Scooterer Stories, Part Sixteen – Around the Sea of Galilee

“Round and around the Sea of Galilee we go”!

Good morning all. Don’t leave anything behind. We ain’t comin’ back to Kare Deshe.

Route decided… lets go.. early start..have packed breakfast..lets go watch sunrise from Syrian plateau ?? On the way I will let you walk for a few minutes on the newly made pavement, passed the pink Greek Church

and I’ll pick you up at Capernaum gate

Gamla will not be open so early but from a high view we watch the sunrise in the east.. and in the west we see the colors sunrays on the cliffs inside . Gamla, and if we are lucky we may see some eagles flying..

We will make a quick visit to a special friend at his home on a moshav..I’ll tell you a little about that.

Way back on one of my first trips staying at KD I heard about a “mountain-bike event”, and tried to get some info.. I didn’t manage to get any start-times, routes, finish line and places the bikes would be at. By chance the next morning, on my very early morning scoot, looking for sunrise I saw a small bright green cardboard sign on a pole with a sketch of a bicycle ..that sign slightly reopened my interest in the event.

I learned the event begins and ends at a venue ON one of many beaches on west side at Kinerret..so I followed the sign and soon found a man with a van with a trailer-full of mountain bikes that he rents on the beaches…he was not connected to any event, but did point me to where he thought the cyclists would be.

After some time n scootin’ around and asking several people I still could not get proper information, so I decided I will simply ride around and maybe by fluke I would get to see some of the bikes.

WHAT a weird coincidence ..as I scooted slowly, on the main road, I noticed on my right, several bikes heading down the track and close to me at the side of the road ..behind a fence, they were waiting permission to “cross the road”…

and I noticed a man had stopped the traffic to let the cyclists get to the other side. Not a busy road at that time, so I pulled up next to this fellow and asked him “is this the mountainbike event”? ..he looked at me on my scooter, and his reply was “I know you” !…

what ! you know me ? huh !

We spoke a while and he told me where the event ends with a ride on the water edge

to a beach..some kms. down the road..there was no problem, and I was allowed to follow the cycles, exept there were some big water pipes and concrete drains that I could not cross..easy for the cyclists

..they simply lifted their bike and walked across the pipe. My scooter couldnt get across these pipes so I began the ride back to the road (about 15 minutes) then back to find the end of the event ??..but there are several beaches, and at each beach there were some mountain-bike happenings with barbeques and picnics, and many people, and I could not find him.

A relative of Albert’s, (known to me) had told him casually some years earlier that “one day” Lou will relocate to Israel..and who knows..maybe we will meet.

Another mutual friend visited Albert once and I would say everyone forgot about ..until he stopped me to allow the cycles to cross the road. A couple of his teenage sons were riding bikes and Albert’s job was to see they cross the road safely.

Albert had also seen a picture of me on my scooter in an insert magazine (more than a year earlier).. that is in every Friday Jerusalem Post..and he kept the article which included my fone number.

Eventually we connected and I visited at his home on Givat Yoav..a lovely moshav dealing mainly in dairy, and also has entertainment for visitors

and his taking me around to every interesting spot on the moshav with full explanations.. and nearby places as well.

I have visited several times with scooter, and in rain season in rented car..and when Albert has reason to be in Netanya..we meet..and always talk about that incredible meeting.

So now we have to leave after our quickvisit and head on beautiful scenic road towards the Kinerret, where many places on the beach entice us. Some are simple beaches with trees and benches and tables where people will always be picnicking..and also luxury Kibbutz Hotels that draw visitors from everywhere in the world.

We will take a short walk along the waters edge a while at

and take a cold drink from the kiosk. We will also drink a coffee in luxury, at HA’ON Kibbuts and walk about in the gardens..maybe we will be able to see their ostrich farm.

Then make a quick visit to the date factory/shop at Kinerret kibbuts..to buy dates and honey and other delicacies..(you remember we visited the baptism site the other day?)..this factory shop is just up the road.)

We will take a ride into Tiberias and see some ancient sites at the waterfront and see the movie about “Galilee Experience”, and take a bite at one of the restaurants  in the center of Tiberias.

Then another quick visit, this time to Dona Gracia Hotel but only a quick walk-about coz you aleady know all about that place…(earlier chapter). We will drive past Mayouhas Youth Hostel where I have stayed a few times…no easy parking so we wont visit.

I”ll show you 3 hotel buildings that were abandoned

and other sites as well.. and stop a while at ADI viewpoint to take pics

We then head to Tiberias Illit (upper Tiberias) and find our way into to Switzerland Forest,

a beautiful drive with breathtaking views

and many lovely spots to sit around and picnic..

( no kiosks or stalls here).. and then at south end of this drive, we will find our hostel at Poriya…for a one night stay.

Please feel free to email me louisdrinkingt@013.net

Winecycling

By Jill Russell

Winecycling – Prosser entrepreneur finds treasures “Après Vin”

After the grapes are crushed and the wine is fermented, what’s left is a sloppy goop of grape skins, seeds and bio-waste. But, you know what they say- one man’s trash, is another man’s treasure. Dr. Eric Leber, chemist and Prosser, Washington’s newest wine country entrepreneur, has been taking the bio-waste from local wineries, and turning it into over 50 products made from grape seed oil.

While teaching organic chemistry at Heritage University, Leber has been able to use this little seed to create things like wood stain, ink, even corks. But six years ago after founding his company, Après Vin- French for “after the wine,” his primer focus has been creating the ultimate line of culinary cooking oil.

“In less than two years, the company has gone from a tiny little enterprise, to a larger one, but it still has a long way to grow,” said Leber. “It’s still just beginning, but it’s starting to catch on. Thank God for the internet.”

Everything about the company is infused with the spirit of Washington’s wine country. Almost all of the grape bio-waste comes directly from in-state wineries and the products are produced locally by Prosser’s FruitSmart Company.

Although FruitSmart is an organically certified company, products by Après Vin are not because they are not produced with organic grapes. Leber says organic grapes are difficult to come by, due to shortages of local organic vineyards.

Certified or not, this has not seemed to be a problem for the growing company. The flavor-infused cooking oils have found a strong niche market with the culinary crowds and specialty foods shops. No order is too strange or outlandish for Leber, who says Chef Frank Magaña of Picazo 7 Seventeen restaurant and wine bar in downtown Prosser regularly orders vanilla chardonnay grape seed oil.

The actual production is a huge undertaking. Wine pumice is collected from the wineries, separated, dried, and cold pressed with a European presses. It takes about 3,000 pounds of grapes- enough for 300 gallons of wine, to produce the 75 pounds of dried grape seeds needed to make just one gallon of grape seed oil.

Leber explained although not a winemaker by trade, a passion for the industry has been in his family for over 50 years. In 1956, Leber’s father, Ralph, teamed up with his brother and professors of Washington State University, to create ‘Associated Vintners,’ the first premium winery in the state. Later, his father’s company would become Columbia Winery, which continues to function today in Woodinville, Washington.

In July 2008, Ralph Leber, was inducted into the 2008 Legends of Washington Wine Hall of Fame. This annual function is organized and hosted by Prosser’s Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center.

Leber says by virtue of his father’s activities, he became aware of the industry, and used that knowledge during his time teaching at Heritage University. Upon receiving a grant by the Economic Development Administration, as part of the federal government’s Department of Commerce, Leber and his students began to examine the possibly of recovering value from agricultural waste. The group started with orchards, transitioned to dairy feed lots, and then found themselves at Apex Washington Hill’s Richmond Winery, which at the time was located in the old Dairy gold plant in Sunnyside.

“Pretty quickly, we discovered that there is still a lot of value in the bi-products from winemaking,” said Leber.

Over the next several years, the team successfully concluded that there were over 50 potential commercial uses that can be harvested from the grape bio-waste. Some of the most impressive discoveries include: writing ink, soap, a natural wood and shoe polish, and a chardonnay bio-fuel- which he has kept in a small glass wine bottle for over 6 years.

“It’s still amazing, that after six years, it’s still fresh,” says Leber. “I don’t think that gasoline or diesel fuel would look that good after six years.’

Grape Skin Paper

Besides heating homes and powering cars, there has been numerous health benefits associated with grape seed oil. Varietal grape seed oils are a rich source of healthful polyunsaturated oils, antioxidants, and other photochemical. Leber explained the oil also contains essential fatty acids, such as Linolenic (LNA) and Linoleic (LA) acids, which provide contribute to cellular function and vitality. Additionally, grape seed oil has a particularly high level or heart-healthy polyunsaturated fats and half the saturated fat of olive oil- Rachael Ray, eat your heart out!

Currently, Leber focuses full time on running the business, but has promised that once his business becomes profitable, he will create a scholarship for Heritage University students to continue researching sustainable uses for winery bio-waste. He also stays connected to academia by giving lectures about sustainable winemaking. Meanwhile, he explained the newest classes of innovators have continued the research his former students began years ago. Leber explains it’s been incredible to watch the growth of winemaking in Washington over the past 50 years. Despite a shaky economy, Wine County continues to blossom, keeping Leber knee-deep in bio-waste and challenging him to ponder new uses “Après Vin.”

Après Vin products can be purchased at www.apresvin.com.

Jill Russell is a Journalist/blogger at www.recordbulletin.com. Her blog can be found at: http://readjillsblog.blogspot.com/

Renaming MyPop to POSSS, and recalling Banias

By Louis the Scooterer

Oh well.. I love being a quitter (like when I quit smoking !) but I hate being a “loser” as I am NOW with smokers all around.. and them winning, and by choice I need to leave a place.

Today.. this beautiful beginning-of-summer-morning..first cup of coffee at the square where the smokers were in the millions..even though there was a pleasant breeze.. I left when it became unbearable. I then scooted to coffee at Mypop which I now call POSSS (place of smelly stinking smokers)..as the other millions of smokers come there.

I get the impression that the owners / partners supply free cigarettes ? coz the place has become very popular, and remains a beautiful place. but, when many people are there, they have lost ME.. (who cares..no one gives a damn?)

Anyway this morn I even saw the owners smoking inside the restaurant !!.. thats bad news (for me), and my decision is to reduce my visits at mypop and go ONLY when they open in the morning, and when I can be the first one there.

Surely I will miss seeing the bikini beauties, and other people that I previously exchanged chats with.. but as I watched 3 newcomers sit at the next table 1 meter from me..all 3 began smoking.. then 2 others arrived and sat at another table 3 meters from me and both began smoking.. (and I refuse to take pics of smokers, any more.).. that means that the 5 newcomers were all smoking.. that means 100% newcomers were smoking ?? and while I breathed-in and swollowed their stinky smelly smells..I wondered at which place will I be happy.

I thought about my visit to such a place ..BANIAS.. and I relate here about that visit to that most beautiful place…

There are 2 main roads to the only Ski Site in Israel way up north, on top of Mount Hermon. The more popular route, takes you past the foot of Mt. Hermon where the source of Hermon Stream flows, at a mysterious place called BANIAS. I had visited Banias several times by scooter and in a rented car, and because I knew I couldn’t walk much, I usually stood at the entrance gate to this awesome place, received brochures and maps with walking routes.. and stared in wonderment what was directly in front of me.

The gigantic arched entrances into the mountain caves, waterfalls, running water, ancient workings and remnants of buildings, and knowing that much walking is required. But my old knee wouldnt allow..so I sat on the saddle or in the rentcar for a few minutes, took a picture or two, and then moved along to elsewhere. Well..this is my story about a proper visit, a couple of years later, after receiving a TKR (Total Knee Replacement). Now at this time, I am able to walk some distances, painfree (perhaps with some stiffness), and started doing what I hadn’t done for so many years.

I climbed up steps and walked on broken rocks and on beautiful grass lawns and next to the flowing waters in many areas in this incredible place, walking along the fast flowing very narrow streams and up and down rock steps and on muddy sand over little bridges through narrow tunnels. This was a new experience for a more than 70 year old scooterer..this trip was on my scooter. One of the excellent sites on internet is http://www.jafi.org.il/education/noar/sites/banias.htm. It was marvellous seeing many groups of children visiting this place, as well as many tour buses arriving with tourists from all around the world. There are also places with many tables and benches under trees for picnicking, or taking a rest.

There are several different routes to follow, and I chose what looked like the “easiest and shortest” (purple route). (Not to kid myself)..this was a long and most interesting winding route which comes upon a longtime-disused hydro-electric plant, and cellars and ancient flour mills and other buildings that need time to explore, and I walked crossed a Roman Bridge… and need to know where to make the left-turn at the correct spot…(to follow the purple arrows). I even came across a tiny kiosk run by an old Druze man, and I jumped back in time at least 100 years seeing this spot..and “chatting” with this “picturesque chap”.. and eating what he makes..a thin bread filled with goat cheese, with a cool drink, or his special blend of tea.

The streams flow non stop, and in wonderment I stand at many spots and take my hat off to those who designed these places for hikers and children and even older ones like me. I passed through underground tunnels to archaeological diggings, found plaques with English translations about what stands at a particular spot…and always found a place to sit in the shade.

Later I met with tourists from USA and another group from Nigeria. Many groups of Christians travel in buses with their church leaders and guides..and my take on that is, unfortunately the time they spent at this magic place, is far too short to really explore. I casually joined one of these groups and listened to a well informed guide telling about some of the spots where they stop..take pics..listen to a quick story..and move along.

After taking a coffee at the kiosk, and being very satisfied with my (new knee) achievement..and pleasantly tired..I chatted with tourists and staff, and listened to their stories. I then scooted along a couple of kms..down the road.. to the BANIAS FALLS.. and stood at the viewsite, and with my binoculars I could see many hikers of all ages, climbing up the pathways to eventually arrive at the Roman Bridge (where I was earlier).

I learned that at the spot where I was standing, there are 100 steps to the bottom to see the falls… and my decision was “those 100 steps down and up again” ??.will be for another time…and I waved goodbye to the couple who began the climb down.

Did I mention not to forget camera and wear comfortable walking shoes.. SO..dear reader spend a few minutes (google to Banias) and start planning your visit. Feel free to email me louisdrinkingt@013.net