Water Sports on the Kinneret & Nahal Jilabun

"Amazing experience and a lesson in conquering fears!! My family literally conquered our fears by rappelling at Nachal Jiluban. Our family had only been rappelling one time before this and it was quite minimal, but we were looking for adventure so we went for it. Our guide, Lyle, was AMAZING! He was beyond patient and understood how to ease my fear and my 8 year old's fear with excellent instruction, gentle encouragement and "baby steps." After a short walk through gorgeous vegetation and listening to the sounds of nature all around us, we reached the first waterfall. I was hesitant, but Lyle talked me through it and I soon found myself in the water with my 13 year old son and husband. I was sure that my 8 year old daughter would never be willing to rappel, but before I knew it, she was headed down the waterfall. I don't know what Lyle told her, but he worked a miracle. What a life lesson in conquering fears! This first waterfall was a perfect way to get acquainted with the activity before moving on to the 50m waterfall. We hiked for a short while before taking a snack break. While we did bring our own snacks, Lyle surprised us with brewed Turkish coffee and some tea for us, as well as offering us fresh fruit. Soon we made it to the second waterfall which is about 50m high. I really thought I wouldn't go down this waterfall. This is where Lyle's encouragement to take "baby steps" came in and soon I was rappelling down, down, down. My 8 year old did not choose to rappel this time and my husband and I agreed that this waterfall may have been a bit too much for her had she tried it. I think a child of at least 10 years old is best for this high of a waterfall. Lyle captured photos of us from the top while we descended, which allowed us to focus on getting down instead of capturing the moment. Onlookers who were enjoying a picnic at the larger waterfall cheered us on. It felt great to come down and hear all that support. I am so grateful for this experience. While I'm not sure I really enjoy rappelling enough to do this kind of extreme adventure again, showing my children that we can do hard things made it all worth it. Tips and recommendations: 1. Do know that although the hiking portion is short, it is steep and quite slippery on the rocks once your shoes are wet. We live in Colorado and hike a lot in all kinds of mountain environments. This hike reminded me of the hikes we do back home. 2. Wear backpacks that are comfortable for hiking with a lot of water, snacks and rappelling gear attached. We were grateful that we brought our hiking backpacks with us. We each took two 1.5 liter bottles of water, which was plenty. 3. We did not use a dry bag, but did double and triple Ziploc bag almost every snack and item we brought. It worked perfectly. 4. Snacks: since we wanted easy, compact snacks, we brought hard boiled eggs, protein bars, lots of dried fruit and trail mix. It was more than enough. 5. Have a comfortable rappeller go down first so that they can take videos and pictures of the rest of the group as you descend. They may be waiting a while for the next person to go if anyone is hesitant like me and my daughter. 6. Know that rappelling is optional - there is always a way up and own via hiking!! Date of experience: June 2023"

"Beautiful Way to Experience Nature We did the Nachal Jilabun rappelling adventure with Israel Extreme. They recommended this tour after River conditions meant we had to change our rafting plans, and it was a great suggestion!! Our guide Noam was very knowledgeable and we felt extremely safe the entire time, for a pretty high adventure activity. The tour itself is a great one - amazing views and the wet suits made swimming in the ice spring water absolutely pleasant. Date of experience: March 2023"

"Awesome Experience My teen sons and I did the Gilabun waterfalls rappelling. It was amazing! The guides were professional, friendly and at the same time let you get on with the rappelling with trust and little interference. There is a beautiful 15 minute hike between falls and then a 15 minute hike up hill to get back to the parking lot. Highly recommended!!! Date of experience: March 2023"

"We had a trip at the Jilabun with Israel Extreme Our guide yonatan was such an amazing young guy. He was patient with our children and so nice to everyone. The people at the office provided a professional service and helped us chose the exact trip for us. Thank you so much for the great trip! Written 4 October 2023"

"We had an amazing trip! Our guide was fantastic, really interesting and knowledgeable. The rappelling was incredible and so much fun! I can always trust you guys to have an adventurous and fun time for all."