Yarkon National Park - Yarkon Sources area

Main points of interest

• Walking along the Yarkon River
• The Yarkon Bream Pool
• The Al-Mir Flour Mill
• Night camping area
• The Yarkon rapids
• The recreation area and amusement installations (picnics and barbeque area)
• The “romantic” path
• The concrete house
• The “Pillbox”

Details

• Walking along the Yarkon River – a walking path has been prepared and wooden piers installed along the river. During the walk along the path, ancient agricultural facilities come into view. These facilities exploited the river’s water over the years: the Kasser farm, the Al-Mir flour mill and the pumps building.
• The Yarkon Bream Pool – the Yarkon bream (Acanthobrama Telavivensis) is an endemic species that used to be widespread in Israel’s coastal streams, but had almost disappeared due to pollution and drying up of the streams. In order to prevent the eradication of this species, individuals were grown in a breeding facility, and their descendents were returned to the river into a pool located to the east of the Al-Mir flour mill, within a fenced-off area, protected from human disturbance and pollution.
• The Al-Mir Flour Mill – an old flour mill that was in operation during the Ottoman period, one of the largest pools in Palestine. The flour mill is named for the Arab village Mir which existed here in the 19th century. An ancient dam collected the water in the river channel and diverted it to the mill.
• Night camping area – in the Yarkon Sources park area there is a fenced-off night-camping area, including toilets, showers, drinking water, cooking areas and lighting.
• The Yarkon Cataracts – as part of the activities to rehabilitate the river, a project was begun to agitate the water in the river and build a dam at the meeting-point of the Yarkon with the Kana stream. The purpose of agitating the water is to increase flow speed, thus improving conditions in the river habitat.
• The “Romantic” Path – a beautiful path roofed over with vegetation, leading to the “concrete house.”.
• The Concrete House – the first structure in Israel made of concrete. It was built by the “Palestine Company” in 1912, and was used as a pumping station that delivered water to the orange groves of Petah Tikva.
• The Railway Station and the “Pillbox” – the Palestine Railway line was built in 1922, on the initiative of Petah Tikva residents in order to connect the region to the main line that went from Emek Yizre’el southward, to Egypt. The railway transported agricultural produce to the ports of Haifa and Yafo, as well as passengers on the Petah Tikva – Rosh Ha’Ayin line, and was called the “Hebrew Railway”. The “pillbox” was built by the British during the Arab revolt that occurred between 1936 and 1939. It is a small structure that served as a post for the guard who watched over the railway line and the bridge above the river from rioters. On the structure the British crown and the letters P.R.R.D. are painted, which is the name of the Palestine Railway guard detail.