Walking the Land: A History of Israeli Hiking Trails (Perspectives on Israel Studies)

Israel maintains one of the world's most extensive and developed hiking trail systems. Millions of people use these trails annually for holiday recreation, school trips, and leisure hiking. Walking the Land provides the first scholarly study of this system. The trail network spans over ten thousand kilometers across Israeli-controlled territory, marked with hundreds of thousands of colored blazes. It extends from the country's borders to its urban centers. The Israel National Trail, stretching one thousand kilometers, runs north to south across the country. Hiking trails and their distinctive three-striped blazes are prominent in Israeli culture, appearing in news coverage, radio and television programming, bestselling novels, government discussions, and national security speeches. Despite this cultural presence, the trail system remains largely unknown to foreign tourists and has received minimal scholarly attention. This book examines the significance of Israel's hiking trails to the country's history, national identity, and conservation efforts.