Israel travels

A sculptured route through the lands where Samson drew his strength

Rich in history and in art, the President’s Forest overlooks some of the most beautiful vistas in Israel

'Seed of hope,' in the eye of the President's Forest (photo credit: Shmuel Baram)
'Seed of hope,' in the eye of the President's Forest (photo credit: Shmuel Baram)

One day well over 3,000 years ago, an Israelite woman working in the fields near her home in Tzor’a was visited by an angel. “You are… childless,” said the angel, “but you are going to conceive and have a son… The boy is to be set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines.” And, indeed, the woman gave birth to a strapping baby boy that his parents named Samson.

A visit to Samson’s home town, as well as picnic sites, antiquities, Crusader ruins and observation points overlooking some of the most beautiful vistas in the country, are all found in President’s Forest, dedicated to the memory of Israel’s first president, Dr. Chaim Weizmann.

The Jewish National Fund began planting and developing the forest half a century ago; several decades later Israeli artists were invited to line the road with statues that blended with the environment. In the 1990’s, when artists from the former Soviet Union immigrated to Israel, a number of them used their talents to produce additional exciting creations.

The artists' handiwork is everywhere in the President's Forest  (photo credit: Shmuel Bar-Am)
The artists’ handiwork is everywhere in the President’s Forest (photo credit: Shmuel Bar-Am)

The artists’ handiwork is visible everywhere along the Sculpture Road (Derech Hapesalim in Hebrew), a route that runs through the entire length of the forest. Visitors are invited to get out of their cars and explore the sculptures – and to take little jaunts deeper into the forest, where the air is filled with the sweet scent of trees and plants and the chirping of little birdies.

Most of the trees in President’s Forest are terebinth, pine or carob, planted soon after the establishment of the state in order to provide employment for new immigrants.

Carob trees are evergreen and are the only trees in the region that flower in October.
The carob tree’s nutritious fruit ripens in late summer. It is full of protein, contains a natural sugar, and is high in vitamins and minerals. While carob fruit is used in the production of honey, and as a thickening agent for salad dressings, it is best known for the flour that is a healthy substitute for chocolate.

According to tradition, during the 12 years that Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohai and his son hid from the Romans early in the first millennia, they subsisted solely on carobs. If there are any of these hard, brown, sword-shaped pods left on their branches in early fall, you can pick them and immediately begin chewing. Don’t forget to spit out the seeds.

One of my favorite sculptures is “Wandering through the Land.” An ingenious combination of colored mosaics and local stone, it boasts blue “rivers” that spill onto nearby rocks. “Folds in Time,” another favorite, is described by the artist as a forest expression of architectural images common to the Land of Israel.

Past the statue and up a hill there is a lovely overlook with a good view of Tel Tzuba, populated during the Second Temple period and later on by the Crusaders. You can distinguish the tel from the natural hills on all sides because it has a relatively flat top, while a number of brown patches represent thousands of years of inorganic waste that prevent the growth of foliage.

Along the route, 12 Menorahs stud a tall creation called “Force”. Further on, past a statue with no name (maybe Babar the Elephant, or a lion in profile?), another overlook provides a stunning view of the Judean Hills.

Lush sabra cacti and red-fruited pomegranate trees near Mission Member (which looks ready to visit the moon – or like it came from there…) lead to the Tzor’a Overlook, 336 meters above sea level and shaped like a raft. A hostile Arab village called Tzar’a, on this hill, was captured by the Palmach in 1948. The action was part of Operation Danny, whose objective was to lift the siege of Jerusalem and remove a very real Arab threat to Tel Aviv. Afterwards it became the temporary headquarters for the Palmach Har-El Brigade and at the end of 1948 this is where the first members of Kibbutz Tzor’a established a settlement (later, they moved into the Sorek Valley two kilometers further south).

During the Israelite period, the tribe of Dan was assigned to the fertile plains just beneath the overlook and stretching to the Mediterranean Sea. Unfortunately for the Israelites, there were already Philistines living there. And they were unbeatable – which left the Jews stuck in the hills.

They did, however, have fields in the lush plain, and it is probably in the fertile vineyards that would have been below you that Samson’s mother was touched by an angel. According to the Book of Judges “. . . the spirit of the Lord began to stir him [Samson] while he was in the camp of Dan between Tzor’a and Eshtaol”. It was in this area that Samson fought – alone – for the Israelites, here that he killed a lion with his bare hands, and went back to lick sweet honey from its carcass. Not far from here Samson, furious that his Philistine wife was given to another man, caught “300 foxes and tied them tail to tail in pairs. He then fastened a torch to every pair of tails, lit the torches and let the foxes loose in the standing grain of the Philistines. He burned up . . . the vineyards and olive groves.”

Not far away, there is a path up Tel Tzor’a – the Israelite city and Samson’s birthplace. At the top a plethora of water cisterns, oil presses and wine presses indicate that wine and oil production were as crucial to the income of ancient Tzor’a as they are today.

Samson's Tomb... maybe (photo credit: Shmuel Bar-Am)
Samson’s Tomb… maybe (photo credit: Shmuel Bar-Am)

A bright blue tomb stands on top of the hill as well. According to the inscription, this is where Samson and his dad Manoah are buried, but as the paint is barely dry I have my doubts. Indeed, it is only within the past few decades that someone identified this spot as Samson’s burial site – and quite illogically, too, for here stood an Israelite city and Jews were buried outside the town boundary. Nevertheless, believers have set up a stand containing holy books, and worshippers pray here as they would at any other holy site.

Around the tel, an interesting sculpture features a large blue “eye” that reflects the color of the tomb high above and is called Seed of Hope. Further along the route, a sculpture can easily be identified as a “Window to Nature.”

Terrific views from the President's Forest (photo credit: Shmuel Bar-Am)
Terrific views from the President’s Forest (photo credit: Shmuel Bar-Am)

Two stunning viewpoints near the end of the route are accessible from a path along the Tzor’a Ridge. They offer stupendous panoramas of the velvety green Sorek Valley. It was here that Samson met Delilah, who would bring about his downfall by learning the secret of his strength – his great mane of hair. After shaving his head he became a weak and pathetic creature, whose eyes were gouged out by her Philistine friends. But the hair grew back, and after praying to the Lord he was able to get revenge on them all. While they were assembled in their pagan temple he pulled down the pillars, and the building collapsed – on all 3,000 of the assembled.

Below, Nahal Sorek opens up towards the sea. Imagine standing here as the sun sets – a heavenly sight indeed.

Want to follow this route? You will find the entrance off Road 44 between the Shimshon (Samson) and Nachshon Junctions. Or find more specific directions in my book: Israel Travels from Metulla to Eilat. 

Aviva Bar-Am is the author of seven guides to Israel. Shmuel Bar-Am is a private tour guide.

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