Ajloun Reserve Oak and Strawberry Tree Trail

The Soap House Trail through Ajloun Forest Reserve, walked properly rather than marched. Around 8 km of evergreen oak, wild pistachio and the red peeling bark of the strawberry tree, with a long stop at the viewpoint over the Rasoun valley and, on a clear day, the hills of the West Bank beyond. Our guide grew up cutting wood on this ridge before it was a reserve, which changes what you notice: the Persian squirrel drays, the pistachio grafts, which oaks the roe deer strip. Lunch is a village mezze in a shaded clearing - labneh, zaatar, tomatoes, bread baked that morning. Honest bits: this is an RSCN reserve, so the entry fee is fixed and non-negotiable, and the trail is only open in daylight with a licensed guide. The middle section climbs about 250 metres on loose limestone and there is no shade for twenty minutes of it. From June to September we start at 7am to beat the heat, which means a genuinely early pickup. Boots, not trainers.