Today was Makhtesh HaGadol. It is a geological erosional landform of Israel's Negev desert. One of five makhteshim in Israel, and seven in the world, it is the second largest, being exceptional in that it is drained by two rivers, the Nahal Ramon and Nahal Ardon. At the time of naming, Makhtesh Ramon (the largest makhtesh) was unchartered and so this was thought to be the largest.
Almost everyone we spoke to about the hardest day on the trail mentioned today instantly. This is known in Hebrew as the "karbolet", literally "cock's comb" but probably better translated as a knife's edge. For an hour or two we walked on a fairly sharp slant on the edge of the crater.
However, for all the hype that had been building for it, the actually walk was quite pleasant and not all that hard. It was incredibly beautiful though. We managed to run into a group of Israelis along the way who had just finished the army, and slept alongside them at a wonderful campsite in the middle of the desert, where we shared food and stories until the wee hours.
-Jeremy
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