Blogs from Ourika Valley, Marrakech-Tensift-El Haouz, Morocco, Africa

We left Marrakech around 9:30 am by taxi, with a new driver (the one we had booked had his cousin? take us instead). He turned out to be great, driving carefully and asking politely if we wished to stop at any of the dozens of tourist traps we passed. We did agree to go into an argan oil women's coop, where Lynn bought oil that is maybeargan and had a great 6 minute massage. We arrived in Setti Fadma around 11:30am and were immediately accosted for hotel/guide/restaurant help. We finally escaped and found a hotel for about $35/night. We next set off to do the famed 7 waterfalls hike. There are no signs for the trail which begins somewhere in the maze of riverfront restaurants, and we attracted the attention of a very persistant guide. I ... read more

Plastic bags and bottles littered the road and tossed and bubbled in the river. Blue, green, plastic flags snagged on branches brought down by the last flow from the mountains. Icily grey water was not in fact cold, just plastic strewn. Omar, father of 3 boys who lives 20km out of Marrakech and doesn’t see his wife much, was driving us up to the Atlas Mountains through the Ourika valley. This job meant that he might have to sleep in his shared taxi as he might not be able to get home tonight. As we passed the Formula 2 racing track built on former agricultural land he told us about the new developments and new occupations created by the new King to bring in money. As pleasant as Omar is, he is of course beholden to ... read more

Reservei um passeio as montanhas, nao foi barato, e depois de ter ficado em uma familia, experienciando a vida dos marroquinos, achei que foi bem carinho... MAD500, uns R$100. Incluindo transporte, refeicoes, visitas e "escalada" nas montanhas. Na mesma van, tinha uma familia, pai, mae, filho de 5 e filha de 8 da Belgica e tres americanos (uma mulher e dois homens). Eu me identifiquei com a familia na mesma hora. Primeira parada: casa de moradores locais para cafeh da manha. Como fiquei na casa de moradores locais, nao foi muito novidade. A casa era toda limpa e organizada, na verdade, pronta para os turistas. Cafeh da manha: pao feito na hora num fogao a lenhas, numa tigela de barro, mel, manteiga (feita pelas mulheres da casa) e azeite de oliva (que eh feito pelo vilarejo. ... read more

‘We’re here’, proclaimed the taxi driver, pulling over to the side of the road. ‘Here, really?‘ In our reckoning we must still be about five kilometres short of Imlill, the epicentre of trekking in Morocco’s High Altas mountains. Under the shade of a walnut grove, our guide, cook/muleteer and mule are patiently waiting. After quick introductions our backpacks are strapped onto the mule, along with the food and cooking equipment for the next three days, and with the mule’s cross sectional area almost tripled, our small party sets off. We’re new to trekking, but what we had arranged to do is a three day hike from here (somewhere outside of Imlill) to a small village called Seti Fatma, two valleys away. So with excitement and a little apprehension we head off, following a small track from ... read more

Thursday 3rd March: up bright and early as the tour of the Ourika Valley that we had booked the previous evening required a 9am start at the tour agent's premises near our hotel. We were picked up from there at 9.15am and taken to the tour bus which left Marrakech around 9.30am. There were about 14 people on the bus, of whom 8 were Brits. We headed east out of Marrakech and stopped after half an hour for a “comfort break” and a view of the High Atlas mountains from the roof of a cafe: the view being unfortunately impeded by a strikingly ugly power pylon. Then we headed off towards the foothills and stopped at a viewpoint where we were accosted (almost assaulted) by a couple of hustlers in traditional garb (a hooded kaftan) selling ... read more