Rob has recently returned from a week’s exploration in Morocco …
We arrived late evening into Marrakesh and after 6 hours sleep we were on our way out of the fabled ‘Red City’ early the next morning.
We crossed the Tizi n’Tichka pass – at 2260m the highest route over the Atlas Mountains – and descended to the well-preserved kasbah of Ait Benhaddou. This UNESCO World Heritage site is one of the most spectacular landmarks in the Atlas and the filming location for several Hollywood movies, including Lawrence of Arabia, Jewel on the Nile and Gladiator.
We enjoyed a late afternoon tour of the narrow alleyways with the setting sun providing gorgeous light conditions for enjoying this atmospheric and beautiful location.
Our guide was also suitably exotically attired and a treasure trove of interesting facts and local legends.
Onwards we travelled the next day, journeying through Ouarzazate, known as the “door to the desert,” once a vital trade route for African traders to Europe. Now, it hosts the Atlas Film Studios, featured in numerous Hollywood films and Game of Thrones, alongside the impressive Kasbah Taourirt, a grand fort built from rammed earth and mud-brick.
Continuing south, we drove along the Draa Valley where, on the fringes of the Sahara we made a camel trek into the dunes.
There followed a night of stargazing (and hearty drum-beating) at our remote desert camp.
We returned from the dunes the next morning (a little saddle-sore it must be said) and took a short drive to the desert town of Zagora, where we had some time to rest, refresh and unwind after our sandy trek.
The next day we journeyed west to ascend into the spectacular Ounila Valley in the High Atlas Mountains. Here we were met by the ‘Four Muleteers’ and we hiked upwards through small Berber villages perched on the steep hillsides to reach our gite in Tighza for an overnight stay.
In the evening, we visited the village hammam, funded by the Exodus Foundation for some much-needed ‘exfoliation’.
The following morning, we hiked back down the valley and took a dramatically scenic drive back over the High Atlas Mountains to Marrakech.
In the evening, we explored Djemma el Fna, the vibrant central square which for centuries has been a famous crossroads for traders traversing from Timbuktu to the Mediterranean.
Today it is a mesmerising market-place surrounded by souks and narrow alleyways where it is sometimes a good idea to lose yourself deliberately in order to be ever more surprised what is then discovered around each corner.
After our week of quietude in the desert sands and the mountains it was amazing to be immersed in such hectic activity and dazzling colours.
My thanks to Anthony and Kerry at Exodus for hosting us on this wonderful week amidst the dunes, mountains and souks of Morocco.