make a big, month long loop on foot, traversing the Jordan River from source to sea on one side of the Jordan Valley, then returning to the source on the opposite side. After many nights pouring over maps and stitching together routes I had something resembling a plan. I was soon to learn that implementing a plan in this complicated and often volatile region was another thing all together.
