Blogs from Anti-Atlas, Morocco, Africa

We breakfast on the roof terrace in Marrakesh, a typical Moroccan breakfast of coffee, yoghurt, orange juice, with Moroccan pancakes (disappointing as usual) and bread. As we are getting up to leave “You like omelette?” so we sat down again. We eventually set off with our driver and our guide Houssain, driving through the posh end of town and heading south east under a leaden sky across a fairly arid, flat landscape dotted with scrubby trees, the Atlas mountains rising up in the distance. There are numerous part-started developments for resorts and housing estates, all semi-abandoned. Everything is terracotta or ochre coloured, all building are square and angular. After an hour or so we start to climb and twist our way up the road. It starts to rain a little and the wind is really strong. ... read more

Getting out of bed to get dressed in our desert tent is definitely not fun. It’s bitterly cold, around or below freezing. But we have brought multiple layers to keep warm – thermal t-shirt, shirt, cashmere sweater, fleece jacket, shell jacket, hat, scarf and gloves. No thought of taking a shower, just put clothes on as fast as humanly possible and stagger up the dune to watch the sun rise, this time in perfect peace. We all head back to the main tent for breakfast, and huddle round the single patio heater, hands raised to the heat element as if worshipping a new pagan god of heat. We opt to return by 4x4 rather than camel, as David is keen to see what a 4x4 can do in the sand. The answer is impressive, though not ... read more

The day dawns bright but cold, like fleece cold......we set off south east towards Skoura. This is a five hour drive, first across the plain and then up into the High Atlas. All does not go according to plan. The plain is dotted with miles of olive tree plantations. In the distance the mountains can be seen, the highest peak rising to around 10,000 feet. Morocco has the third highest peak in Africa. All along the route are hundreds of Gendarmerie Royale. The King is on the move today, apparently. He is either going to visit his people somewhere, which he often does, or else he is off hunting as he likes to shoot gazelle and sangliers. Anyway, all the senior brass are out as well, resplendent in their uniforms and gaudy braid. Maybe he will ... read more

I 'm tired ! Last night we stayed in a BEDOUIN camp in the Sahara desert . Our transportation into the desert was via camel ...The ship of the desert they say . I say a rather cumbersome beast who has an I credible sway when he walks which of course causes the rider to sway as well . His breadth is WIDE , REALLY and there is no where for your legs except to let them dangle.Trying too bend my knees and lift my legs just caused them to shiver and left me feeling more insecure . Going up and down the dunes was a challenge , leaning forward and hanging on for dear life going up and leaning back going down both required my whole attention. BUT it was worth it . Our night ... read more

So today's the big day. I have done most of the planning for the trip but Becs decided to intervene and fill in some of the gaps. I've briefed the kids and we will be looking for any "sub-optimal" experiences. Schtooky (phonetic) our driver turns up on time to take us to the Sahara, although we are stopping tonight at Kasbah Azul. I'm reasonably impressed as the Schtookster picked us up in a Toyota Landcruiser (although it was really a Prado and it only had 4 cylinders). It will take us about 9 hours all up to get to the Sahara and as we will be mainly snoozing in the car I've decided to combine both days. We drive through the High Atlas Mountains, the Ounila Valley and the Dra Valley which is home to 3 ... read more