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Published: February 6th 2020
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Leaving Tafraoute
This village still in shade Day 18. 6
thFeb (Thursday)
Up at 7:45, left hotel at 8:15. Got to the small CTM bus office, which was just opening, and met an elderly German couple also going to Agadir. We all weighed our hold bags in for 5Dh each bag & put them in the coach side-boot then sat inside to warm up. It’s quite cool up in Tafraoute in the mornings, it takes quite a while for the sun to clear the surrounding mountains. I had my jumper & coat on… The coach was 10mins past the 9:00 start time, when Maryanne climbed aboard and we set off. I got the feeling that we had waited for her…. She was going to Tiznit, which is a big town on the plain below the mountains, and then heading for the nearby coast.
Great scenery as the sun rose on the mountains and I saw all the bits which were dark when I came
(see photo’s). After 2 hours we began the descent to the plains below and eventually to Tiznit, farewells to Maryanne and we set off for a few miles before stopping at a different service station this time for 20mins. I managed to
grab a croissant and cafe-au-lait, so had breakfast at 11:30. We reached Agadir at around 1:30 so trip took 4hrs 20mins, 4hrs driving.
Roads here are much better than in the UK! Much smoother surfaces, but different widths – the first 10miles or so from Tafraoute were on single track roads around tight bends in a big coach, I saw the place where we grounded on the way here, deep gouges out of the tarmac, I reckon about 6 different ones, so a regular problem. But we got up the bends without a noise. Then the road got wider for another 20 miles or so, not quite double width but nearly. After that it was double width with a white line down middle, and after Tiznit ‘twas a dual carriageway. But, apart from a few river-damaged bits, where we slowed down, it was smooth driving, without a pothole anywhere.
At Agadir Coach Station I bought a ticket to Marrakech on the Supratours Coach (run by same company as railways so will drop me at the train station) I just had to wait until 3pm – 90mins. The German couple could not get a coach to Oarzazate unless they
got a night bus which I have been warned about. They decided to go to Taroudant (which is on the way) rather than spend a night in Agadir. Then it was finding one of the many companies, that each had a booth in a semi-circle as you entered, who were going to Taroudant, they found one eventually at around 2:15. I waited in the upstairs cafe where a cool breeze blew until my coach was due.
About 3 hours, mostly along motorways, no real hills to climb, but a few good views.
I’ve decided to get a day-train tomorrow to Tangier as I didn’t really see it last time, due to the rain. Also it will be cooler. It was 29C in Agadir & Marrakech today, too hot for me. About 20C forecast in Tangier. So I bought a ticket for the 9:50 to Tangier (change at Casablanca), when I got off the coach. Then I walked the 200yards to my hotel and had a shower, ate penne quatro fromage with a sprig of basil in a nearby, up-market joint, whilst watching the compulsory football they seem to like here.
Back to hotel to type this...
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Amy Friedman
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Tagines!
Yes I do! I am all out of tagines.