Archive for January, 2007
Wednesday, January 31st, 2007
96km Rich – Source Bleue de Meski
The wind at our backs and a downhill slant for much of the day helped us cover a good distance, going from the foothills of the High Atlas mountains to the palm tree filled vallies of the desert. The highlight without a doubt was the beautiful Gorges du Ziz, where the fast-flowing river carved out a canyon, lined with lush green banks, before opening out onto a large deep-blue lake. Plenty of cyclists kept us company throughout the route, mostly in the form of local kids trying to keep pace while asking for candy or a pen, but one man had a real passion for biking and talked to us for some time about his trips around Morocco and giving us tips for the road ahead. Late in the afternoon we stopped at the market in Er Rachidia, a bustling town with plenty of cafes and restaurants. While picking up food for the next day another man named Hassan stopped to chat and tell us about his brother, who was also a cycling fanatic and had travelled all over Europe on his bike. It seems Morocco is not short of enthusastic cyclists and in Er Rachidia we were surprised to see government signs advertising construction projects to build more bike lanes. Our day ended at a campsite in an oasis, beautiful surroundings and very peaceful.
1 Comment » - Posted in Cycling Trips, Journal Entries, Morocco by andrew
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
80km Midelt – Rich
Today’s journey took us to a whole new world. After crossing over the High Atlas mountain range at some 1,900 meters we found the sun shining, the weather warmer and the landscape taking on the look of the desert. It was like being on a different planet from Midelt where temperatures were near freezing and the mountains covered in clouds. The hassle factor also made us happy to get out of Midelt. We couldn’t take two steps down the street without being stopped as our bikes are obviously just vessels for carrying pens, cigarettes and dirhams to give away and of course plenty of room for that large fossilised shell they’d like to sell you. In these situations we find ourselves becoming uncharacteristically rude in an attempt just to have a few seconds of peace. Once out of Midelt we rediscovered the tranquil Morocco we so much enjoy and had a nice climb up to the Tizi-n-Talrhemt pass, then down the other side through the mountains and a few tiny villages. A strong headwind meant we had to pedal the whole way, even on the downhill stretches, but the sunshine more than made up for the extra work.
1 Comment » - Posted in Cycling Trips, Journal Entries, Morocco by andrew
Monday, January 29th, 2007
93km Timahdite – Midelt
Travelling in winter is always a bit of a gamble and after watching the news the night before, where they showed pictures of a snowstorm and also the first day of skiing in Ifrane, we weren’t sure what the road held in store for us. Ahead was a mountain pass and the weather certainly had the potential to turn nasty, with some rather large clouds on the horizon. We decided to give it a shot and faced a slow drizzle as we climbed up to Col de Zad at 2,178 meters – our highest pass so far. There is supposed to be a nice view from the peak but the fog was so thick we could hardly see each other, let alone any scenery! The fog soon lifted as we cruised downhill, passing two fellow cycle tourists on their way up. (more…)
1 Comment » - Posted in Cycling Trips, Journal Entries, Morocco by friedel
Sunday, January 28th, 2007
49km Ifrane – Timahdite
The day dawned cold but clear and after a night with bugs in our room and the boom-boom of the hotel dance club we were keen to get out of Ifrane as quickly as possible. We ventured out onto icy roads, which thankfully improved hugely in condition once we were on the main route. Our many layers kept us warm even though the temperatures were near freezing and we made good headway for the first hour, riding through beautiful cedar forests. Just before Azrou we saw a sign pointing to the N13, the road we needed to take, and followed the turnoff, not realising that this was in fact a scenic route and not the main junction. Our first clue might have been the shepherds herding their flocks on the road – something you wouldn’t do on a highway – or maybe we should have thought twice when faced with a steep climb up what amounted to little more than a track. The cold must have gotten to our brains as we carried on faithfully. It made for a tough few kilometers but was at least in part worth the hike over icy dirt roads and through the woods as we enjoyed seeing many monkeys in the trees. As we were taking pictures one monkey got the better of us, having obviously seen a few tourists in his day, he crept towards us and then grabbed a loaf of bread hanging off the back of Friedel’s bike. This little detour took us some time for the distance covered and was exhausting, so by the time we reached the town of Timahdite we were completely shattered. (more…)
1 Comment » - Posted in Cycling Trips, Journal Entries, Morocco by friedel
Saturday, January 27th, 2007
72km Fes – Ifrane
It’s official, we have entered the Moroccan twilight zone. Ifrane, a ski resort town south of Fes, is a place which is absolutely nothing like anything we’ve seen in Morocco so far. Here there are no humble cafes serving pots of tea to the working man or children riding donkeys to get water from the well. No, this is a place where the country’s rich – mostly driving new luxury SUVs – come to be seen in chic cafes and possibly to rub shoulders with the king who has a residence here. Want a Thai beef curry? You can get it in Ifrane. How about a bottle of wine? Ifrane has several bars and a well-stocked liquor store. Want to pay European prices for your groceries? Expensive supermarkets abound. What you can’t get in Ifrane is a decent meal, even at extortionate prices. The tagine we ordered in the Rose restaurant – supposedly recommended by several guides – was possibly the worst we’ve had in Morocco. Hotels under 300DH a night are also hard to come by, nearly double what we paid in Fes. Aside from the king’s patronage, perhaps Ifrane draws its rich customers in because of the beautiful countryside. The town is inside a rather large national park with forests, mountains and lakes, which does make for very enjoyable cycling. The scenery was made even prettier by a snowfall the day before, although this also turned out to be a hazard as mischievous children prepared snowballs by the side of the road. It wasn’t until the early afternoon when someone actually used us as target practice, unfortunately knocking Andrew off his bike and tearing his rain pants. If anyone has tips for repairing ripped Goretex please let us know! Tomorrow we are hoping for another sunny day to allow us to get out of this bizarre Moroccan town.
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