Visit Morocco

Le Tourisme au MAROC

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Marrakech in German eyes

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Essaouira to Luton a born-again era

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According to the the British newspaper, "The Daily Telegraph" , the city of Essaouira will be among the twenty most globally popular and attractive touristic destinations in 2015.

It highlighted also, in the recent section of travel and tourism trends, tourism qualifications of this coastal city, quiet and famous along history, which dazzled famous musicians and movie starts in the sixties such as Jemmy Hendrix and Cat Stevens...etc

reported that the glow coastal city of Essaouira by its Gnawa Festival, will be strengthened by direct easyJet flights with the city of Luton (about 50 kilometers north-west of London) by the "low-Coast-East Gate."

The British newspaper announced that a direct air route between the towns of Luton and Essaouira will facilitate the travel of British tourists around the city without going through the city of Marrakech, highlighting that Essaouira Bay is a place of pilgrimage for ornithologists and surfing amateurs, thanks to winds that constantly blow over the city and often strong at the level of the city's coast.

The "Daily Telegraph" confirmed that the attractiveness of the city of Essaouira is reflected especially in the hospitality and the kindness of Essaouira's people, the beauty of alleys and popular markets; which suggests to its beloved visitors a broad range of wooden and leather products as well as the authentic dishes of Moroccan cuisine.

The Paradise Valley and Immouzer

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The Paradise Valley and Immouzer

The trip up to Immouzer des Ida Outanane – via Paradise Valley, a beautiful palm-lined gorge – is a superb excursion from Agadir. It is feasible in a day (Immouzer is 62km from Agadir) but much more enjoyable if you stay the night at one or other of the superb auberges or take time to explore and camp in the valley.

The 7002 road to Immouzer is surfaced the whole way; it leaves the N1 coast road at Aourir, 12km north of Agadir (make sure you take the righthand fork in the village – the left-hand one is a dead-end, up a palmery). A daily bus leaves Agadir Thursdays at 7am, other days at 1pm (from a small parking area on Bd Mohammed Cheikh Saâdi, 200m southeast of its junction with Av du 29 Février), arriving in Immouzer four hours later; on Thursdays it goes back later in the day, otherwise it returns the following morning at 7am. Alternatively, take a grand taxi or city bus to Aourir, from where there are shared grands taxis to Immouzer, though mostly on Thursday for the weekly souk.

A surfaced road also connects Immouzer with the N8 Agadir–Marrakesh road, allowing easy access from Ameskroud, Taroudannt or Marrakesh, a highly scenic route.

Paradise Valley

Paradise Valley begins around 10km east of Aourir, as the road sweeps down into a deep, palm-lined gorge, with a river snaking along the base. The best stretch starts just after the turn-off for Immouzer. You can hire a mule to explore the valley’s numerous Berber villages, and it’s a glorious place to camp, though pitch your tent well away from the riverbed in case of flash floods.

Immouzer des Ida Outanane and beyond

IMMOUZER DES IDA OUTANANE is a minor regional and market centre (of the Ida Outanane, as its full name suggests). The waterfall, for which the village was renowned, is nearby, and was best seen at its foot, 4km downhill to the northwest. Unfortunately the falls have been very adversely affected by drought over the last few years; tight control of irrigation now reduces the cascade on most occasions to a trickle, with the villagers “turning on” the falls for special events only. However, the petrified canopy of the falls is of interest in its own right, and there’s a full plunge pool.

There’s a hamlet just across the stream from the foot of the falls, and a café (Café de Miel) with basic food, near which you can camp out in the olive groves. The whole area is perfect for walkers. You can follow any of the paths with enjoyment – a good one, near the village, cuts up across the cliffs to the Hôtel des Cascades – or even trek off to the Marrakesh road . The birdlife adds an exciting dimension, with birds of prey commonplace; Bonelli’s eagle is a good bet, and you might well spot golden eagles or crag martins.

In Immouzer village, there’s a souk every Thursday. The local speciality is honey, made by bees that browse on wild thyme, lavender and other mountain herbs. There’s also a honey moussem every August for a week starting in the middle of the month.

Taghazout : surfing high tides (North coast of Agadir)

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North of Agadir: the coast to Cap Rhir

Along the coast north of Agadir, tourist
development rapidly commences to fade, and the beach at Taghazout (19km from Agadir) belongs to a different world, with entirely local accommodation and not a “proper” hotel in visual perception. This – and the coast towards Cap Rhir – is popular surfing territory. The route is withal a good one for bird-watchers – as is the coastline south of Agadir. Public convey is pretty straightforward. From Agadir, buses run customarily up the coast to Taghazout, perpetuating to Tamri, while Essaouira and Imssouane buses take the route beyond, via Cap Rhir. The coast is a good target, additionally, if you rent buggies or motorbikes in Agadir.

Agadir to Taghazout

The coast road north of Agadir commences unpromisingly, passing through the city’s industrial sector, a divest kenned as Cité Anza. At 11km from Agadir, however, things ameliorate, as you reach AOURIR, where a road heads inland to Paradise Valley and Immouzer des Ida Outanane . Aourir and its sister village of TAMRAGHT, a kilometre beyond, are jointly kenned as “Banana Village” after the thriving banana groves that divide them, and the roadside stalls selling Hôtel Hagounia 9 Av Mokhtar Soussi. Right by the bus station on a diligent intersection, with plausible rooms, en-suite showers and 24- hour hot water. 2 Hôtel al Qods 50 Pl al Massira. Cordial, plausibly unsullied, and much more astronomically immense than it looks from outside. Some rooms have an en-suite shower, some have shower and toilet, the most frugal have shared bathroom facilities, and there’s hot water around the clock. 1 Hôtel de Paris 30 Bd Mohammed V profoundly frugal, with an inexpensive restaurant additionally. Some rooms have en-suite shower, and there should be constant sultry dihydrogen monoxide. 1 negotiate a remotely more frugal taxi from the airport, too (around 100dh). There are dozens of hotels near the bus station, all pretty rudimental, but prices are around half what they would be in equipollent Agadir hotels.

Argan trees

One of the stranger sights of the Souss and circumventing coastal region is goats browsing among the branches of spiny, knotted argan trees, a species homogeneous to the olive that is found only in this region. Though some younger goatherds seem to have a sideline in charging tourists to take photographs, the authentic object of the exercise is to let the goats victual the outer, fleshy part of the argan fruit. The hard, inner nut is then cracked open and the kernel crushed to extract the expensive oil. Argan oil is saccharine and affluent, and is utilized in many Moroccan dishes and in salads, or for dunking bread. It is withal used to make amalou, an ambrosial dip of argan oil, honey and almond paste.

An expensive delicacy, argan oil is not facilely extracted: whilst one olive tree provides around five litres of olive oil, it takes the nuts from thirty argan trees to make just one litre of argan oil. Plastic bottles of argan oil are infrequently sold at the roadside in the Oued Souss area, but are often adulterated with more frugal oils. It is therefore better to buy argan oil or amalou from a reputable source such as the cooperatives at Tidzi , Tioute , or Tamanar , the honey shop in Agadir, or specialist shops in Marrakesh or Essaouira. Argan oil is withal sometimes sold in more astronomically immense supermarkets.

Morocco's most attractive touristic places : Khenifra

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Morocco's most attractive touristic places : Atlas

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Morocco's most attractive touristic places : Ouzoud

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Morocco's most attractive touristic places : Massa

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Morocco's most attractive touristic places : Tiznet Mirleft

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Morocco's most attractive touristic places : Marrakech

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Morocco's most attractive touristic places : Agadir

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Moroccan's Religion and Worldview

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ISLAMIC RELIGIOUS IDEALS AND worldview permeate all aspects of social order in Morocco. Islam, which means "submission," effects the attitude of the great majority of Moroccans toward social action, their comprehension of reality, governmental power and authority, interpersonal and group relationships, reaction to events and changes, and how they reflect on and even foresee their future and that of their country. Article 6 of the Moroccan constitution identifies Islam as the state religion (al-Islam din ad-dawla), and nearly 98.7 percent of Moroccans are Muslims. Other small minority religions, such as Christianity (1.1 percent) and Judaism (0.2 percent), are tolerated to a certain degree. Given its predominance in Morocco, the Islamic ideologies structure frames of reference against which "natural attitudes and behaviors" toward the world (worldview) are constructed. Religion, as identified by the famous philosopher Karl Marx (1818-1883), is the "opium of the masses." It often fulfills emotional, psychological, and even material wants. It can be used to explain human existence and help understand the complexities of life. Moroccans also turn to religion to deal with problems of insecurity, troubled relationships, witchcraft, and other sufferings of life, such as unemployment, poverty, sickness, and death. Human trials move people to seek solutions and remedies through prescribed rituals and adherence to the existing taboos, norms, and values that define their cosmology. A people's worldview or cosmology determines key concepts in which social actions and behaviors coalesce. In Morocco, as in every society, these natural impulses are transmitted to the young members of the society through a process of socialization. As individuals relate to society and tackle the realities of their life challenges, they tend to adopt new ideas and introduce fresh meanings on inherited values. This may result in conversions to new doctrinal orientations, as in the case of the Arab-Berbers who have been compelled by their historical experience to reshape their belief systems and ritual practices since the seventh century. To make religious ideas and worldview in Morocco more intelligible, the basic tenets of the Islamic religion will be highlighted first here because they offer the believer a comprehensive meaning to life. In some places, these overlap with the indigenous Berber belief system and practices. Thus, understanding this complexity gives a complete worldview of Moroccans.

Gender Roles, Marriage, and Family In Morocco

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SURVIVING INDIGENOUS BERBER CUSTOMS, Arab and Jewish family practices, and European influences have all combined to form contemporary kinship practices, family organization, marriage traditions, and notions of gender relations in Morocco. With expansion of Western-style education, closer contacts with peoples of other cultures (including Africans, Asians, and Europeans),and continuing changes in socioeconomic structures and individual lifestyles, the Moroccan family has been responding to dynamics that will continue to shape it. Since the 1970s, for instance, most of the newly educated elite, especially those who received their degrees in France, Belgium, Spain, the United States, or other Western countries, have returned home to make marriages and establish what is often referred to as a more "individualistic" family practices. Whereas the emergent class demonstrates a preference for a smaller and easily manageable family size, most Moroccans have continued to follow tradition with a preference for polygamous marriages, large families, and close kinship and family ties.
As a universal institution, the family is both an organic and social unit of acculturation. Members are linked by blood, and new members are incorporated through marriages. For the welfare and continuity of a unit, members often maintain a common residence as well as follow instituted norms for production and reproduction. This communal relationship ensures generational continuity through prescribed codes of sexual relationships. Therefore, similar to what is found in most African and Asian societies, family life is at the center of Moroccan social order, and children are socialized in accordance with family traditions as an integral part of the wider societal values, expectations, taboos,and religion. In most parts of the so-called Third World, where social security rarely exists, the family fills that vacuum, with the more privileged assisting the poorer members with the basic necessities of life. Young people in Morocco live at home and participate in social events arranged by the family until they are old enough to go to school, learn a trade, or pursue a career that may take them away from home. Traditionally, it is expected that male children will continue to contribute to the welfare of their families; hence, sons tend to remain in their family home after marriage and raise their own families within the extended family structure. In Morocco, however, the sons are free to set up their own households and retain the family's name when the father dies. Although most people still conform to this tradition, the younger generations are gradually opting to live independently with their nuclear families. As it is in most parts of the world, kinship in Morocco is structured along patrilineal lines, the organization of a household based on male blood ties.

When to go

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As far as the climate goes, it is better to visit the south – or at least the desert routes – outside midsummer, when for most of the day it’s far too hot for casual exploration, especially if you’re dependent on public transport. But July and August, the hottest months, can be wonderful on the coast, while in the mountains there are no set rules.

Spring, which comes late by European standards (around April to May), is perhaps the best overall time, with a summer climate in the south and in the mountains, as well as on the Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts. Winter can be perfect by day in the south, though desert nights can get very cold – a major consideration if you’re staying in the cheaper hotels, which rarely have heating. If you’re planning to hike in the mountains, it’s best to keep to the months from April to October unless you have some experience of snow conditions.

Islamic religious calendar and its related festivals will have the most seasonal effect on your travel. The most important factor is Ramadan, the month of daytime fasting; this can be a problem for transport, and especially hiking, though the festive evenings do much to compensate.

Morocco’s climate

Where to go

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Geographically, the country divides into four basic zones: the coast,Mediterranean and Atlantic; the great cities of the plains; the Rif and Atlas Mountains; and the oases and desert of the pre- and fully fledged Sahara. With two or three weeks – even two or three months – you can’t expect to cover all of this, though it’s easy enough (and highly recommended) to take in something of each aspect.

You are unlikely to miss the mountains, in any case. The three ranges of the Atlas, with the Rif a kind of extension in the north, cut right across the interior – physical and historical barriers, and inhabited for the most part by the indigenous Moroccan Berbers. Contrary to general preconceptions, it is actually the Berbers who make up most of the population (only around ten percent of Moroccans are “pure” Arabs) although with the shift to the industrialized cities, such distinctions are becoming less and less significant.

A more current distinction, perhaps, is the legacy of Morocco’s colonial occupation over the fifty-odd years before it reasserted its independence in 1956. The colonized country was divided into Spanish and French zones – the former contained Tetouan and the Rif, the Mediterranean.

Amazigh community

The Berbers were Morocco’s original inhabitants. The Arabs arrived at the end of the seventh century, after sweeping across North Africa and the Middle East in the name of their new revolutionary ideology, Islam. Eventually, nearly all the Berbers converted to the new religion and were immediately accepted as fellow Muslims by the Arabs. When Muslim armies invaded the Iberian peninsula from Morocco, the bulk of the troops were Berbers, and the two ethnic groups pretty much assimilated. Today, most Moroccans can claim both Arab and Berber ancestors, though a few (especially Shereefs, who trace their ancestry back to the Prophet Mohammed, and have the title “Moulay”) claim to be pure Arabs. But in the Rif and Atlas mountains, and in the Souss Valley, groups of pure Berbers remain, and retain their ancient languages (Tarfi t, spoken by about 1.5m people in the Rif; Tamazight, spoken by over m people in the Atlas; and Teshalhit, spoken by –4m people in the Souss Valley region). Recently, there has been a resurgence in Berber pride (often symbolized by the Berber letter ) TV programmes are now broadcast in Berber languages, and they are even taught in schools, but the country’s majority language remains Arabic

"Fes and Marrakesh are almost unique
in the Arab world for city life which

remains in large part medieval"

Broadly speaking, the coast is best enjoyed in the north at Tangier, beautiful and still shaped by its old “interna-tional” port status, Asilah and Larache, and in the south at El Jadida, at Essaouira, perhaps the most easy-going resort, or at remote Sidi Ifni. Agadir, the main package tour resort, is less worthwhile – but a functional enough base for exploration.

Inland, where the real interest of Morocco lies, the outstanding cities are Fes and Marrakesh. The great imperial capitals of the country’s various dynasties, they are almost unique in the Arab world for the chance they offer to witness some city life which, in patterns and appearance, remains in large part medieval. For monuments, Fes is the highlight, though Marrakesh, the “beginning of the south”, is for most visitors the more enjoyable and exciting.

Tajines

Like paella or casserole, the word tajine strictly refers to a vessel rather than to the food cooked in it. A tajine is a heavy ceramic plate covered with a conical lid of the same material. The prettiest tajines,

decorated in all sorts of colours and designs, come from Safi (see p.404), but the best tajines for actual use are plain reddish-brown in colour, and come from Salé .

The food in a tajine is arranged with the meat in the middle and the vegetables piled up around

it. Then the lid is put on, and the tajine is left to cook slowly over a low light, or better still, over a charcoal stove (kanoun), usually one made specifically for the tajine and sold with it. The classic tajines combine meat with fruit and spices.

Chicken is traditionally cooked in a tajine with green olives and lemons preserved in brine. Lamb or beef are often cooked with prunes and almonds. When eating a tajine, you start on the outside with the vegetables, and work your way to the meat at the heart of the dish, scooping up the food with bread.

Beyond a line drawn between Casablanca and Meknes – is, on the whole, easier and more relaxing than in the sometimes frenetic north. This is certainly true of the mountain ranges, where the Rif can feel disturbingly anarchic, while the southerly Atlas ranges (Middle, High and Anti) are beau-tiful and accessible. Hiking in the High Atlas, especially around North Africa’s highest peak, Djebel Toubkal, is in fact something of a growth industry. Even if you are no more than a casual walker, it’s worth considering, with summer treks possible at all levels of experience and altitude. And, despite inroads made by commercialization, it remains essentially “undiscovered” – like the Alps must have been in the nineteenth century.

Equally exploratory in mood are the great southern routes beyond – and across – the Atlas, amid the oases of the pre-Sahara. Major routes here can be travelled by bus, minor ones by rented car or local taxi, the really remote ones by four-wheel-drive vehicles or by getting lifts on local camions (lorries), sharing space with the market produce and livestock.

The oases, around Tinerhir, Zagora and Erfoud, or (for the committed) Tata or Figuig, are classic images of the Arab world, vast palmeries stretching into desert horizons. Equally memorable is the architecture that they share with the Atlas – bizarre and fabulous pisé (mud) kasbahs and ksour, with Gothic-looking turrets and multi-patterned walls.

Further south, you can follow a route through the Western Sahara all the way down to Dakhla, just 20km short of the Tropic of Cancer, where the weather is scorching even in midwinter.

memorable is the architecture that they share with the Atlas – bizarre and fabulous pisé (mud) kasbahs and ksour, with Gothic-looking turrets and multi-patterned walls.

Further south, you can follow a route through the Western Sahara all the way down to Dakhla, just 20km short of the Tropic of Cancer, where the weather is scorching even in midwinter.

When rain falls in the winter in the Anti-Atlas Mountains of south-western Morocco,

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Things fall apart; the center cannot hold
– W.B. Yeats, “The Second Coming” (1921)

When rain falls in the winter in the Anti-Atlas Mountains of south-western Morocco, almond and wild pistachio trees bloom in the spring, their foliage dusted with dirt as the heat increases in summer. Juniper bushes dot the mountainside. In the summer the heat obscures the height of Adrar Tisfane (Mount Tisfane) to the west and Adrar Toubqal to the north. In the dead of winter, the peaks punctuate the bright blue sky, and the late afternoon light tinges the walls and earth a deep salmon.

Most years, in both the Anti-Atlas Mountains and the Souss Valley, rain is scarce or absent altogether, heat is dense, and dust covers everything.

Brushing off the dust – from floors, tea glasses, clothes – is constant and instinctual, like waving at a fl y on your lip, but just as futile. Some areas of the mountains are blessed with scattered almond or Argan trees, and when it rains, fields of barley sprout bright green in the spring. Most years, however, drought prevents even a modest harvest, and everything in sight is the color of parched earth. Resident women curse global warming, believing what they have heard on the radio about the earth getting hotter as evidence of their wretched lot and fuel for their desire to leave for the city.

You scan the dry landscape for flora, and notice the telephone and electricity poles that pass through the countryside without servicing it, en route to the towns. You notice the pink and yellow-painted cinder block houses, the half-constructed villas that encircle the stone villages. Then you wonder where the men are. Boys leave for the cities by the time they reach adolescence, joining the men who did the same in their youth. Women are alone with each other, their daughters, their young sons, and their daughters-in-law in these dry mountains. In the mornings, they collect fodder and wood, dressed in ankle-length navy wraps (tamlh.aft-s) over layers of colorful dresses, skirts, and pants, their heads wrapped in more color or in the traditional black. In the late afternoon sun, they perch like multicolored birds on the door stoops, chatting in the long shadows of their stone houses. Children scamper about or cling to their mothers’ backs if they are too young to play.

The omnipresent mountain woman at the end of the twentieth century was iconic of the Ashelhi Berber ethno-linguistic group, an entity for whom both language and land have become contested terrain in this post nationalist phase of the post-Independence period following the French Protectorate (1912–56). For both emigrant men in the cities and the broader Moroccan citizenry, the Berber woman came to personify the rugged, stoic, yet vulnerable homeland and its inseparable twin: the persistent, ancient, hearty, yet threatened language. In this set of associations, women effectively acted not only for themselves and their families, but also for the whole of the ethno-linguistic group. Women bore both the material and symbolic responsibilities for maintaining the land and the Tashelhit Berber language so closely associated with it. Emigrant men leaving the mountains for the cities, in particular, demonstrated to me that they considered the Tashelhit language as key to a moral universe whose values were expressed in talk, song, and non-verbal behavior, attesting to men’s continued relevance despite their infrequent presence in the tamazirt (homeland, countryside or rural place; pl. timizar). Through their native language, emigrant men maintained authority over family and community affairs, marked group boundaries, and delimited a geographical space in which the social and linguistic hierarchies favored them, a sharp contrast with the cities where Arabic held symbolic capital. This order of things entailed both responsibilities and privileges for women, as it became apparent to me during three and a half years of residence in Morocco (1995–9), three of them based in the market town of Taroudant from which I moved into the Anti-Atlas mountains and Sous plains for research and participated in national and religious rituals, agricultural cycles, school years, and life-cycle events such as engagements, weddings, circumcisions, and funerals.

The Moroccan pre-Sahara begins as soon as you cross the Atlas to the south

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Immediately when you arrive in the Sahara, for the first or the tenth time, you notice the stillness. An incredible, absolute silence prevails outside the towns; and within, even in busy places like the markets, there is a hushed quality in the air, as if the quiet were a constant force which, resenting the intrusion of sound, minimizes and disperses it straightaway. Then there is the sky, compared to which all other skies seem faint-hearted efforts. Solid and luminous, it is always the focal point of the landscape.

At sunset, the precise, curved shadow of the earth rises into it swiftly from the horizon, cutting it into light section and dark section. When all daylight has gone, and the space is thick with stars, it is still of an intense and burning blue, darkest directly overhead and paling toward the earth, so that the night never really grows dark..

The Moroccan pre-Sahara begins as soon as you cross the Atlas to the south. It is not sand for the most part – more a wasteland of rock and scrub which the Berbers call hammada – but it is powerfully impressive.

The quote from Paul Bowles may sound over the top, but staying at M’hamid or Merzouga, or just stopping a car on a desert road between towns somehow has this effect.

There is, too, an irresistible sense of wonder as you catch a first glimpse of the great southern river valleys – the Drâa, Dadès, Todra, and Ziz. Long belts of date palm oases, scattered with the fabulous mud architecture of kasbahs and fortified ksour villages, these are the old caravan routes that reached back to Marrakesh and Fes and out across the Sahara to Timbuktu, Niger and old Sudan, carrying gold, slaves and salt well into the nineteenth century. They are beautiful routes, even today, tamed by modern roads and with the oases in decline, and if you’re travelling in Morocco for any length of time, they are a must. The simplest circuits – Marrakesh–Zagora–Marrakesh, or Marrakesh–Tinerhir–Midelt – can be covered in around five days, though to do them any degree of justice you need a lot longer. With ten days or more to spare, the loop from Ouarzazate to Merzouga (via Boumalne and Tinerhir), and thence southwest to Zagora and M’hamid, becomes a possibility, stringing together the region’s main highlights via good roads and dependable transport connections.

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The southern oases were long a mainstay of the pre-colonial economy. Their wealth, and the arrival of tribes from the desert, provided the impetus for two of the great royal dynasties: the Saadians (1154–1669) from the Drâa Valley, and the current ruling family, the Alaouites (1669–present) from the Tafilalt. By the nineteenth century, however, the advance of the Sahara and the uncertain upkeep of the water channels had reduced life to bare subsistence even in the

most fertile strips. Under the French, with the creation of modern industry in the north and the exploitation of phosphates and minerals, they became less and

less significant, while the old caravan routes were dealt a final death blow by the closure of the Algerian border after independence.

Today, there are a few urban centres in the south; Ouarzazate and Er Rachidia are the largest and both were created by the French to “pacify” the south; they seem only to underline the end of an age. Although the date harvests

in October, centred on Erfoud, can still give employment to the ksour communities, the rest of the year sees only the modest production of a handful of crops– henna, barley, citrus fruits and, uniquely, roses – the latter developed by the French around El Kelâa des Mgouna for the production of rose-water and perfume in May. To make matters worse, in recent years the seasonal rains have consistently failed, turning the palmeries pale yellow. Perhaps as much as half

the male population of the region now seeks work in the north for at least part.

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Extreme Adventure Itinerary

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The extreme trips are about exploring new ground in the quest to find a ider variety and more interesting routes. The approach here is that real adventure is about facing unknowns. Sometimes the trip will not go according to plan and often time will be lost due to backtracking from deadend pilot routes. The itinerary therefore needs to remain flexible and the group will have to work together as a team with each member playing their part. Days will be long, camping on route will be the favoured mode of accommodation to maintain flexibilty, and there is the possibility the group will have to face up to unforeseen challenges.

There will be some hotels along the way at key points and time to stop and relax, but this is a more hardcore adventure for the experienced rider who wants to be involved with pioneering a new route over untested ground. Ultimately there should be a sense of acheivement from all the ground covered riding in challenging conditions.

Enduro Adventure Itinerary

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The Eduro Adventure Itinerary is designed for riders with good experience riding off-road and wanting to cover on average of about 200km per day at a steady pace. Full days moving across different landscapes, with some nights camping.

Day 1 – Saturday

Arrive at hotel...
Introductions and brief safety talk

Day 2 - Sunday

150-200km route in and around the Erg Chebbi dunes to get to know the quads and re-familiarise riders with the variety of different terrains they will be facing in the coming week’s tour. Lunch-time stop at the Meski Oasis.

Day 3 - Monday
175-200km route along stoney and sandy pistes towards Zagora, travelling along the border with Algeria in places, where the group will pass several military outposts, hill forts and Berber villages and encampments. The group will need to cross several chotts, (dried river bed or lake) and there is a 10km meteor crater to cross also. The scenery is spectacular and the group will stop to camp that night.

Day 4 - Tuesday
150-200km route from night camp leaving early to make good time so the group can spend the afternoon relaxing by the pool at the hotel in Zagora. The pistes are fast taking the group through the only col (pass), a gateway from the Sahara to the lush oasis of the Draa valley. Zagora is the last major town before crossing the desert to Mauritania.

Day 5 - Wednesday
200km route from Zagora to Mhamid crossing the dunes at Iriki. Navigation is key to avoid the softer sections of sand as the dunes are constantly shifting. The final 10km is a dusty chott that leads into the palm groves of Mhamid where the group will make camp. This is a long and demanding day and depending on progress of the group there is a chance of making camp in the dark.

Day 6 – Thursday
There are 2 routes from night camp to stay in the evening with Berber tribesmen in their tents depending on how riders are fairing. A 175km easier southern route or a 250km route heading north back through the pass from the Sahara to Zagora. The first 100km of the northern route is along rugged mountain tracks and passes, later leading to sandy pistes. If the northern route is taken, it will be an early start and another tough day’s riding.

Day 7 – Friday
175km route back to Merzouga that should ensure an early arrival at the hotel to relax by the pool or do some shopping. Mostly fast sandy pistes with a large chott to cross, covering some of the same sections as day 2.

Day 8 – Saturday
Departure from hotel...

First Adventure Itinerary

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he First Adventure Itinerary is designed for riders with a moderate or limited experience who have not ridden in Morocco. It allows the rider to build a wide experience of different conditions at a suitable pace without the pressure of long days and the need to cover big distances.

Day 1 - Saturday
Arrive at hotel

Day 2 - Sunday
Introduction to the quad bikes, safety equipment and general issues regarding safety
150km round trip to along well defined flat desert tracks to enable riders to get used to the terrain and their equipment. Mid-morning stop at deserted mud village and lunch-time break in the palm groves outside Rissani. Afternoon ride back to hotel, on terrain depending on the progress of the riders

Day 3 - Monday
180km round trip around the Erg Chebbi dunes with a lunch-time stop at Meski Oasis. Riders will experience soft sand conditions and the group will need to navigate around the drifting sand from the dunes. The route passes through a dry river bed where conditions can be equally demanding. Soft clay dust and sand masked by a hard clay crust, or soft mud depending on seasonal changes

Day 4 - Tuesday
150km route to night camp in Bedouin tents with local tribesmen. The ride will build on the experience gained so far.
Day 5 - Wednesday
150km route returning to the hotel closeby the Algerian border
Day 6 - Thursday
Optional rest day for those wanting to take a break from riding with a visit to the souks at Rissani on market day. There will be a lunch organised and the opportunity to shop and browse Moroccan carpets, jewellery and other handicraft.
For others wanting to continue to ride, the consensus will determine a route for this smaller group.

Day 7 - Friday
Riding in the Erg Chebbi dunes, rising before dawn to take advantage or the harder sand conditions. The group will ride into the dunes and learn about navigating a course across this extreme landscape, returning to the hotel for lunch. Those wishing to explore the dunes further can opt to go on an evening trip after the heat of the day.

Day 8 - Saturday
Departure

Trips and Itineraries_Morocco Winter Trips

2009-10-09T05:00:00.000-07:00

Morocco Winter Trips
October to May avoids the intense heat of the deserts south of the Atlas mountains. Here you will find huge baron landscapes punctuated with oases and fertile palm valleys where nomadic tribesmen have traded for centuries. A unique experience which is different to anything else you will encounter, big long tracks and mountainous sandy dunes.

Itinerary - First Adventure
Itinerary - Enduro Adventure
Itinerary - Extreme Adventure

Morocco Summer and Winter Trips are 6 days riding with collections from Alicante and Almeria, Spain, group collections can be arranged from Marrakech.

Geotag Icon Spotlight: all about argan

2009-10-08T21:01:00.000-07:00

Throughout this journey, we will be documenting people, projects and ideas that we find inspiring – whether they relate to climate change, agriculture, rural transport, cooperative projects, human rights or humanitarian welfare (or anything else that interests us!) – in a series called “spotlight”. Here’s the first: on the argan tree, the women’s cooperatives who extract oil from it, and the tree’s importance in preventing desertification. If you like, you can listen to some audio we recorded in one of the cooperatives (”The merry nutcrackers“) as you

Towards the south of Morocco, away from the irrigated farmland of the north and its crops of potatoes, sugar cane, cereals, tomatoes, strawberries and field scale vegetables, we entered an area dominated by cereal production and extensive livestock farming (sheep, cattle and goats). Here, we regularly passed farmers carrying milk churns balanced between their legs as they drove their little Peugeot scooters to the local dairy co-operative. Threshing machines chugged away next to big stacks of cereals, which were transported there by tractor, donkey or camel.

Argan trees Listen to Africa

Still further south, the mixed livestock gave way to goats, who are able to survive on the scrubby shrubs and trees found in this arid region. We spent many hours in the shade of thorny trees, sitting out the heat of the day, listening to larks singing away and watching goats climb the trees to reach their fruits. Having more than a passing interest in most (all!) things agricultural and natural, we set about finding out more about the trees. All the trees and bushes were the same species and, not recognising them, the first thing to find out was what they were. The first person we asked told us they were argan trees, and he went on to explain that oil is extracted from the seed by women, and is used for cooking, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

The argan tree (Argania spinosa) is a slow growing, spiny tree or shrub (growing up to 7-10 metres) endemic to south-western Morocco where it grows over an area of about 320,000 square miles.

As well as producing oil, the trees themselves provide forage for animals (the climbing goats) and fire wood for local communities. The waste pulp from the extraction process makes a highly palatable animal feed. It’s very much a multi use tree, and it plays an important part in the local economy, providing a much needed income for rural households.

Goats grazing under argan trees. Listen to Africa

Its roots consolidate the soil and its canopy provides shade for other plants and crops, helping to maintain soil fertility and structure, and reducing soil erosion by wind and (infrequent but heavy) rainfall. As such, it’s important in the battle against desertification and, to a certain degree, in mitigating the effects of climate change. The production of argan oil has been taking place for centuries on a small cottage industry scale and, traditionally, women have always done the processing – an extremely labour intensive job. Nowadays, oil production has largely moved from homesteads to women’s cooperatives, and this pooling of resources and cooperative investment is helping to create a thriving industry in the arid south-west of Morocco, making a significant contribution to the economy and living standards in the region. The highly marketable products are sold in upmarket retail outlets around the world.

Traditional method of extracting argan oil

Argan oil is extracted from the kernel of the fruits of the argan tree. This labour intensive process starts with the removal of the outer layer of the ripe fruit to extract the nut, either by hand or by feeding the fruit to goats and removing the undigested nut from the dung. The nuts are then cracked using a small rock as a hammer against a larger rock (anvil) to remove the oil-bearing kernel. The kernels are air dried in clay containers, lightly roasted, left to cool and then ground into a paste using a hand turned mill. This paste is mixed with water and hand squeezed to extract the emulsion. Due to the high water content, the oil doesn’t keep well, so it need to be pressed regularly and have salt added to preserve it. While this method is still used for home consumption, the inconsistency of the end product means that most commercial production is now carried out in cooperatives.

Cooperative method of extracting argan oil

With the pooling of resources and the ability to collectively invest, some of the production stages in cooperatives have been mechanised, allowing a greater output and a more consistent end product. This volume of production has allowed rural women to market their products nationally and globally, command higher prices and significantly increase their income. The following is an indicative example of the production in one of the cooperatives, but levels of mechanisation vary.

The removal of the outer fruit on the whole has been mechanised, so after harvesting, the manual work starts with the cracking of the nut. This is done in large rooms with sometimes dozens of women sitting on cushions, all with their own sacks of nuts in front of them, tapping away with a rock at an incredible speed to extract the kernels.

The room is filled with the sound of the rhythmic tapping and constant chatting, turning this lengthy part of the process from a solitary or small group task into communal and sociable work. At the end of the day each person has their kernels weighed and logged in a ledger. The women are free to work for as long or as little as they want or can, allowing them to fit the work around their other commitments.

After the kernels have been extracted, cooking grade oil is lightly roasted and then ground into a paste (most co-ops have mechanised this step). The paste is then mechanically pressed, meaning there is no need to add water and the purer oil produced is then filtered and bottled. Oil for cosmetic products is not roasted, but is pressed and filtered before being processed into the end products.

In recent decades, there has been a decline in argan trees, due partly to several years of lower than average rainfall and partly to population pressure, especially overgrazing by livestock and firewood collecting. But the population view the argan tree as a valuable resource worth protecting. Replanting programmes have now been introduced and, although initially these weren’t altogether successful (due to inappropriate management), they’re now improving. This, along with the increasing marketing of the oil and cosmetics as a high quality product in a world market, means the future looks promising for argan.

Sahara, brief view

2009-10-08T05:16:00.000-07:00

Sahara[Arab.,=desert], world's largest desert, c.3,500,000 sq mi (9,065,000 sq km), N Africa; the western part of a great arid zone that continues into SW Asia. Extending more than 3,000 mi (4,830 km), from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea, the Sahara is bounded on the N by the Atlas Mts., steppelands, and the Mediterranean Sea; it stretches south c.1,200 mi (1,930 km) to the Sahel , a steppe in W and central Africa that forms its southern border. The desert includes most of Western Sahara, Mauritania, Algeria, Niger, Libya, and Egypt; the southern portions of Morocco and Tunisia; and the northern portions of Senegal, Mali, Chad, and Sudan. The E Sahara is usually divided into three regions—the Libyan Desert , which extends west from the Nile valley through W Egypt and E Libya; the Arabian Desert , or Eastern Desert, which lies between the Nile valley and the Red Sea in Egypt; and the Nubian Desert , which is in NE Sudan.

Regions of sand dunes (erg) occupy only about 15% of the Sahara; "stone deserts," consisting of plateaus of denuded rock (hammada) or areas of coarse gravel (reg), cover about 70% of the region; mountains, oases, and transition zones account for the remainder. Sparse vegetation is found in most parts of the Sahara, with the exception of the sand dune regions. High mountain massifs rise in the central regions; they are the Ahagger (Hoggar) in S Algeria, which rises to more than 9,000 ft (2,740 m); the Tibesti Massif in N Chad, which rises to more than 11,000 ft (3,350 m); and the Aïr Mountains (Azbine) in N Niger, which rise to more than 6,000 ft (1,830 m). The mountains are deeply dissected and were in the past infamous for the shelter they provided to marauders preying on desert traffic. From west to east the four principal land routes across the desert are from Colomb-Bechar to Dakar; from Colomb-Bechar to Gao and Timbuktu by way of Reganne; from Touggourt to Agadez and Kano by way of In-Salah; and from Tripoli to Ghat.

Climate

The Sahara has one of the harshest climates in the world. Located in the trade winds belt, the region is subject to winds that are frequently strong and that blow constantly from the northeast between a subtropical high-pressure cell and an equatorial low-pressure cell. As air moves downward from the high-pressure into the low-pressure cell, it becomes warmer and drier. The desiccating and dust-laden winds are sometimes felt north and south of the desert, where they are variously known as sirocco, khamsin, simoom, and harmattan. The northern slopes of the Atlas Mts. intercept most of the moisture from winds blowing inshore from the Mediterranean Sea.

Border zones on the north and south, where the desert merges with the steppe, receive about 10 in. (25 cm) of rain a year with some seasonal regularity, but over most of the region rainfall is sparser, with an average annual total of less than 5 in. (12.7 cm); rainfall is usually torrential when it occurs after long dry periods that sometimes last for years. The region's low relative humidity rarely exceeds 30% and is often in the 4% to 5% range.

Daytime temperatures are high; Azizia, Libya, recorded the world's highest official temperature in the shade (136°F/58°C) in Sept., 1922. Heat loss is rapid at night and a diurnal range of 86°F (30°C) is common. Freezing temperatures are not uncommon at night from December to February.

Water and Other Resources

The Nile and Niger rivers, both fed by rains outside the desert, are the only permanent rivers in the region. Water is present at or just below the surface gravel in wadis (intermittent streams) that radiate from the mountain massifs, in scattered oases where the water table comes to the surface, and at greater depths in huge underground aquifers. The aquifers are believed to be filled with water dating from the Pleistocene epoch, when the Sahara was much wetter than it is today. The more than 20 lakes (called chotts in the north) and areas of salt flats and boggy salt marshes are also considered relics from this pluvial period.

Important discoveries of minerals, oil, and gas have been made in the Sahara. There are huge oil and gas deposits in Algeria and Libya, but in most cases, inaccessibility has delayed exploitation. In searching for oil reserves, underground deposits of water also have been found. Extensive iron ore deposits are worked in the Fort Gouraud area of Mauritania. Salt is still mined, as in the past, at Taoudenni, Mali, and at Bilma, Niger, and is transported, as in the days of the great medieval kingdoms of W Africa, by camel caravans across the desert.

People

Two thirds of the Sahara's estimated 2 million inhabitants (excluding those in the Nile valley) are concentrated in oases where date palms, fruits, vegetables, grains, and other crops are produced under irrigation. Nomads, with herds of sheep and goats and with camels for transportation, predominate in drier areas and continue to use oases (including modern oases created by the drilling of wells), as in centuries past, for water, trade, and provisioning stops. The principal ethnic groups of the Sahara are the Tuareg (of Berber origin), who dominate the mountains of the central Sahara; the peoples of mixed Berber and Arab origin in W Sahara; and the Tibu (Tébu), who dominate the Tibesti Massif.

History

The Sahara has undergone a series of wet periods, the most recent occurring c.5,000-10,000 years ago; it was not until c.3000 BC that the Sahara transformed into its present arid state. There is dispute as to whether the desertification of the region has continued into historic time. Those who support this theory contend that increasing aridity is the reason for the recorded advance of desert conditions into areas under cultivation in Roman times in the north and more recently (since the late 1960s) in the south. Opponents of this view explain such changes as being the result of alterations in land-use practices and neglect of water-supply and irrigation systems.

The camel was introduced probably in the 1st cent. AD and facilitated occupation by nomads (first the Berbers, later the Arabs), who lived in interdependence with the oasis dwellers, providing protection against enemies in exchange for supplies of food and water. A profitable trans-Saharan trade in gold and slaves from W Africa, salt from the desert, and cloth and other products from the cities on the Mediterranean coast was carried on by the nomads. The first European explorers to travel in the Sahara were Friedrich Horneman in 1805 and Mungo Par

k in 1806. Some areas of the Sahara remain virtually unexplored, although a network of air and automobile routes now crosses the desert and links the major oases and mining areas.

Source:

See C. Kruger et al., Sahara (tr. 1969); M. Williams and H. Faure, ed., The Sahara and the Nile: Quarternary Environments and Prehistoric Occupation in Northern Africa (1980); J. Cloudsley-Thompson, ed., Key Environments: Sahara Desert (1984); E. Gautier, Sahara (1987).

The Sahara desert of Morocco

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The Sahara is the world's largest desert. Only a small part of the Sahara is fertile and it is here that corn, dates and other fruits grow. These parts are fed by underground rivers and oases. The Sahara can be an inspirational experience at night, with the air being crisp, clean and clear and the stars being so close you can almost touch them. The desert also has a deafening silence at night. The Sahara desert stretches across much of North Africa covering over 9 000 000 square kilometers (roughly the size of the United States). In fact, the Sahara covers some 30% of the entire African continent. It is the hottest place in the world with summer temperatures that often exceeds 57 degrees Celsius. It has an annual rainfall of 0 - 25 millimeters and is very windy with windstorms sweeping the sand up to heights of 1000 meters and moving the sand dunes constantly.

The Sahara consists of one quarter volcanic mountains, one quarter sand, rocks and gravel-covered plains and small areas of vast permanent vegetation. The vegetation includes shrubs, grasses, and trees in the highland and in the oases along the river beds. Some of the plants are well adjusted to the climate since they sprout within three days of rain and sow their seeds within two weeks after that.

Animals in the Sahara are mainly Gerbils, Cape Hare, Deer, Weasels, Baboons, Jackals, Sand Foxes, Mongooses, Desert Hedgehogs and over 300 bird species.

The following towns and villages are located in the Sahara of Morocco:

Tata: Located where the desert meets the mountains, this small desert town has the reputation for being the hottest town in Morocco.

Tleta Tagmout: A desert oasis

Foum Zguid: Located where the Jebel Bani range meets the desert, this charming desert town boasts one of the largest palm groves in Morocco.

Zagora: Located in the magnificent Drâa Valley, this town is a popular starting for camel excursions into the desert. A sign proclaiming that it is 52 days to Timbuktu is one of the most photographed features of the town.

Tinfou: This small town is located along the Draa Valley route where the stony ground gives way to the sand-dunes of the desert.

Erg Chebbi: This settlement in the dunes of the Sahara offers basic tourist facilities for visitors exploring the enormous sand dunes.

Ouarzazate: Catering for the tourist trade, Ouarzazate has a number of hotels and visitors enjoy the typical Moroccan market in the city center. The Kasbah is beautifully preserved and gives in interesting glimpse into the lives of the people who live there.

Rissani: Also known as Tafilalt, a cluster of small villages around the town of Rissani, is located along the last stretch of the Ziz valley. The region has a long and fascinating history and was a kingdom separate from Morocco between the 8th and 14th centuries.

Merzouga: Located at the start of the oasis zone, inhabitants tap the underground water sources for drinking and irrigation purposes, and the area around the town is well cultivated.

Erfoud: This small oasis town is used by many travelers as a base for exploring the beautiful Ziz valley.

Popular activities in the Sahara include sunrise and sunset camel rides over the dunes, sleeping out under the desert skies, ATV/4X4 trips, visiting traditional Berber villages, dune-boarding.