Hiking routes in the lower canyon
It's no coincidence that this stream draws hikers from all over Israel. The lower canyon of the stream, where its bed cuts through the Syrian-African Rift escarpment on its way to the Dead Sea, is one of the most beautiful canyons in the country and the entire region! We know of no other canyon in Israel, Lebanon, Sinai or Jordan where a stream cuts down through so many waterfalls and pools over such a short horizontal distance. This makes Nahal Rahaf the most hiked of the desert streams that require rappelling, and has earned it an international reputation.
The lower part of the stream drops over about ten particularly impressive waterfalls, up to 30 meters high, with huge water pools between them. Most of these pools are deep and shaded, so they hold flood water for many months after the rains and keep it clear long after the stream has flowed.
The stream can be divided into two hiking routes: you can hike the entire lower canyon or only its lower part.
The long route (the full upper canyon)
This section is about 5 km long and includes about 10 waterfalls to rappel or descend using iron rungs.
We start by climbing the green-marked "Ma'ale Rahaf" trail and stay on the green markings until we meet the black trail, followed by the blue one. We continue climbing for up to an hour onto the desert plateau, overcoming the last rock step of the rift escarpment, until we meet the blue trail. At this junction we're rewarded with a unique view: the whole desert plateau spread out before us. We can see where the stream begins, the city of Arad to the west and a series of major ridges stretching across the plateau – Kana'im Ridge, Mount Kana'im, Kidod Ridge, Mount Menahem and Mount Ye'elim. This sudden view of the desert plateau, revealed to hikers who take on the formidable escarpment, is truly "worth the hard climb". A desert breeze accompanies us as we continue a few hundred meters along the blue trail on the plateau, until we meet a black trail where we turn right (north) to cross the bed of Nahal Rahaf.
At the crossing point the stream is a shallow, wide channel filled with sediment and pebbles. We begin descending it eastward and the landscape changes immediately: a low waterfall blocks the way down and high cliffs rise along its banks – a sign that we have reached the upper part of the stream.
In this part of the stream we descend a series of five special waterfalls. Some have water pools at their base, while others are filled with flood sediment that has filled the pools in this section. This part also includes a high waterfall – 29 meters, the highest in the upper part of the canyon. Right after it the stream drops over another 7-meter waterfall, and at the end of the pool at its base (in the right season) we meet the trail markings showing that we've reached the middle of the lower canyon and the blue trail, which allows an emergency exit from the stream or a continued descent through its lower part.
From here we continue the descent as described in the lower route.
The short route (half of the upper canyon)
This section is about 3 km long, with 4 waterfalls that we rappel down using ropes and 2 more that we descend using iron rungs installed and regularly maintained by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, which manages the stream.
The climb to this section takes less than half an hour and is relatively easy. This route also begins on the green-marked "Ma'ale Rahaf" footpath. Soon the trail meets a narrow black trail that descends to the end of the route – the bottom of the last waterfall. We continue a short distance up the green trail until it meets another footpath marked in blue. This trail leads us gently to the streambed in the middle of the lower canyon. Here the stream runs through a true canyon whose walls shade its center, making the hike pleasant and comfortable. From here we begin descending the stream through an impressive series of waterfalls. We descend the first one on its left using iron rungs, followed by a beautiful series of waterfalls under 30 meters high, with huge water pools between them all year round – some so long that they must be crossed by actual swimming. The section ends with an overhanging vertical waterfall where we rappel about 30 meters through the air to its base, where a large pool forms after rainy days.
Wildlife in Nahal Rahaf
Nahal Rahaf lies in an area with no springs or flowing streams; the nearest spring to the north is Ein Namer in Nahal Tze'elim, and to the south, Ein Bokek. This makes the stream the most significant water source in the area, as some of its pools are full all year round.
The water draws many animals and turns the streambed into a hub of life in the arid desert. Large herds of ibex visit the stream every day and you may meet them on the hike. These ibex are not used to people and will run away if approached. Various reptiles also live in the area, including agamas, snakes and more.
Many arthropods and beautiful butterflies rest on the rocks of the ravine, but the most special animals here are actually the birds! In the shade of the canyon's towering walls they find a warm home where they can build comfortable nests for their chicks, close to water and other life that makes finding food easier. The best known of these is a black songbird with orange-brown wing patches – Tristram's starling. A large flock of these birds nests along the banks and feeds on the common Ochradenus shrub in the stream. Because many hikers visit, these birds have become used to people and are not afraid of them. Some hikers take advantage of this to feed them food brought from home, but this is not recommended, is forbidden and can harm the birds.
Yet the songbirds are not the rarest birds in this desert, or in Nahal Rahaf in particular: a pair of raptors sometimes seen high above the lower canyon indicates significant nesting along its banks. This is the Egyptian vulture, a bird of prey whose coloring is reminiscent of a stork. Its body is short and white, with black underparts and wingtips. It is tiny compared to the other vultures and feeds on carcass scraps and bones, small animals and eggs. This pair of vultures is seen quite often during hikes in the stream.
Plant life in Nahal Rahaf
Because of the uniform rock along the streambed, there is hardly any significant vegetation in the section with the waterfalls and pools, so encounters with plants during the hike are limited. Above the upper waterfalls and at the mouth of the stream below the last waterfall you can find common desert plants and trees. Along Ma'ale Rahaf, various desert flowers bloom in season.
On the banks and higher slopes you can find desert mesembryanthemum, bushy bean-caper, Ochradenus and other plants. From the top of the last waterfall you can see a large group of acacias – umbrella thorn and twisted acacia – in the lower part of the stream.
