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Agamon Hula

An enjoyable family activity is to view migratory and resident birds, ducks and other wildlife at Agamon Hula in the Hula Valley. About 500 million birds pass over Israel each year and hundreds of thousands stop off at this lake. Bird-watching seasons are from October to November and from March to April (but check on conditions via the press). There is also much to see during other months of the year.

Because of its considerable wildlife, there has been continuous human habitation in the Hula Valley from early prehistoric times. The tribe of Dan settled in its northern section sometime after the Israelite conquest of Canaan and controlled the Hula Valley for about 400 years. This ended when the army of the Assyrian Tiglash Pilezer III exiled its inhabitants in about 740 BCE.

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VISITING THIS SITE: 

TimeSeveral hours.

Direction: Enter “Agamon HaHulah” into Waze.

Facilities: This park is run by the JNF. There is a snack and gift shop in the Visitor Center by the entrance to the park. Buying a small booklet in color and in English or Hebrew on “The Brds of Israel” at the gift shop can make viewing and identifying the birds and ducks a fun family activity. The only restrooms are in the Visitor Center. Hours for the entire week, including Friday, Saturday and holidays, are 9.00 am to 5.00 pm, with the last admission being at 4.00 pm. Their phone number is 04 681 7137. This is their website. 

Public transport: There is no close public transport.

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Overlooking the synagogue from the Short Trail.

Draining Lake Hula - almost an ecological disaster

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Draining Lake Hula - almost an ecological disaster

 

The Hula Valley is located in a northern part of the Jordan Rift Valley. The steep slopes on either side, with the Golan Heights to the east and the mountains of the Galilee to the west, testify to the thousands of meters of land subsistence that occurred about a million years ago when two tectonic plates, the Arabian Plate and the African Plate, moved apart.

  

The Jordan River has three tributaries - the Dan, Hizbani and Banias, and they meet in the center of the Hula Valley to form the Jordan River. However, hills that formed within the rift valley at the southern edge of the Hula Valley from volcanic larva flowing from the Golan Heights, impeded drainage of the Jordan River because of its hard basalt rock. Theobstructed flow of the river, as well as the many springs at the sides of the rift valley and streams from the Golan Heights and Galilee led to the formation of a lake, Lake Hula, and north of this a swampy wetland.

 

Sometime in the past, this area became a breeding ground for malaria-bearing mosquitos. Already by the 1930s, plans were drawn up to drain the lake, eliminate the malaria and convert the land into fertile agriculture land. This was eventually carried out by the Jewish National Fund (JNF) between 1951 to 1958. The outlet for the Jordan River was enlarged in the direction of Lake Kinneret, and the Jordan River was diverted into two drainage canals in the area of the swamp north of the lake. This drainage project led to the creation of 60,000 dunam of agricultural land and was considered a major success. 

 

However, within a few years of its completion major problems became apparent. As the level of the groundwater fell, air penetrated into the dried peat in the southern and middle parts of the valley. Underground caverns were created and the underground peat started burning uncontrollably. The dried-up peat turned into black dust, and this led to subsistence of the ground, in some places by about 3 meters. Phosphates and nitrates from the microbial decomposition of the peat began draining into Lake Kinneret and polluting the lake. The project had inadvertently created an ecological disaster.

 

The solution decided upon was to raise the water table level by means of canals so as to slow down the decomposition and subsidence processes from the peat. Part of the Hula Valley was flooded to create a shallow lake called Lake Agamon (which you are now visiting). This was not in the area of the former Hula Lake (which in any case had dried up), but in an area of peat erosion unsuitable for agriculture. Pumping stations were constructed to prevent water overflow from peat-rich land going straight into the Jordan River and this water was diverted into Lake Agamon. Green pastures for animals such as water buffalo to graze in were also planted around the lake.

 

This latest project has been a success in creating a site for tourism, saving agricultural land and preventing pollution of Lake Kinneret. It has also attracted large flocks of migratory birds traveling between Europe and Asia and Africa because of the rich food resources in the lake.

Viewing the lake and its surroundings:

The Botanical Garden demonstrates the common types of vegetation found around the lake and is definitely worth visiting. There are also viewing stations around the lake, each of which presents interesting information. They are usually manned by an expert who is available to answer questions.

The following can be rented at the Visitor Center: golf carts (for 4 to 6 people), bicycles, cycle carts, and safari wagons. There is also an effortless bird train.

 

It is possible to walk around the lake. The total distance from the entrance is almost 11 Km and it takes about 3½ hours. Alternatively, consider a shortened walk to the first viewing station, the Crane Observatory, and then walk back. From the Botanical Gardens take the path on the left. (This in the opposite direction to the flow of vehicles, but pedestrians have their own designated path in this section).

Links to the HOME PAGE and best family activities, hikes and historic sites in the GOLAN, EASTERN GALILEE, UPPER GALILEE, LOWER GALILEE, JORDAN VALLEY & LAKE KINNERET, the SHEFELAH, TEL AVIV-YAFFO and surroundings, NORTH of TEL AVIV, and SOUTH of TEL AVIV.

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