I just returned from Eretz Yisrael and Year 9 of an annual women’s hike on Shvil Yisrael. (And yes, that also means I was in Israel during the Iran missile attacks, but thankfully I was able to make it back to the U.S. on a flight out of Taba, Egypt.)

But back to the Shvil.

It all started during one of my usual catch-up conversations with my Israeli sister-in-law, Tali. She was approaching her 50th birthday and casually tossed out an idea.

“It’s been a dream of mine to hike Shvil Yisrael for my 50th,” she said. “It takes about two months with hiking and camping, but I can’t take that much time at once because of family and work. But I have an idea.”

The next thing I knew, she was sharing her vision. She wanted to bring together a group of women to hike Shvil Yisrael, the National Trail of Israel, one week at a time. We would begin at the northernmost tip of the trail, in Kibbutz Dan, and slowly make our way south. We would have a guide and a jeep driver who would transport our tents and gear from point to point while we spent our days hiking through Israel’s mountains, forests, and fields.

This would not be a group of just Tali’s friends. She wanted to assemble women from different backgrounds and cities, all roughly within a similar age range and physical ability – just the right balance between similar and different, homogenous and heterogeneous. Some women would already know one another; others would come through hiking Facebook groups or word of mouth. Some would be old friends, others brand new acquaintances.

Now, I am not typically a hiker. I don’t go camping. When I travel, I stay in nice hotels.

But at that time I was two years post-cancer and very much in my “YES to life” phase – my L’Chaim phase. I had become painfully aware that life is short and can change on a dime. I knew I should take the trip, do the hike, try something new. I love Eretz Yisrael with all my heart, and I knew this would be a completely different way to connect with the land and its people. And I knew that when Tali plans something like this, it will be special – meaningful, a little chaotic, far outside my comfort zone, and certainly unforgettable.

So when Tali said, “I think you should join us,” my response was simple:

“Hmmm. I don’t like hiking. I don’t like camping. I don’t even know what Shvil Yisrael is. But I’m in.”

Since March 2018, the “Malcot Hashvil: the Queens of the Trail” have been hiking our way through Israel. We started in the north and began to work our way south. A few years ago, we jumped to the far south to make sure we completed the notoriously challenging Karbolet ridge before our knees gave out.

Along the way we have climbed Mount Carmel, trekked across fields of wildflowers, walked along highways, crossed deserts, crawled along crater edges, hiked to the shores of the Kinneret, and walked along the beach in Caesarea. We have passed through kibbutzim, villages, cities, and vast stretches of empty sand. We have scrambled over boulders, waded through rivers, and explored caves. We have visited sites that are holy and sites that are simply beautiful.

We have been hot, cold, wet, thirsty, scared, exhilarated, bored, exhausted, and endlessly amused.

We have slept in pop-up tents, Bedouin tents, group tents, tzimmers, apartments, and even a castle. We have talked for hours about everything under the sun. We have cooked meals together in shared kitchens, beside open fires, and on camping stoves.

We have laughed until we cried, and cried until we laughed. We have nursed injuries, soothed hurt feelings, and tended to oh-so-many blisters. We have argued, agreed, yelled, whispered, and talked deep into the night, only to wake again at sunrise (or earlier) and start all over again.

We have sung. We have danced. And we have walked kilometer after kilometer together.

Through it all, each year our sisterhood has grown stronger, deeper, and more meaningful. We have shared life’s milestones and life’s struggles – marriages and divorces, the birth of grandchildren, illness and healing, and all the ordinary moments in between. We have supported one another through tragedies and triumphs, simchas and losses, fear and celebration.

We have watched one another fall down and get back up again – both literally and figuratively – over and over and over.

Our WhatsApp group stays active all year long. It was buzzing nonstop on October 7, 2023, when one of our Queens was crouched in her kibbutz safe room as terrorists infiltrated the community, while another was desperately searching for rescue for her daughter who had been at the Nova Festival. Thank God, both came through safely.

Each year we experience the breathtaking beauty of Eretz Yisrael in ways few people do. Shvil Yisrael offers nearly every kind of hiking imaginable: flat plains and rugged mountains, lush forests and dry desert, fields of grass and vast sandy expanses, steep climbs and dramatic descents, rock scrambling and moments when we are literally crawling on our hands and knees.

Every one of us faces different challenges along the trail. Some struggle with steep inclines. Others with descents, heights, water crossings, tight spaces, ladders (that one’s mine!), long distances, or the heat.

And every year – surprise! – we get older.

The aches and pains multiply. The blisters arrive faster. The physical challenges become more real. And yet somehow, at the same time, we grow stronger, more confident, and more capable with each passing year.

In true Israeli spirit, each day on the trail is a medley of cooperation and independence, pain and resilience, joy and sorrow. We work together to move forward as a group, but each of us must also dig deep to find our own inner strength.

We discover that our minds are powerful. That our bodies are stronger than we think. And that together we can overcome almost anything.

Each year we face group challenges, personal challenges, and physical challenges – and each year we learn a little more about ourselves, about one another, and about this extraordinary land.

The Shvil teaches countless lessons: about life, about perseverance, about confronting our fears, about taking time for ourselves. It pushes our bodies while opening space for reflection.

The flowers blooming in the desert remind us that hope can grow even in the harshest places. The ancient rock formations spark our imaginations.

And usually, sometime around Day 3 of our annual five-day hike, it hits me: how powerful mindful walking can be, how much I needed to clear my head, and how deeply grateful I am for something as simple as my own two feet.

I feel incredibly blessed to be a Queen of the Shvil, year after year, trail after trail.

And perhaps most of all, this journey is a powerful reminder of how deeply intertwined Am Yisrael is with Eretz Yisrael – as a people, and as individuals.

Eretz Yisrael porachat.
The Land of Israel blooms.

Am Yisrael Chai.

Michelle Stravitz is the Chief Executive Officer Emeritus of the American Jewish Medical Association. AJMA members stand firmly with Israel, uphold Jewish values in medicine, and advocate for fairness and respect across the healthcare landscape. Michelle is also the former CEO and co-founder of 2Unstoppable, a non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring and providing oncology exercise for women. She has served as CFO of Spectrum Management Consulting and was a management consultant with Booz Allen. An influential leader in the Washington DC Jewish community, Michelle has served on boards and committees for many organizations.

Ms. Stravitz has been recognized as a JWI Woman to Watch and a Guardian of the Bridge of Gesher Jewish Day School. She lives in Fairfax, VA and Miami, FL with her husband and has four adult children and has strong personal ties to Israel.