Eshkol National Park (HaBsor Park)
Eshkol National Park is in the northwestern Negev not far from the Gaza Strip and is a delightful spring-fed and man-made oasis with natural, shallow water pools that are wonderful for children to splash in and cool down, and green lawns even in the summer with shaded picnic spaces. There are also pleasant cycling/walking paths around the park. The park is adjoining the Bsor Stream with its lush vegetation.
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Directions: Enter “Eshkol National Park” into Waze and click on “Eshkol National Park, Yamit Street, Ein HaBesor.”
Admission: This is a site of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority. It is open Sunday to Thursday and Saturday 8.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m., and Friday and holiday eves 8.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. The park closes an hour earlier in the winter. Camping is available. Admission is 24 NIS for adults, 10 NIS for children and 12 NIS for seniors. Their phone number is 08 998-5110. This is their website:
Public transport: Enter “Eshkol National Park” into Moovit. There are buses from Ofakim and Be’ersheva. The closest bus stop is a 1-km/12-minute walk.
The water emerges from the ground at several locations and is led to a series of pools before discharging into the Besor Stream. The water is slightly warm at 21 degrees C and slightly saline.
One can walk along the periphery of the park on the cycle paths, with their many palm trees. It is about a 2.6 km walk and takes about an hour.
Not surprisingly, because of its spring, this has been an area of habitation since ancient times. The highest point in the park is an observation area, from which one can see the expanse of the western Negev. An elaborate mosaic was discovered here during the First World War from the floor of a church.
On a hill close to the spring is the HaBsor Spring archeological site, and there are some Egyptian ruins to see. First here was a Canaanite village, after that an Egyptian way-station, and then a Canaanite village again. Eventually the place was abandoned, but was again re-settled in the Hellenistic period (2nd century BC). After that it became a way-station or a farm.
The British Army laid a railroad track in the Sinai, the construction of which advanced as its troops did, until it reached the Besor Springs. After World War I, a railroad bridge for the Rafah-Beersheba line was built near the springs. One can see in the park a restoration of part of the bridge and a replica of a train car from this period.
Outside the park is a 10 km/2½-3 -hour circular trail that starts at Eshkol Park and goes along Nahal Bsor to Tel el-Fara.
From the springs in Park Eshkol to the Mediterranean Sea
The Besor Stream, known in Arabic as Wadi Shellal, starts at Mount Boker, near Sde Boker, and is the largest stream in the northern Negev. It is joined by several tributaries, including Be’ersheva Stream, and it flows into the Gaza Strip and then into the Mediterranean Sea. Its biggest tributary is Nahal Gerar. Wadi Gaz divides the northern and southern parts of the Gaza Strip and its major tributary is the Besor Stream.
HaBesor Spring archeological site is on a small hill and can be viewed.
Part of a bridge that heads towards Nahal HaBesor.
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