Amazing Todra Gorge!

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Continuous steep, high walls make this gorge at the foot of the Atlas Mountains a very impressive place. I could hardly guess my bike would take me this far the first time I glanced at pictures of Todra Gorge in a climbing magazine.

Getting to the gorge in the dark early evening I couldn't really check around for the most convenient available accommodation but Etoile des Gorges soon turned out to be the best choice: friendly staff, great food and good location. I felt at home the nine days I stayed there.

The climbing is great and very diverse. Although I socialized with people in the evenings, I mostly climbed on my own; the first day on routes with very sharp small holds (which is fine by me if they're not steep!) and then several days on a crag where I walked up and had access to six really nice routes. An up-to-date photocopied booklet of topos can be easily purchased from the local guides who are hard to miss. The access to crags is quite straightforward by foot and there's plenty bolted and trad routes to choose from.

I met the French guys Anne and Phillip at the hotel and climbed a six-pitch route with Anne, a strong short climber. Anne didn't seem to get tired but I was down with a cold and got completely exausted by the end of the day. Anne went on to climb a steep 6a+ route when it was already getting dark.

Rosa, Jorge, Abdul, Mohamed and I went to town together to visit a carpetmaker's co-operative in an old kasbah where we had dinner. Rosa did very well bargaining a gorgeous old carpet. Tea and biscuits were delicious and we all shared a large chicken and veg cuscuz, everybody helping themselves out of the same dish, some using their bare hands!

A few times I traveled back to Tinierhir to buy fresh biscuits and bread from a clean, tiny bakery plus fruit, especially tasty mandarinas from the market.

I spent hours chatting over dinner and breakfast with Mark, a fascinating American guy travelling on a big off-road bike, both of us glad to speak a common language. We exchanged travel tips, shared stories, swapped reading books and agreed it would be great to meet up again in the near future, possibly in the States. Mark left in the morning heading south to the Sahara.

I've been meaning to translate this journal into Portuguese so that my mama Clelinha and Brazilian/Portuguese friends can read it. However, mom and friends have been great keeping in touch by email and chatting on msn, which is very encouraging, particularly at moments when the sun is not shining as bright and there's no one there to hug or talk back in a familiar language... Thanks for that, guys!

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Comments

[John]

How intriguing!
Hey, glad you're doing better now. The gorge does look amazing, and it's always good to meet fellow english speakers :)