Jack's ethos was: No problem; we will pick you up at your bus stop or your street corner -  if he can help in any way to make your day out easier with the ESRA walks then he will. Jack brings to the walks his personality of kindness. In helping everyone and generally being their best friend. No matter what the problem, his orignal Newcastle humour will shine through.

ESRA's Mid-week Hiking Club took a bus full of enthusiastic hikers on a trip to the Adulam Grove area, near Bet Guvrin. The weather was glorious, and we saw many spring-time flowers. We hiked around clumps of Cyclamen, areas of Anemones and Groundsel, and through green fields full of stretches of yellow Mustard.

ESRA's mid-week hikes are designed for those who cannot take part in Shabbat hikes, and for any good walkers who would like to get out and meet new people in fresh air surroundings. The hikes include easy - moderate walks as well as hard.

The Shabbat hikes ran successfully for 14 years with a variety of day hikes, and some overnighters, with a qualified guide, to suit all levels of difficulty. We unfortunately had to cease activity in 2009 since we weren't getting enough people to cover the cost of a bus.

ESRA has been organising hikes for over 16 years, initially on Saturdays, and more recently Midweek. We have covered many hiking trails all over Israel at varying levels of difficulty, aimed at good walkers who enjoy hiking, discovering new places, hearing about the local history, archaeology, flora and fauna, and enjoy meeting new people in fresh air surroundings.