Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
267 km from Sīlat az̧ Z̧ahr to Sīlat az̧ Z̧ahr, about 4 h 37 of riding. On the way it passes Tel Megiddo, Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel:, House of ‘Abbúd and back through Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel:. It crosses from Palestinian Territories into Israel - carry ID and check the toll rules. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Sebastia
Sebastia, Sabastiya in Arabic, is a Palestinian village on a hill north-west of Nablus, in the northern West Bank, surrounded by olive groves and terraced hillsides. It stands on the site of Samaria, the capital of the northern Kingdom of Israel in the ninth and eighth centuries BC, later rebuilt by Herod the Great, who named it Sebaste in honour of the Emperor Augustus. The ruins on the hilltop above the village span a thousand years of history.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sebastia is where the day begins. Next is Tel Megiddo.
2. Tel Megiddo
From the top of Tel Megiddo, the whole of the Jezreel Valley spreads out below you, a green and gold checkerboard of fields stretching towards Mount Tabor and the hills of Galilee. You can see at once why so many armies fought here. The mound guarded the narrow pass where the ancient coastal road, the Via Maris, crossed from the Mediterranean plain into the valley, and anyone who held it controlled one of the great trade and military routes of the ancient world.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Tel Megiddo comes up about 51 km into the recorded legs. Next is Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel:.
3. Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel:
In the caves of Nahal Me'arot, on the western slope of Mount Carmel near the coast south of Haifa, people lived on and off for half a million years, and both Neanderthals and early modern humans left their bones here. The four caves, Tabun, Jamal, el-Wad and Skhul, contain one of the longest records of human evolution anywhere, and they were listed as a World Heritage Site in 2012. Tabun alone has layers spanning hundreds of thousands of years. The Natufian culture, among the first people to settle in villages before farming, also left traces in el-Wad.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 91 km into the recorded legs you reach Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel:. Next is House of ‘Abbúd.
4. House of ‘Abbúd
Acre sits at the northern tip of Haifa Bay, on a small peninsula that has been a port since the Bronze Age, and the House of Abbud is one of the Ottoman-era buildings of its old town, in a maze of stone lanes about a kilometre from the walls.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sebastia closes the day.
Leg by leg
Sebastia to Tel Megiddo
Sebastia → Tel Megiddo is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Tel Megiddo to Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel:
Tel Megiddo → Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: is 40 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: to House of ‘Abbúd
Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: → House of ‘Abbúd is 42 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
House of ‘Abbúd to back through Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel:
House of ‘Abbúd → back through Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: is 43 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: to back through Tel Megiddo
back through Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: → back through Tel Megiddo is 40 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Tel Megiddo to Sebastia
back through Tel Megiddo → Sebastia is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.