His tone is curious, not interrogatory. The checkpoint a distant memory, I get my own piece of the Judean hills to savor. I begin to battle aching legs. These are big hills. I gave up my camera to the sag wagon miles ago.
Any extra weight is a burden on an incline.
Suddenly, I see an animal that looks like it walked out of a National Geographic TV special on weird species of deer. He has a long beard and a pair of ridged horns that curl back. His dark tan hide almost blends into the rocky mountain. I notice four more of these creatures higher up the mountain. I later learn they are ibexes, which have roamed Israel's desert highlands since biblical times.