Ein Tamarim

Explanation about the spring: The spring issues for most of the year, from a cistern (niche) whose walls are lined with stone. The cistern is part of an ancient irrigation system, probably from the Byzantine period. The spring's waters currently flow through a short channel that carries the water to a storage pool. At the foot of the spring, the JNF (Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael) prepared a garden with a wide lawn intended to prevent soil erosion toward the storage pool. Photo by architect Martiarna. "History about the area": The natural conditions of the Ayalon Valley made it, already in ancient times, a highly desired area. This is because the fertile soils, which benefited from an abundance of water that drained into the valley, were cultivated already from the earliest days of history, and also because within the valley there is a strategic road junction that oversees routes rising from the Shefela (Lowlands) and from the coastal plain to Jerusalem and Beit Horon. Many battles were fought over control of the valley. One of the best-known is the war of Joshua against the kings of the Canaanites, which ended with the famous proclamation: "Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and moon, stand still over the Valley of Aijalon" (Joshua 10:12). In the Ayalon Valley, severe battles also took place between the Hasmoneans and the Seleucids in the second century BCE. In the first stage of the conquest of the land by the Arabs, in the seventh century CE, the valley served as a center for their forces. The Crusaders also valued the Ayalon Valley as a strategic asset and established at Latrun an important fortress—La Touronne de la Blaye. In the War of Independence, bloody battles took place here between IDF forces and the Jordanian Legion army. The park entrance fee: The entry to the park is not subject to payment. More information: Opening of the gates of Ayalon Canada Park at 05:30 in the morning; closing of the gates every evening at 19:00. Vehicle entry will not be permitted during the hours when the park is closed by its gates. Pedestrian entry is possible at all hours of the day in the Tamarim Parking Lot and the Honged facilities (pond). The following facilities have been made accessible: a viewpoint over the lake, a bench, and an organized walking path.