Andrea Berlin and Richard Redding led our little band of intrepid tourists to see a couple of sites on our drive from Jerusalem to Tiberias where we were to spend the night. By far the most spectacular site was Belle Voir. Andrea drove Richard's car up the many switchbacks to the plateau on which the castle is situated overlooking the Jordan Valley. Here you see Andrea and Richard in one of the castle's remaining doorways.
The castle is well preserved with the outer wall rising obove the moat. Below you see me posing with Miriam and Bonny at the southeast corner of the castle where it rises above the moat near the cliff dropoff.
The picture below shows the situation of the castle perched on the cliff face overlooking the Jordan Valley. Across the valley you see the Golan heights and Jordan and Syria. At the north end of the Valley, Kinneret or the Sea of Galilee is visible in the haze.
Below is a view of the castle and the moat. The excavation of the moat provided building material for the construction of the castle. the dark stone is volcanic basalt and is the natural bedrock. The moat protected the castle from attack from the plateau and would have been crossed by means of a drawbridge.
The wind was blowing strongly on the beautiful sunny June day when we visited, giving us respite from the heat, but it must have been different story and not as pleasant for the crusader knights who had to man this stronghold in winter!
The castle is well preserved with the outer wall rising obove the moat. Below you see me posing with Miriam and Bonny at the southeast corner of the castle where it rises above the moat near the cliff dropoff.
The picture below shows the situation of the castle perched on the cliff face overlooking the Jordan Valley. Across the valley you see the Golan heights and Jordan and Syria. At the north end of the Valley, Kinneret or the Sea of Galilee is visible in the haze.
Below is a view of the castle and the moat. The excavation of the moat provided building material for the construction of the castle. the dark stone is volcanic basalt and is the natural bedrock. The moat protected the castle from attack from the plateau and would have been crossed by means of a drawbridge. 
The wind was blowing strongly on the beautiful sunny June day when we visited, giving us respite from the heat, but it must have been different story and not as pleasant for the crusader knights who had to man this stronghold in winter!
No comments:
Post a Comment