From outside the baths, we can see the channels that the hot water entered the hot room

A view toward the Dead Sea from the top of Masada. We will take the cable car back down and go by bus for our swim in the Dead Sea.

The Dead Sea used to be 60km long and up tp 50km wide. Today it is only 40km long and less than 10km wide. It is -611m BELOW sea level (about 1800') and is the lowest place on each - part of the Pan-African Fault Line. The lake levels are so much lower because of extremely hot summers (48C) in recent years, mining of minerals and salts from the sea, not as many flash floods any more and the fact that the Jordan River no longer meets the Dead Sea - and has not for the past 25 years! The sea has receeded 250m in the past 5 years - a much faster rate in recent time.

The Dead Sea is now in two segments connected by canals. We are headed to the smaller, lower section for our swim.

The opportunity to swim in the Dead Sea came after our lunch at Ein Bokek. You float very high in the water - your feet are almost totally on top of the water. The mineral content of the Dead Sea is 34%. There is no life in the Sea - animal or plant. The life guard kept yelling at people to stay on their back. If you try to swim on your stomach, you could drown in the water that is too salty to ingest as you try to get your feet on the bottom and cannot as your head goes down into the water. You float on top with absolutely NO effort!

It was a VERY interesting experience!! If you stand upright in the water, you bob up and down and it is very hard to actually keep your feet on the sandy bottom!

Some people even smear themselves with Dead Sea mud and then wash off in the water - they say it helps with many different skin conditions.