Tour: Israel National Trail, Section 52 – From the Mazor Mausoleum to Ben Shemen

Israel National Trail, Section 52 – From Mazor Mausoleum to Ben Shemen

In this section of the Israel National Trail, we descend southward parallel to Highway 6, passing through several interesting wooded areas. We will begin at the Mazor Mausoleum, which we already explored in the previous section, and walk directly into Cola Forest and the Giv'at Ko'ah Memorial. We will cross the road leading to Beit Aryeh while remaining quite close to the Green Line and seeing Samaria nearby to the east. We will cross through a passage under Highway 6 and reach the Hevel Modi'in Industrial Zone, near Shoham. We will climb into Shoham Forest and visit Horbat Tinshemet and the magnificent remains of the Byzantine church. We will understand why the ruin is included on the Madaba Map, and from there continue to cross Highway 6 for a second time. We will meander through the hills until reaching Tel Hadid. There, we will look out over the Coastal Plain and the Shephelah and understand how important the site was during the War of Independence. We will continue walking for about another half hour and reach the parking area at Mitzpe Modi'in, concluding this nearby section.

Duration: One day – 14 km
Difficulty: Moderate, suitable for experienced hikers
Features: Water crossings, fortresses
Area: Modi'in
Starting point: Mazor Mausoleum
End point: Ben Shemen
Price: 250 NIS per person per day (including a shuttle back to the vehicles)