photos: 1. Herod’s Northern Palace, built on three rock terraces (view down from top terrace) - 2. me on the stairway to the middle terrace - 3. columns on the lower terrace - 4. the three terraces from below (view up from lower terrace--see the tourists on top!) - 5. Masada’s western face, with the Northern Palace outline and columns on the left

Once we got on top of Masada, we just roamed and wandered all over the site, with no agenda or pressure to do anything except make the most of our time there. The three of us headed to Herod’s three-tiered palace on the north face first, and climbed down to explore the middle and lower terraces of this immense facility. It is an engineering marvel, but all that is left now are the pillars, supports, and several baths of the immense palace. Soon I was left alone, and I explored the gatehouse, the storerooms, the place where the lots were found, the amazing bathhouse complex (with cold, lukewarm, and hot bathing tubs), the rooms around the casement wall, and other structures. As I went along, I continually turned to gaze down on the Roman ramp, to see what it looked like from different vantage points, but especially from the spot where the breach occurred that fateful night nearly 2000 years ago. Even more than the Snake Path, I have wanted to touch that mighty ramp; to stand on it, walk on it, catch the same view the Romans had when they started to storm Masada with their siege tower and battering ram. However, Gabi always implied that the only way to do this is to drive some distance around to the western side of Masada, and James had already told me that this would be too much to do today.

Then I saw it: another exit and path I’d never noticed before that seemed to lead off of the western edge of Masada. I watched some people start walking in this direction--and minutes later I saw them on the path that runs along the ramp! YOU CAN GET TO THE RAMP FROM THE TOP OF MASADA! I was excited beyond measure, and went running to find the rest of the group. James was willing to climb down with me, and so...