Amongst the many interests of the Palestinian youth a segment of them find it fun to venture out and explore their dispossessed homeland despite the risks and obstacles they face. On a Facebook page called “Horizon” Alaa al-Hamoz launched a weekly exploratory tours project that attracts dozens of adventurous and biking enthusiasts.
The 26-year-old Hamoz from the northern West Bank city of Nablus is working as a community tourist guide and he is currently waiting for official license from the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities for his activities.
Hamoz told the Palestinian Information Center that the tours he organizes usually attract a variety of groups from every place in Palestine who are keen to live the experience of roaming the mountainous and Palestinian villages. Hamoz is in charge of planning the tracks for every tour before announcing it where he bikes around in a preliminary tour to plan the tracks and stations that the group will pass by.
“I set the track draw the routes and then experiment them and finally I choose the best sections” he said. “Through our tours we aim to introduce the Palestinian lands and its historical sites and scenery through paths that go through many locations that combine the beauty of nature with adventure fun and knowledge.”
Because of the special conditions in the West Bank due to the occupation colonies and barriers the initial exploration carried out by the Hamoz has a special necessity; to avoid any risks that may threaten participants in the tour so he takes this into account when drawing the path.
Fun exploration
With the spread of exploratory tours in the West Bank in recent years focusing on walking the “Horizon” tours use cycling. “We chose the bike because it is our hobby in the first place and a mean that takes us to many places that are difficult to reach in any other way in one day” says Hamoz. He emphasized that cycling is fun and has significant benefits to the health and mood of the bikers. However the tours are not limited to cycling; there are trips on foot and camping for days.
In average 20 participants engage in the walking trips while the average is slightly higher in the cycling routes. The West Bank with all its terrain is a field for “Horizon” tours. The route includes mountainous areas and paved streets. During the 10-hour tour participants are keen to enjoy the beauty of nature and archeology and live the adventure; they find amusement in listening to stories that explain where they are going.
Some also invest their time in the tour by taking pictures of the areas they are passing through publish them on their personal pages so as to introduce others to these places and encourage them to participate in upcoming tours.
Because of the ruggedness of the mountain tracks the participant must have enough experience to drive the bike and some paths require people with advanced skills but Hamoz is always keen on picking up paths that are suitable for everyone to engage everyone who wants to participate in the tours. “We provide participants with all possible details in the registration form of each track” he says.
Tourists are subject to subscription fees that vary from one track to another depending on the location of the route and transportation costs in addition to the rental costs of special mountain bikes and helmets and extended services. Hamoz tours provide first aid kits and bicycle maintenance equipment for the participants.
New ideas
Hamoz is preparing to launch a long 14-day solo tour in Jordan to explore 800 kilometers of trails on his bicycle which forced him to freeze his local tours and plans until his return. He carries with him many ideas and plans to develop his exploratory tours. These include preparing the bicycles to carry tools for camping and all that is needed for the explorer. Hamoz makes a great effort to draw each new path which requires a great effort so that the path is safe and spared from any risks. The process of exploring new paths surely requires a lot of time and money.
Hamoz believes that the nature of the dire situation in Palestine deprives amateur explorers from practicing their hobby in the same manner practiced by others in the rest of the world. “We only have access to less than 10 percent of the beauty and the wild paths of Palestine so we are confined to a narrow space but we are trying our best to bring life back to our tours” he said. Hamoz is optimistic about the increasing interest in exploratory tours amongst Palestinians in recent years describing it as excellent in the past six years and particularly in the last year.
