Nahal Kidron: Canyoning in South

Flash flood danger

Do not enter the canyon when rain is forecast in the area or upstream, even under clear skies. Check the forecast on the morning of the trip.

Inside a nature reserve

Keep to the reserve rules and stay on the marked trails.

The lower Kidron, a narrow slot in the escarpment near Avnat, with about twenty mostly low drops in a row on a loop.

Information as of 24 Oct 2026

At a glance

Trail length: 7.5 km
Total descent: 320 m
Tallest waterfall: 25 m
Number of waterfalls: 22
Shuttle: Not needed

Circular route:: Yes
Flash flood risk:: High
Reserve:: Yes

Field reports

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Meeting point (parking)

Avnat gate

The meeting point is the parking spot. You continue on foot from here.

Waze Google Maps

Coordinates: 31.67627, 35.43900

About

The Kidron starts in Jerusalem and reaches the Dead Sea, and this route covers only its last part: the slot the stream has cut through the escarpment above Avnat. It is a day of many small steps rather than big falls. There are about twenty lettered drops, most between three and sixteen metres, the highest about twenty-five metres.

From Avnat climb to the plateau on the green trail of Ma'ale Mazin and stay on the green trail to the Kidron bed. Walk down the bed until the marking turns up to the south bank; the steep part starts there. After a short slot, rock arches and a few pools you reach mid-canyon, by a big boulder wedged in the channel. From there a tight run of drops continues to the end of the slot, and the wadi opens towards Route 90.

In two places you can skip several steps with one long rappel of about thirty metres from an artificial anchor on the slot wall. Know this before you go: according to the book urban sewage flows in the bed permanently and the pools almost never dry out, so the water is polluted and the walls carry mud and stains.

Access notes

From the Avnat gate head north on the green trail of Ma'ale Mazin and climb to the plateau. At the junction with the blue trail stay on the green one south-west to the Kidron bed, then follow the bed down until the marking climbs the south bank. From the end of the canyon walk down the open wadi to Route 90, then north back to Avnat.

Parking

Parking by the Avnat gate, where the loop starts and ends.

Difficulty and suitability

Hiking distance: 7.5 km
Water activity: Yes
Route type: Wet

Descent profile

Scroll sideways for details

Waterfalls(22)

#	Name	Height	Obstacle	Profile	Landing	Anchor	Bolts and stations	Rope	From previous
1	–	Height: 3 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop of about 3 m, not lettered in the book. Type assumed: the book does not say whether it is rappelled or downclimbed.
2	א	Height: 4 m	Waterfall / rappel	Overhang	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop A in the book.
3	ב	Height: 10 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop B in the book.
4	ג	Height: 4 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	Pool	–	–	–	–
Description Drop C in the book.
5	ד	Height: 5+3(8 m)	Waterfall / rappel	Stepped	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop D in the book: two steps (5+3).
6	ה	Height: 3 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	Pool	–	–	–	–
Description Drop E in the book.
7	וBypass on the right	Height: 15 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop F in the book. Bypass Bypass on the right bank (facing downstream), ending at a bolt about twenty metres above the bed: the way down from it is a rappel of about twenty metres.
8	ז	Height: –	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop G in the book. Bypass There is a bypass; the book does not say on which bank.
9	Bypass on the right	Height: 17+7(24 m)	Waterfall / rappel	Stepped	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop of about 24 m, not lettered in the book. Type assumed: the book does not say whether it is rappelled or downclimbed. Bypass A technical bypass on the south (right) bank along the slot rim to artificial anchors about thirty metres above the bed, then one rappel down.
10	–	Height: 3+3(6 m)	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Two short steps of three and three metres at the start of the closed section after the slot. Drawn only in the sketch, not lettered. Type assumed: the book does not say whether it is rappelled or downclimbed.
11	Bypass on the left	Height: 3 m	Downclimb	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description A step of about three metres above a pool, in the same closed section. Drawn only in the sketch, not lettered. Type assumed: the book does not say whether it is rappelled or downclimbed. Bypass Bypass on the left bank (facing downstream), per the sketch.
12	ח	Height: 6 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop H in the book.
13	–	Height: 4 m	Downclimb	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description A step of about four metres between drops H and I. Drawn only in the sketch; the text says drop I comes right after H. Type assumed: the book does not say whether it is rappelled or downclimbed.
14	ט	Height: 25 m	Waterfall / rappel	Vertical	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop I in the book.
15	י	Height: 3 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop J in the book.
16	יא	Height: 4 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop K in the book.
17	יב	Height: 6 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop L in the book.
18	יג	Height: 4 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop M in the book.
19	יד	Height: 8 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop N in the book.
20	טו	Height: 14 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop O in the book.
21	טז	Height: 11 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop P in the book.
22	יז	Height: 16 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop Q in the book.
23	יחBypass on the left	Height: 9 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop R in the book. Bypass Alternative: an artificial anchor on the north wall (left bank, facing downstream) at the top of the drop, and one rappel of about thirty metres to the foot of the next drop.
24	יט	Height: 17 m	Waterfall / rappel	–	–	–	–	–	–
Description Drop S in the book.

Points on the map

TrailheadPrimaryAvnat gate
31.67627, 35.43900
Waze Google Maps
Route endNahal Kidron at Route 90
31.67169, 35.43771
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Safety

No entry when there is flash flood risk. Sewage flows in the bed permanently, so avoid contact with the water and disinfect any cut. Some bypasses are awkward and unclear. The book mentions the anchors as description only, so check every anchor before you descend. At mid-canyon a path leads out to the south bank.

Escape routes

At mid-canyon, by a big wedged boulder and before drop H, a path climbs to the south bank and leads to a water pool above Avnat.

Recommendations

Suits groups with rappelling experience who do not mind mud. Plan the mid-canyon way out in advance, in case of delays.

Equipment

Full rappelling gear and a helmet, shoes that can get wet, and clothes you do not mind ruining.

Data sources

The information on this page was collected from these sources.

Based on the Hebrew guidebook "Judean Desert Canyons" by Ronen Kalimi (2023)

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Flash flood danger

Inside a nature reserve

👀At a glance

💧Field reports

🅿️Meeting point (parking)

📖About

🥾Access notes

🅿️Parking

🧭Difficulty and suitability

📉Descent profile

🪢Waterfalls(22)

🗺️Points on the map

⚠️Safety