September 17 Tuesday Sam and group departed Kefr Hauwar in the AM and camped that night at Baniyas, once the ancient city of Caesarea Philippi. From Sam’s notebook: A great, massive, ruined citadel of 4 acres...hoof prints deep in old rocks...This is the first place we have ever seen, whose pavements were trodden by Jesus Christ. ...Here Christ cured a woman who had had an issue of blood for 7 years (now-a-days there would have been an affidavit published) and near here—possibly on the Castle hill, some claim that the Savior’s Ascension/Transfig(?) took place [MTNJ 1: 421 ]. (MTDBD)
Strathcarron disagrees about where the pilgrims passed the night, Kefr Hauar or Quneitra. Bædeker describes both (on differing routes) as good places to spend the night. Both routes are plotted but the leg from Quneitra provides the best excuse for avoiding El Yuba Dam.
Philip Trauring, in personal correspondence through Twain-L, objects to the idea that Twain and party would have needed to "double-back to get to Banias. It seems unlikely he would head northeast from Quneitra to get to Banias." Trauring also questions the need to avoid a town named El Yuba Dam. "It’s possible there was an earlier town called something similar to El Yuba Dam, but I think it’s actually a joke. In 1863, while working in Nevada, a co-worker named William Wright (aka Dan De Quill) wrote a story about a man who asked the locals where he was, and they all answered Yuba Dam, which he assumed was them saying “you be damned”. If they were actually prevented from getting water because they were Christian, I certainly think Twain could be have been using this joke as a way to say they were telling him “you be damned”. Maybe I’m reaching a bit, but it seems much more in line with his humor to insert this joke, then to guess that it connected to the modern town of Odem (which didn’t exist in Twain’s time)."
Mark Twain, along with the Pilgrims and maybe a couple of Sinners cross from Syria into the Holy Land, what is now called the Golan Heights. He didn't much enjoy it but suffered no political difficulties in the crossing. Ian Strathcarron, in 2010, didn't have the luxury of a straight traverse. He arrived at the border area but was unable to proceed due to political issues in the region. His book, Innocence and War has a chapter devoted to what he has called "the detour" (a chapter title). He returns back to his boat, in Beirut and takes a circuitous sail from there to Haifa. This chapter provides an excellent example of the absurdity of politics. Anyway, he finds his way back to the Golan Heights. This time from the Israeli side.
The Excursionists left Quneitra “very early in the morning, and rode forever and forever and forever”. The route that they took, which then could be described as one “over parched deserts and rocky hills”, is now scenic in the extreme, the parched deserts now green and yellow with farms and forests, the rocky hills now graced with olive groves, vineyards and almond orchards. To make matters worse they were “hungry, and with no water to drink”. Twain’s next entry for that day reads: “At noon we halted before the wretched Arab town of El Yuba Dam, perched on the side of a mountain, but the dragoman said if we applied there for water we would be attacked by the whole tribe, for they did not love Christians. We had to journey on.”
Unlike the writer the Excursionists were turned away thirsty from El Yuba Dam/Odem and they pressed on higher and higher and at 2.00 p.m. they The Golan and the Galilee reached what is now known as Nimrod’s Fortress, but back then was still known by its Arabic name Qala’at Namrud, Castle of the Large Cliff. More recently Judaic enthusiasts, noting the similarity between the Arabic Namrud and their own Nimrod, have grafted the Genesis legend onto the castle - and indeed have had him buried at nearby Quneitra where we were last night.