Morocco (Apr 24)
A trip full of contrasts, hidden treasures and surprises.
We top and tailed a hiking trip to the High Atlas Mountains with visits either side to Marrakech and since we needed clothes for all seasons (+36° and -8°) we took hold baggage for the first time in a while.
It was Emma’s first time here and we wanted to do something special, so I reached out to the guide I met when I last visited and he helped me to work up an itinerary with a difference. It turned out to be a special trip with some fantastic experiences.
Marrakech
We had a little taste of luxury for the first couple of days, and booked into a spa-based riad in the heart of the Medina. I had spent a while searching online for the perfect place for us to start and can see why it gets great reviews. We chose well!
It’s not every place you arrive to find a heart shaped rose petal arrangement on your bed, and we even got a complimentary upgrade to a first floor room with a balcony overlooking the spa pool – result!
Once here, we visited some old haunts I’d been to before and acclimatised ourselves to the high intensity of this amazing city.
Stepping outside the tranquility of the Riad into the bustling alleyways of the Medina, it was as crazy as I recalled from my last trip. Donkeys, carts, motorbikes, handcarts, bicycles, and people merge in an organic moving mass of life. It’s a sight and a feeling I’ve not experienced anywhere else, a total assault on your senses.
The first few days we explored the Medina, Koutoubia, adjoining park, and Bahia Palace, all of which were stunning, and despite being Easter we found plenty of elbow room in the top spots.
We used a map we’d been given to navigate around the alleyways, which were full of the Marrakech mayhem we quickly got used to. Google maps helped too, but we often found ourselves walking blindly into narrow streets – sometimes these were the best finds.
The food here is amazing, and the small (often family run) riads usually ask you to book a day in advance so they can source fresh food from the markets for your evening meal.
We headed off to Cafe Arabe, one of my favourite Marrakech restaurants; it has an Italian/Mediterranean spin and good value “local” Moroccan wine which we ended top drinking far too much of, after bumping into a lovely couple, Ildar and Daria who live in Spain…. This venue has a habit of brining people together :).
Atlas Mountains and Toubkal
After Breakfast and bang on time, our guide, Abdullah Idmansour met us at our riad and we headed to the awaiting car which was parked on the edge of Jemaa el-Fnaa square. We climbed in and set off for the mountains!
With Marrakech basking in 36 degree heat on the day we left, it was difficult to comprehend the vast temperature difference as well as tempo change we were about to experience in the mountains. A totally different world!
This phase of the trip saw us staying for two nights at Abdul’s brothers guest house in the tiny village of Aroumd (near Imlil) and one night at Mount Toubkal Base-camp.
Evidence of the recent Earthquake was all around with some of the houses badly affected and needing to be completely rebuilt. But life goes on, and tourism and travel play an important role in the rebuilding process – part of the reason we chose to come here. Adbul’s family mostly live in the local area, although he moved to Marrakech with his family just ahead of the quake in September.
While walking around the village we got chatting to Mariam a local girl escorting her much younger brother Waseem back from school. Like kids the world over, he was dragging his feet and having a strop!
Being April, Mount Toubkal, at 4,167m or 13,671ft turned out a lot harder to “trek” than we had anticipated; It is over three times higher than Ben Nevis, and not yet summer, so we needed ice crampons and sticks for the terrain and multiple layers and skiwear to cope with the temperatures.
The first two days of hiking were relatively easy, Imlil to Aroumd was followed by Aroumd to Toubkal Basecamp at over 3,207m.
We left the village and headed upwards towards the vast national park of the Toubkal region. Apple and cherry blossom was everywhere. It was an incredibly peaceful morning.
The sky was an intense blue, the views were incredible. We stopped on a couple of occasions to grab a coffee where huts had sprung up to capture trekkers on their way to basecamp. And we had the most amazing meal as the snow line came down to meet us. Lamb meatball Tagine with oodles of macaroni (not like I remember from school) with salad and bread.
Base camp was full of people who had already climbed or were about to climb Toubkal. The log burners were pumping out heat given the icy temperatures outside, and people were snoozing in their dorm beds to either recover from, or prepare for the assent. We grabbed a meal and went to bed early…
Things got serious on day three!
After a 2.30am breakfast we donned our head torches and strapped on our crampons and headed for the summit.
I’ve done this route before, but this was a LOT harder given the sub zero temperatures and conditions. So while most (sane) people were still in their beds, we ended up scaling North Africa’s highest peak in what I at least consider to be quite challenging conditions – especially for two people a lot closer to 60 years than 50! This is not something you do every day!
Twelve hours later we were still hiking, managing to clock up almost 36,000 steps in that one day alone!
Some people were better prepared than others, but all looked like they were off skiing. It might take Emma a little while to go on another mountain climb with me!
On the final day of the hike we shared a Ramadan end-of-fast evening meal with Abdul’s mother and father, which had been lovingly prepared for us to consume after sunset. We both slept well that night!
Day 4 – an unplanned tour
Back at Aroumd, we were greeted with the most amazing morning breakfast on the rooftop of Abdul’s brother’s guesthouse. The clouds which had formed at the base of the Imlil valley gave us a beautiful natural display, occasionally rolling upwards, and engulfing us completely before disappearing as quickly as they had formed to provide us with views of the peaks we’d walked the day before. It was magical and a great way to start the day.
Adbul then gave us a few options to give our legs a rest and veer away from the planned “fourth” day of hiking. It was a good shout, and something I think we all needed!
We looked on a map and agreed a day’s driving route that took us to via Asni to the foothills of the Atlas Mountains and Lake Lalla Takerkoust, via isolated villages on the high plains.
We visited a local souk and felt like a pair of lone europeans in a sea of locals. It was just what the doctor ordered, given our legs were still buzzing from the previous three days effort.
Return to Marrakech
We checked into our riad (another lucky find) and headed straight for the day beds and plunge pool on the roof for a few hours.
The 36° heat had reduced to a more comfortable temperature somewhere in the mid 20s so we were able to wander the streets and visit a few museums and relax back at the spa with a hammam before seeking out an evening meal back at Cafe Arabe where we tried the plush ground floor restaurant rather then the rooftop bar.
We were attended to by the same waiter who served us earlier in the week, an absolute gentleman, attentive multilingual and honest chap, who rescued and then returned my “good” camera that I’d accidentally left behind during our previous visit.
…..and the next evening, the more highly priced Kabana Rooftop bar with its spectacular views of the Koutoubia. The location is great, and it’s a big draw for Europeans staying open until 2am.
Our final day and having a few Dirham left in our wallet, Emma went off to practice her haggling and price negotiation skills with some local traders we found making jewellery in one of the many side street markets… they were as amused as Emma was bemused by the whole experience.
This place is amazing. So friendly and very different to Europe in culture, food, religion and experience. I really do love Marrakech, and everything that comes with it, including our airport return taxi driver who rocked up a little late because of traffic. It resulted in a speedy journey across town, weaving in and out of non existing gaps in the narrow lanes of the Medina and making up for lost time. Our riad host was delightful and did a great job in assuring us (well me) that we had plenty of time and needn’t worry – she was of course completely right. The driver was awesome!
Hints, tips and contacts.
Guide – Abdullah Idmansour WhatsApp +212 671-678898
RIAD 1 – Riad Jardin Des Sens & Spa (151 et 151 bis derb Jdid, Dabachi Médina, Medina, 40000 Marrakech, Morocco).
RIAD 2 – Livia (36 SIDI AYOUB DERB EL ARSA, Medina, 40000 Marrakech, Morocco) – Book direct (ie not via Booking.com, and you can get €20 food and drinks voucher, so works out cheaper…
Armed Family Lodge +212 671 735905 (armedlodge@gmail.com)