To our family and friends following our blog, you can ignore this post and check out the other posts (which you can also jump to using the links on the right-hand pane). We feel we must do a public service for all climbers, which is to provide better directions to climbing in Gita. So, for anyone that would like to go rock climbing in Gita, Israel and needs directions, they are below.
If you want the route maps for West Gita, you can get it from the Israel Climbers Club website:
http://www.ilcc.co.il/
Here are the links to the free guidebooks: http://www.ilcc.co.il/en/climbing/guidebook2/
If you want route maps for East Gita and other climbing areas in Israel, you have to become a member and I believe you need to pay a small fee to receive the route maps.
From Tiberias, take highway 90 North towards the Golan Heights/Tsfat/Kiryat Shmona and then take highway 85 West, towards Haifa/Akko.
Take a right (so, go North) onto highway 70 (FYI - sometimes the number signs are really faded and difficult to read, so you have to keep a close eye out). Go approximately 4-5km and take a right onto highway 8533, towards the city of Yirka (there should be a sign for HWY 8533 towards Yirka).
Go straight through the round-about.
Go straight through 2 more round-abouts, but that's the only option you have anyway.
Pass a large My Baby outlet on the right-hand side of the road and shortly after, you'll come to another round-about, which you will want to take a Left at.
You'll drive up a hill and come to another round about, where you'll want to go straight/right-ish. Just don't take the left option.
Pass mall on right with a McDonalds.
You'll come to another round-about where you'll want to go right.
You'll go up a hill, over periodic speed bumps, which then starts to narrow into a residential looking area. Go straight through roundabouts, follow the main flow of traffic straight - though the road will curve, so don't literally go straight onto some small obscure street. Stay on the main road.
There's a point where one way of traffic goes straight and oncoming traffic is coming from the left, because traffic is being directed around a large central building. Go straight, take a left towards the very large central building, and then turn left in front of the building.
Go straight, a bike shop will be on your left as you pass it. You'll go straight and then you'll come to a T in the road, where you'll want to turn right and you'll start going downhill. Keep going straight. You will pass 6 small, side roads on your right, 3 of them have gates. Continue downhill.
You'll come to a dirt road on the right that has a large gravel entrance that could fit several parked cars (and some local's trash apparently) - this is the road you'll want to take. You should see a gravel road that's the width of one car and there are olive trees all around. You can drive through the first grove of olive trees, I think you'll drive over a small, dried-up stream bed, and then you'll come to another grove of olive trees. You can park there and continue walking up the road. If you have a Jeep or big truck with 4 wheel drive, you can continue driving and park much closer to the climbing routes. But, the walk from the olive groves isn't that bad, maybe 10 minutes to West Gita and 15 minutes to East Gita.
If you did park your car in the olive groves and are walking along the road, you'll walk over a cow-grate, and West Gita is a marked trail on the left. If you continue walking straight, you will come to East Gita. I believe the road pretty much ends at East Gita, and you just have to walk up the hill a little bit to get to the rock.
Hopefully these directions are helpful! If anyone uses them and has any suggestions for changing them, please let us know. The area has many fun routes, we really enjoyed it. We recommend bringing bug spray, a hat, sunblock, plenty of water (and food), and maybe a sweater if you're staying until dusk.
Good luck and happy travels!
If you want the route maps for West Gita, you can get it from the Israel Climbers Club website:
http://www.ilcc.co.il/
Here are the links to the free guidebooks: http://www.ilcc.co.il/en/climbing/guidebook2/
If you want route maps for East Gita and other climbing areas in Israel, you have to become a member and I believe you need to pay a small fee to receive the route maps.
From Tiberias, take highway 90 North towards the Golan Heights/Tsfat/Kiryat Shmona and then take highway 85 West, towards Haifa/Akko.
Take a right (so, go North) onto highway 70 (FYI - sometimes the number signs are really faded and difficult to read, so you have to keep a close eye out). Go approximately 4-5km and take a right onto highway 8533, towards the city of Yirka (there should be a sign for HWY 8533 towards Yirka).
Go straight through the round-about.
Go straight through 2 more round-abouts, but that's the only option you have anyway.
Pass a large My Baby outlet on the right-hand side of the road and shortly after, you'll come to another round-about, which you will want to take a Left at.
You'll drive up a hill and come to another round about, where you'll want to go straight/right-ish. Just don't take the left option.
Pass mall on right with a McDonalds.
You'll come to another round-about where you'll want to go right.
You'll go up a hill, over periodic speed bumps, which then starts to narrow into a residential looking area. Go straight through roundabouts, follow the main flow of traffic straight - though the road will curve, so don't literally go straight onto some small obscure street. Stay on the main road.
There's a point where one way of traffic goes straight and oncoming traffic is coming from the left, because traffic is being directed around a large central building. Go straight, take a left towards the very large central building, and then turn left in front of the building.
Go straight, a bike shop will be on your left as you pass it. You'll go straight and then you'll come to a T in the road, where you'll want to turn right and you'll start going downhill. Keep going straight. You will pass 6 small, side roads on your right, 3 of them have gates. Continue downhill.
You'll come to a dirt road on the right that has a large gravel entrance that could fit several parked cars (and some local's trash apparently) - this is the road you'll want to take. You should see a gravel road that's the width of one car and there are olive trees all around. You can drive through the first grove of olive trees, I think you'll drive over a small, dried-up stream bed, and then you'll come to another grove of olive trees. You can park there and continue walking up the road. If you have a Jeep or big truck with 4 wheel drive, you can continue driving and park much closer to the climbing routes. But, the walk from the olive groves isn't that bad, maybe 10 minutes to West Gita and 15 minutes to East Gita.
If you did park your car in the olive groves and are walking along the road, you'll walk over a cow-grate, and West Gita is a marked trail on the left. If you continue walking straight, you will come to East Gita. I believe the road pretty much ends at East Gita, and you just have to walk up the hill a little bit to get to the rock.
Hopefully these directions are helpful! If anyone uses them and has any suggestions for changing them, please let us know. The area has many fun routes, we really enjoyed it. We recommend bringing bug spray, a hat, sunblock, plenty of water (and food), and maybe a sweater if you're staying until dusk.
Good luck and happy travels!
it is so cool seeing the pics and videos. amazing how high up some of those climbs are!
ReplyDelete