Unique Places in Eilat

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This small hill in the middle of the desert was fortified by the Jordanians and then used later by the Golani (Israeli Army Unit) in 1949 as an outpost for protection against terrorist attacks over the Jordanian border.
You can see how stark was the "accomodations", just some trenches and fortified points on top of the hill with few of the comforts of home...but it was a high point and easier to protect, so there it is. Try to imagine living in conditions of that type with your only connection to "civilization" a weekly truck bringing supplies. No mobile phones, no land lines, not even a simple television.

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There is a viewing platform in the Eilat Mountains not far from the Mount of Solomon. You can get there by car or an excursion bus to watch a magnificent view over four countries - from the left to the right: Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

I’ve never seen four countries at the same time! Have you? Unfortunately the weather wasn’t clear enough to take good photos and videos but I hope you will be luckier and enjoy this beautiful panorama…
Mount Yoash with its incomparable four-country panorama is really a must!
This road leads to the summit of Mt. Yoash overlooking the Eilat Heights' most beautiful panorama. From this vantage point you can see the borders of four countries - Egypt, Saudia Arabia, Jordan and Israel. To the south you can see canyons and cliffs, and to the east, the Gulf and city of Eilat.

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The Darb el Hajj or "Pilgrim's Road", from Africa through Egypt to Mecca, passed out of Sinai from the west at Eilat before skirting the sea and continuing south into Arabia.
Following peace treaties signed with Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994, Eilat's borders with its neighbors were finally opened.
So the modern Darb el Hajj or "Pilgrim's Road" leads through Eilat again like many centuries ago…
Route #12 from Eilat winds its way through the expansive landscapes between the Edom and the Eilat Mountains. This is the ancient road to Mecca which was built at the beginning of the 8th century by. the Egyptian ruler, Mahmud lbn Tulun. The road connected Egypt with the Eilat Heights and Eilat with Aqaba and Mecca.
To the west, you can see the ancient route to Mecca, "Darb el Hajj", that crosses the Sinai desert, descends to the Gulf of Eilat and continues on to Mecca and Medina.

You can watch my 4 min 18 sec HD Video Eilat Ride to Har Shelomo out of my Youtube channel.

You can watch my high resolution photo of Eilat on the Google Earth according to the following coordinates 29° 34' 53.87" N 34° 53' 13.20" E or on my Google Earth Panoramio Solomon Mountain.

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Har Shelomo (670m) is highest peak in Israel's southern desert.
The Hebrew prefix Har means "hill" or "mountain".
Har Shelomo, or as it is called in English Solomon’s Mountain is a billion year old mountain made of Granite.

The geology and landscape in Eilat’s area are varied: igneous and metamorphic rocks, sandstone and limestone; mountains, broad valleys such as the Arava, and seashore on the Gulf of Aqaba.
It will grant you a breathtaking panoramic view overlooking the Eilat Mountains, part of Sinai desert, Eilat bay, the city of Aqaba and the Edom mountain range.

You can watch my 4 min 25 sec HD Video Eilat Har Shelomo out of my Youtube channel.

You can watch my high resolution photo of Eilat on the Google Earth according to the following coordinates 29° 34' 54.68" N 34° 53' 13.12" E or on my Google Earth Panoramio Har Shelomo 1.

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This region and Eilat in particular is well known for birding and bird watching. If you are a pro on this it is recommended to check out on the best season for this, which is early spring and autumn obviously as the migrated birds passing through this region.
I included here few more photos.
Let me also add that this Birding & Research Center in Eilat Wheel chair accessible. (see photo no.4)

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Just by the outskirts of the city near by the Jordan border crossing there is unique birding center. At this places which is a tiny reservation you can see waterbirds, song birds and some birds of prey, depends on the season of course. Try to get as early as possible in the morning for this, I went there early and only afterwards I returned to my hotel for breakfast.

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If you are with a car or planning to rent one, take a short trip to the Hai-Bar Yotvata reservation park. This is very small park with herds of antelopes which many cannot be seen anywhere else in the world. Also there is small zoo with snakes, hyena's, jackal, foxes, caracal and local leopard.

How to get there:
Drive north from Eilat about 20-30 minutes and you can get there.

This is the view of the Eilat bay from Nahal Shlomo, as you can see it is only a short few hours walk to reach this point. This is also a great area with several mountain bike rides possible, you can get a good topographic map on a scale of 1:50,000 with the trails marked.