Mountaineering in the Moroccan High Atlas. Des Clark

Brown (3 Links Place, Burntisland, Fife KY3 9DY 01592 873546), who has been exploring the High Atlas for the past 40 years.

      The difficulties, therefore, involved in planning a route that includes summits outside the Toubkal and Mgoun massifs should be clear. On the basis that you will have no maps to hand except for these two regions, route descriptions are supplemented in this guidebook by an outline sketch map and, where appropriate, photographic diagrams. These sketches and photos are not intended as aids to detailed navigation, nor can they be used to go off on a side-route, as they cover only the main topographical features of the route in question and any necessary escape routes. They are, however, intended to be sufficient for completing the route when used in conjunction with the route description.

Tourist Information

      There is a tourist office (Délégation du Tourisme) run by the Office National Marocain du Tourisme (ONMT) in most cities, and sometimes in smaller towns a locally funded Syndicat d'Initiative. They stock leaflets and maps, and can point you in the direction of official guides. In addition there are official mountain Bureau des Guides in Imlil, Midelt and Tabant (Ait Bougammez). The busiest, without doubt, is the Imlil office. As they are in the business of supplying a guide for you and helping sort out your logistical requirements, any ‘free’ information is limited.

      Other sources of information are available online

       Imlil www.imlil.org

       Toubkal www.toubkalmountainguides.blogspot.com

       other areas www.nomadicmorocco.blogspot.com.

      Telephone codes

      The landline local code for Taroudant is 0528; Marrakech 0524; and Midelt 0535.

      These are all then followed by a six-digit number.

      Moroccan mobiles have a 06xx local code followed by a six-digit number.

      If dialling from abroad, the international code for Morocco is +212 and the ‘0’ in the local code is dropped.

Getting to Morocco

      Access to Morocco from the UK, Ireland and mainland Europe is becoming increasingly easy, with budget airlines such as Ryanair and easy- Jet flying into Marrakech and Agadir from a number of UK and European airports. Travellers from the US could take the Royal Air Maroc flight from JFK to Casablanca, but it would be far cheaper to fly to the UK or Europe and take a connecting flight to Morocco.

      There are three base towns for all the routes described in this guide – Taroudant on the south-west end of the range; Marrakech west of centre on the northern side; and Midelt on the north-eastern fringe. The airport in Agadir is best for Taroudant, as driving time is less than 1hr. Marrakech has its own airport about 15mins drive from the city, which is very convenient. Alternatively you can fly into Casablanca, but this will add 3-4hrs to your travel time if your final destination is Marrakech, and a further 3hrs if your destination is Taroudant. For Midelt fly into either Fez or Marrakech (Fez is nearer but not very well served by flights).

      There is an airport in Ouarzazate that has direct connections with Paris Orly. However it is really a desert access airport and is of limited use for mountain routes, other than for southern approaches to Mgoun.

      For those with some time on their hands, an attractive overland option involves taking a ferry across the Straits of Gibraltar to Tangier and from there either driving overland or getting a train (www.oncf.ma) down to Marrakech.

      Tizi n-Test road – caution required!

Getting Around Morocco

      This is where the adventure often starts! There are a number of options for travel within the country and to/from the mountains. A lot will depend on your objectives, available time, budget and safety boundaries. Depending on your final destination, you may require a combination of different modes of transport, unless you are self-driving.

      Self-drive

      The most flexible choice, and the one that will enable you to drive almost anywhere you want to in the country, Tizi n-Test road – caution required! is to have a 4x4 at your disposal. Some people drive overland from the UK or mainland Europe, if they have the time available to do this. Others hire a 4x4 in the country. However, driving in Morocco requires constant vigilance (with hazards ranging from drivers weaving through the traffic, horns blaring, to unlit bicycles and donkeys in the dark), and distances take far longer to drive than they would on European motorways or autoroutes. Do not underestimate this in your overall planning. If your party is small in number, hiring a vehicle may be the most expensive (and tiring) option. However, diesel costs are reasonable (at the time of writing just over 7dh per litre), so this may compensate for the hire cost and for the long distances you may end up driving.

      If you are driving your own vehicle into Morocco, you need to carry all your car registration papers, in addition to your insurance certificate, green card and national driving licence. It is also important to note that whoever is recorded as the person driving the vehicle into the country must be the same person that drives the vehicle out. This is a Moroccan government attempt to stop cars being sold illegally in the country. This is particularly relevant if that driver sustains an injury and has to be flown out early, in which case a lot of paperwork will be required.

      Hiring a 4 × 4 in the country is commonly done. It is not cheap (around 1000dh per day), but if this is divided between four or more people the cost can be fairly reasonable. There are many local agencies to be found in the larger cities, and the usual well-known international companies (with whom you can usually pre-book) are located at the airports.

      Make sure you are satisfied with the mechanical condition of the car before you leave, that there is both a spare tyre and the tools to change a wheel in the event of a puncture, and that any pre-existing bumps and scrapes are noted and agreed. Also, make sure you have an emergency contact number to use in case the car does break down.

      Taxis

      In all the main towns and cities, petit taxis operate within a certain radius of the town centre. The charges are distance based or, in the case of smaller towns, a flat fee applies. These taxis, usually Fiat Unos or Peugeot 205s, are licensed to take a maximum of three passengers and have a limited amount of baggage space.

      Grand taxis, typically large Mercedes that have been well run in, operate on a collective inter-city or town basis, with fixed fees applying. These charges are based on six paying passengers (two sharing the front passenger seat and four in the rear). Every town has its own colour – Agadir white, Marrakech beige, for example – so it is easy to recognise where taxis are from. If you do not want to wait for a full complement of six people to turn up for your chosen destination, or if you would like more room, you can opt to buy as many seat places as you like, even up to an entire taxi. If you are sharing with locals and you pay for two places, you can choose where to sit. However, opting to have the front seat all to yourself may not be the safest, as there are often no seatbelts in grand taxis. You may feel it is better to have more space in the back!

      Unfortunately, one of the most frequented destinations for tourists from Marrakech, that of Imlil, has no regular collective grand taxi route, so it is up to you to negotiate a fare. The time of day, and whether it is a Marrakech taxi going out or an Imlil taxi returning, will influence the price. Guide prices are anywhere from 250dh to 350dh for the entire taxi, one way. Alternatively, you can travel as far as Asni in a collective grand taxi for a fraction of the Imlil price, and from there negotiate local transport to take you the 17km up the valley.

      Mountain piste

      Most towns have one grand taxi place, but