Yesod Hama’Ala (Hula Lake)

Deep breath and relax. This is countryside, we came here for the national parks and bird watching. The accommodation was really good. A small self contained apartment, so clean and looks newly done out, with our own garden. The host is wonderful, brings cakes and wine and advices on places around. We even got to use her oversized paddling pool. At night the noises are crickets and jackals not cars.

We visited Hula Agamon lake nature reserve, this is a big lake which people circumnavigate in golf buggies. Of course we walked the 11k which isn’t very far, but the park ranger did pull up in his car and check we had enough water, apparently we were half way at that point. As they say, only mad dogs and English men….its only low 30’s. We saw loads and loads of birds. The park ranger in one observatory excitedly showed us a grey heron in her scope, so we told her we see lots at home. We spent a while comparing our local birds with the ones here, with the park ranger showing us different birds, coypu, and catfish. It was a great refreshing day.

The next day was similar, Hula Lake Reserve, much small only 1.5k around it, but of course we walked to get to it, still a mad dog. Here you get buffalo as well as birds. We didn’t see as much but still a good day. I would happily have stopped here longer. The host tells me that there is a nice waterfall just before the Lebanon boarder and some nice walks inthe Golan Heights, we are bordering on no-go zones, but is a wonderful, pretty and quiet place.

Bird seen:Sardinian warbler, White throated kingfisher,common kingfisher, pied kingfisher,squacco heron, little egret, stork, hooded crow, pygmy cormorant,purple heron, grey heron, great white pelican, kestrel, spotted flycatcher, bee eater, crested lark, hoopoe, moorhen, mynah, sparrow,rose-ringed parakeet, spur-winged lapwings.sunbird, laughing dove, common tern, lots of swallows and swift (I must learn these but I find them so hard to tell apart), mallard, cattle egret, great white egret, reed bunting, turtle dove, and lots I have no idea about.