Description

Ein Qiniya features beautiful views which are rarely visited unless by climbers or local Bedouin. Some of the local Bedouin are dedicated climbers with their own gear. The authors of this guidebook started bolting routes in Ein Qiniya in the fall of 2014. It was the first cliff developed in Palestinian-controlled "Area B" of the West Bank. However, there was some limited climbing activity in the area before route development began and the Bedouin have been climbing on these rocks for ages! On any given weekend and some afternoons, you can expect to find Palestinian and foreign climbers enjoying the cliffs.

Season:
The Ein Qiniya cliffs face southeast and are perfect for climbing all year round. The cliff gets shade from 2:00pm to 8:00pm in the summer which makes the location great for afternoon climbing. Throughout the year the birds of Ein Qiniya will nest up high in the rocks near some of the routes. If you see baby birds and nests when climbing, please cease climbing and avoid those sectors. Wait a couple weeks until the birds have grown and left the nest. The kestrels have been known to nest high above the Honey Sector. If you do climb during these nesting periods, you may be attacked by the mother kestrel!

Etiquette:
Climbers have formed a good relationship with the local Ein Qiniya municipality and gained permission and support for climbing activity at the cliffs. It is vital that visitors perpetuate the good relationship with the local community by being respectful and culturally sensitive. The local Bedouin boys love to climb so invite them to join! They would be happy to redpoint your 6c project in sandals. Local Bedouin climbers (Arabic only): Sagur, 059-232-1206, Tawfiq, 059-878-3708.

Bouldering in Ein Qiniya:
In addition to the sport climbing cliffs, the Ein Qiniya valley hosts a number of boulders of which only a few have been climbed and established. If you are a boulderer, there are new problems to be discovered and climbed! Some boulder problems are located on the terraces directly below the Honey Sector. For more potential, try hiking along the valley to the west where other boulders have been spotted but not properly established. The problems below get less traffic than the sport routes so climbers should bring cleaning equipment and exercise caution. If you establish new boulders, let us know about them!

History

Crag developers:
Tim Bruns, Will Harris, Dario Franchetti, Kim Van Der Putten, Andrea Bernardi, Benjamin Korff, Camille Dupouy, Selim Schweitzer, Markus Maier, David Jakob and Matt Harms.

Routes on Ein Qiniya
36 sport 1 trad 3 boulder 2 Likes
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Photos
Premium topo by Climbing Palestine Guidebook
Matthias Wurtenberger
M. Wurtenberger
from Ramallah
Markus Maier
M. Maier
Timothy Bruns
T. Bruns
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Ein Qiniya

The area is access sensitive!

🚗 Directions (car):
From Al-Manara circle in Ramallah drive west, downhill on the main Rukab Street. Follow the road all the way down through the Al-Tireh neighbourhood and past the last traffic circle. Continue straight down the hill through a number of switchbacks. Turn left on road 463 towards Ein Qiniya village at the bottom of the valley. Follow 463 to the village of Ein Qiniya. Drive through the village and take a right at the intersection near the mosque. Immediately take the right (higher) road down towards the “Zeituna” spring. Nearing the spring, the road will turn from asphalt to dirt. Once you arrive at the spring, take a left (crossing over the spring) and head up hill. Take another left at the intersection and head up the steep dirt road, following as it winds sharply to the right at the top of the hill.
Park where the road ends.

🚶‍♂️
Hike north up the hill to gain the high ground above the roads and houses. Then head right to the cliffs above the olive groves. The cliffs face southeast directly across the valley from the Reehan hospital. The trail from the parking area is marked by rock cairns but some may have fallen down due to weather and goats. Do your best to stay on the trail that looks the most used. If you are worried about your car making it up the hill, just park at the bottom by the spring next to the stone wall.

🚌 Directions (public transport):
Reaching the cliffs in Ein Qiniya by public transportation is cheap and fun! The service station to Ein Qiniya is located in the parking lot next to the Canadian Embassy (just a 5 minute walk from Al-Manara circle). There are two services that run shuttles to and from the village on weekdays during daylight hours. The weekend connections are far less frequent and almost non-existent on Fridays. The ride to Ein Qiniya village takes roughly 15 minutes. Once you reach the village, ask the driver to take you further down the valley to the “Zeituna” spring. The trip costs 10 NIS per person to the Zeituna spring (this can be negotiated closer to 5 NIS if you have “wasta”). From there, follow the directions above to reach the cliff. Majdi is the main service driver; he will teach you some Arabic poetry if you’d like!