The incredible Nimrod Fortress
Nimrod Castle is not any old boring castle. It is one of the largest and most impressive castles in the Middle East, and its topography, walls and 21 towers made it almost impregnable. Its long narrow structure fits snugly between the important Wadi Nakeb to its south and Wadi Govta to the north. The dongon occupies the top quarter of the fortress and was the first section to be built. The views from here are phenomenal.
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Directions: Enter “Nimrod” into Waze and click on “Nimrod Fortress National Park”. There is a large parking lot just before the main gate of the fortress. A hut sells snacks and hot and cold drinks. There is no picnic area.
Admission: This is a site of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority. It is open in the summer from 8.00 am to 5.00 pm Sunday to Thursday and on Saturday, and on Friday and holiday eves from 8.00 am to 4.00 pm. In the winter it closes 1 hour earlier. Entrance to the park is up to 1 hour before closing time. There is an admission fee. Allow at least 2 hours for viewing this site. There is a brochure available in English. The park phone number is 04-694 9277. This is their website.
Difficulty: The fortress is on an incline and there is quite a lot of step-climbing. Exploring some of the towers may also involve steps.
Public transport: There is an infrequent bus from Kiryat Shemona to אנדרטת סיירת אגוז. From here it is a 1.9 Km/23-minute walk to the fortress.
EXPLORING THE CASTLE
The fortress is large and a bit complicated. However, if you follow the green arrows and the brochure you should not get lost.
The fortress is entered from the Northwestern Tower and Gate (#1 in the brochure) adjacent to the Parking Lot. This tower was constructed by the Ayyubids, although expanded by the Mamlukes. They also added two further stories and made an opening in the ground floor for a cistern.
The green arrows will lead you from the tower into the courtyard where you can view Baybars’ Inscription, which dates from 1275 CE.
Baybars was the commander of the Mameluke forces and self-appointed Sultan. His symbol was a lion sculpted in stone, as shown here.
Now head to the Southwestern Tower (#5) and climb to its roof. From here there is a wonderful view over Wadi Nakeb. There is also a recording, which can be heard in English, about the view and the significance of the places you are viewing.
Walk towards the keep at the far end of the fortress by following the green arrows. You will pass a reservoir, which was fed by rainwater. Also, a public fountain by its side fed from the reservoir.
The reservoir
The fountain adjacent to the reservoir.
The dugon or keep was the first section of the fortress to be built by the Ayyubids and was free-standing. In other words, it could continue to be defended even though the rest of the fortress was overrun.
There is a superb view of Mount Hermon, the Golan Heights and the Hula Valley from the dongon/keep.
On your return, turn right some distance after the Moat, but before the Beautiful Tower. This point is indicated by a sign. This path will take you towards the Northern Tower and will simplify your exit to the parking lot.
The Northern Tower (#13) was also built by Baybars. It overlooks Wadi Govta and from its top you can see Mount Hermon and Mount Dov. Descend into the tower. This is also the best way to exit the fortress. The tower is thought to have been used as a prison during the 15th century. There are square holes in the center of the room. Go through the secret passage which ends in an opening in the northern wall. This functioned as a secret exit from the fortress and in the past would have been hidden by a pile of rocks.
The secret exit from the Northern Tower. This will take you to the path to the Parking Lot.
The path along the western wall will lead you back to the parking lot.
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