Morocco Today!

Okay its yet another Morocco thread and I'll try and keep it going and make it interesting, but this is my first ride report and my first trip to Morocco. I'm travelling on a year 2000 F650GS Dakar, which, despite its relatively old age has less than 3000 miles on it, due to it having spent most of its life in storage in Melbourne Australia, nothing to do with me, I only bought it last year and all I've done to it to prepare for this trip is change all the fluids, spark plug and fit a carrier and a spare set of wheels with new K60 Scout tyres, because the last thing I want is a punture.

So it was Portsmouth to Santander, ferry was late in, so I was glad I'd booked an overnight in Santander town and what a nice nice town that is, absolutely packed with bars serving tapas.
This was where we left the bikes (the other is an DL650) and directly opposite was the first stop! (that is not me, that's my mate)

Day two was a very wet, windy & cold ride half way across Spain, Day three, the second half, dry and sunny The road was packed with bikes heading for the MotoGP and the cops were out in force, I spotted two of their silver speed camera cars, having learnt to look out for them on a previous trip, when it cost me a 300€ fine! The little GS is going well and yesterday I did a full tank to full tank calculation at 62mpg, not bad for the weight its carrying.
Up early this morning to a fine view of the sunrise over Gibraltar from the terrace, ferry is booked for 1130................

Hi
Thanks for posting your trip report. Have a great trip and I really look forward to reading how the rest of the trip goes.

Derek

7 of my mates got there yesterday. I am very jealous!!

They are renting off road bikes and heading towards the High Atlas.

Sent using a Jedi mind trick!

Well despite rushing to get down to the docks to get the ferry over to Morocco yesterday morning, it was a case of 'hurry up and wait' when we got there. Thought the time went quickly, as we got talking to 3 guys from Argentina on two Triumph 800's and a Crosstourer. They were travelling all round Europe and were only going to Tangier for the day, just so they could say they had been to *the African continent, seems like a waste of time to me, but then why not. They were renting their bikes for 60€ a day.
Also spoke to an American (living in London) who was intending to cycle down to Dakar, or as far as he could, before having to get back to London for his Sisters wedding in London in July.

The crossing over to Tangier was smooth, and then the fun started! It looked like everyone was trying to get of the ferry at once and the lines at the customs/police posts were stationary, except for those either trying to push in or switch lanes, the customs guys looked as if they were trying to ignore anyone who tried to talk to them and seemed to randomly walk around collecting bits of paper. Our paperwork was in order, we had completed our immigration form on the boat and seen the cop who put passport details in his laptop and allocated the CIF number, which is stamped into the passport and already completed the temporary vehicle importation form, online, we had V5 and green card vehicle insurance.

In short, it was chaos. But, eventually, we moved forward and were seen by a Customs guy who processed us, after sending us back to the first (police) post to have our details entered into yet another computer, we were then free to go!

First stop, was swapping 500€ for a big wad of Moroccan MADS and then out on the road, with the GPS set for the Hotel *Alkhalifa in*Chefchaouene, well the GPS wasn't doing too well, as at the first roundabout it sent us, first exit, down a minor road then up a steep hill, which ended in a dirt track to nowhere... oops!

Back to looking at a paper map, it appeared we were on a coast road (P4601), of sorts, so we stuck with it, until we eventually ended up on the N2 towards Tetouan *and Chefchaouene. Now I hope the N2 is not typical of Moroccan roads and drivers, traffic was heavy and the road, not great, with very little opportunity for overtakes, but that*doesn't deter the local drivers, it was like something out of wacky racers, with several vehicles trying to overtake a solid stream of vehicles and in the face of oncoming traffic, and at the last micro second forcing their way back in the stream of traffic on the right side of the road.

We made it to the hotel without incident (accident) by about 4pm, so had time to explore the town, which is very interesting, though a bit touristy, lots of narrow alleys and tiny shops/stalls selling the essentials of daily life for the locals, as well as the usual tourist tat and shady locals trying to sell us hash . There was a fruitless search for the Maroc*telephone shop to get a sim card, it had decided to close early, and then an even more intense search for somewhere that sold beer, before ending up in the biggest hotel in town, which did.

After that, we had a recommendation from the hotel owner for somewhere to eat, which was down a small alley, away from the main square, it looked like just a small shop at the front but there where 5 largish tables inside which were set low, with low benches with lots of cushions to make yourself comfortable and the food was fantastic, started with a bubbling hot*lentil*dish together with two large round (about 300mm) flat loaves of bread, together with side dishes of curry paste, eggplant and a tomato relish, followed by a lamb dish with potatoes, carrots, pulses, green beans, which really was tasty and then, another dish which was beef and*vegetables on a bed of*couscous . After finishing that lot we were both stuffed, I could hardly move. We had a pot of mint tea and then Graham talked me into a dish of goats milk*yogurt with nuts and a fig*sauce, which was again very nice, so nice that a Japanese girl, who had come in, had two! *she was a little*embarrassed at asking for seconds, but happy.

There was a party of a Man/Wife and Moroccan friend at the next table who were interesting, the couple were originally from Afghanistan, but now living in the US, they were all obviously Muslims and the conversation enlightening, although cut short by the entry of a large group who needed our table. the*bill was about £9! Sorry, no pictures of the food, technical hitch... I forgot the camera!

Pictures: Docks, Spanish side and View from Hotel Room window at first light, today.

Watching with interest !

You must have been in a hotel very close to where we stayed last year, our hotel was up the alley here then through a blue door to the right.
[/url]f0833920 by GrimReaperVII, on Flickr[/IMG]

Enjoy your trip you are missing out back here today we have had bright blue sky and sunshine,rain,hail,sleet and snow

Staying in a remote house Gite Ras Alma, outside Ilfrane, which has no Wifi, but a lovely location, will spend two nights here and spend tomorrow walking in the Hills, before heading to Midelt and the MH1 route to Dades. Great weather here Norfolk Tiger, although apparently there was snow until 3 weeks ago, they do ski here apparently, though the season is short.

Sorry no pics. slow connection.Day two at Ilfrane, we had initially decided to go out for a ride local tracks, sans luggage, in the morning and then come back for a walk in the hills in the afternoon, however, I must be honest and confess that we did get a bit lost and ended up nearly 40 miles from our base at de Ras el Mai and resorted to the N8 to get back, stopping for a vegetable tagine and a plate of charcoal grilled chicken mid-afternoon. We didn’t get back until around 5pm, so Graham chilled in the sun with his book, while I did some washing and cleaned & lubricated the bike chain,it still looks as good as new and no adjustment required.

Dinner was at 7.30pm, which was a bit soon after eating in the afternoon, so a lot of got left, which was a shame, but when your full, thats it, which probably contributed to the fact that I didn’t sleep too well, that and the owners dogs barking!

Next morning, we had asked for breakfast at 8am and was woken by the bedrooms outside shutters being opened, if that wasn’t a clue to get up, I don’t know what is. It transpires that the owners wanted to get out to the Souk (market day) at Azrou, no doubt helped by the 1720 MD that they charged us for 2 nights Dinner B&B.

We had decided to head for Midelt and then take the Chris Scott’s route MH1, which is the Cirque de Jaffer to start with and then a piste to Imshall

The route from Ras starts off on a dirt track and then after about half mile hits tarmac, where I thought we were going to turn right and head initially for Azrou and the N13. But no, Graham, who has the route planned on his GPS turned left and then shortly afterwards stopped at the base of a steep rocky slope, yes I could see a track going up, but I thought, you have got to be joking, particularly with luggage on the bike. After a short discussion Graham goes for it and gets up about a third of the way before coming off the bike, after a short imitation of a bucking bronco. I ride up and stop short of him and manage to find a flattish patch to put my sidestand down and climb up the hill to help him pick it up, its completely on its side, with its normal upside facing down hill.

So, I’m thinking, should we now go up, or down and down looks as bad as up, so up it was, this time we both (barely) made it. There were some big rocks on that slope and we should have stuck to the road. And sorry, no pics, I was too preoccupied! After a short ride through the forest, seeing a monkey sat by the side of the track, we were on our way on the N13 to Midelt. Stopping on the way for a mint tea at a garage with no petrol and met up with a large group of mostly R1200GS & GSA LC’s on an organised tour, their bike kit was pristine, compared to ours, so it had either been valeted for them that morning, or they were sticking to tarmac, I guess the later. They were nice enough guys though, one of them had just dropped his GS, after a close encounter with an Army convoy, they had passed by us too, tank transports, nobody going to argue with them, stopping for nobody. Another I spoke to, from Belfast, had only just passed his test and didn’t own his own bike yet, he was on an F800GS. I can see the convenience of having everything organised for you, including bikes and a truck to carry your luggage, but really? Isn’t a lot of the fun planning and DIY?

After filling up at Midelt we were on the Cirque de Jaffar, on the P7139, which is entirely off road (no tarmac) and very hilly, well mountains I suppose, you could still see snow on the tops. Still a demanding ride for a laden 650 and I wouldn’t have wanted to be on anything bigger.

Short of Anefgou the road was closed, where it runs beside the Oued Agheddou for a few miles, well I say it was closed, it actually doesn’t exist anymore, having been washed into the river, I don’t know if it was last Winter or not, but it certainly doesn’t look as if it is going to be reinstated any time soon.

So what do we do? don’t really want to go back, its a long way, so we decide to go for it, using what little remains of the road in places and in the river bed, undertaking several crossings, I’m glad I was wearing army issue desert boots, my feet were wet, but not uncomfortable and soon dried out once we were back on the road.

A word of warning it you are heading this way soon, I don’t recommend this route for any ‘big bikes’ we were really struggling to get through at times.

Arriving at Imilchil, we found accommodation at the hotel Izlane, which is not as grand as it sounds, just okay. At least they have Wifi, which is where I am now.

Continuing down the MH1 to Boumaine du Dades today….

pictures

First picture, near Ilfrane, that is our track in the distance between the bikes, second on the cirque de Jaffar, the third, yes if you look closely you can see what is left of the road.

Might bump into you at some time, I'm on a KTM 690 Enduro with Spanish plates and Metal Mule panniers.

I crossed on Monday 26 April to Tanger Med and was planning a leisurely route, stopping the first night at Larache after visiting the roman outpost of Cotta, the neolithic stone circle of M'zoura, then the roman ruins at Lixus. Then a day in Meknes which I've never fully explored, followed by some tracks from Azrou through the Middle Atlas cedar forest.

But all this didn't happen. Instead my motorbike developed a fault 20 km into Morocco and I had to get a jump start from the battery of a police BMW 1200 RT motorbike. So I rode nonstop the next 630 km to Marrakech thinking if I was going to stuck somewhere for repairs it might as well be somewhere with something to do whilst hanging around. Getting fuel refills with the engine still running needed some 'negotiation' with the station attendants. I was travelling at 90-100 kph to save the tyres so didn't get to Marrakech until almost 10pm. Fortunately the fault was quickly fixed but I almost choked when I was presented for a bill for 27 dh for a coffee at the nearby cafe. Marrakech is becoming an expensive place to visit.

Leaving Marrakech tomorrow, planning to stop overnight at Cascades d'Ouzoud, then Agoudal south of Imilchil. Lots of things to see and do.

Tim, it would be great to meet up with the 'Master of Morocco' Have you got a recommendation for somewhere to stay in Cascades d'Ouzoud?
We are in Quarzazate currently, but leaving in the morning, I see there is an interesting looking route on the map from here towards Demnate R307, then R304.
Are free agents until Sunday, when our Wives are flying out to Essaouira for 5 nights.

We left Imilchil yesterday morning and not a great deal to recommend it really, went out out the night before, after having assessed what we thought was the cleanest place and there wasn't a lot to chose from, despite not having eaten since breakfast we had a cagey start of a chicken and a kefta kebab, cooked in our view, over charcoal, some salad, bread and some berber whiskey (mint tea) but it was while eating it we saw the cook wiping his hands on a not very clean *cloth, whilst mixing his next batch of raw kefta.

Needless to say we decided not to have any more and I spent most of the early morning in the bathroom, Graham is paying for it a day later!

We carried on the MH1 route, which is mainly off road from Agoudal, towards the Gorges du Dades, unfortunately, we appeared to have picked a day when the 'Dakar Rally' was in progress, all travelling in the opposite direction, tricked up 4x4's, 2x4 buggy's and loads of off road 'gods' on their mainly KTM's, drifting their way around the corners and totally (in the main) lacking in consideration for others on the route and in particular the locals walking along the track or riding donkeys etc. We certainly had some close calls with them. Sorry for the minor rant but why should these people treat this country as their private playground.

The strangest sight, going over the mountains, was a group of Portuguese bikers, with one on a R1200RT and another on a Honda Blackbird....... respect to you guys, what an achievement, if you made it!

We stopped and had a chat with a Moroccan mountain biker, who had studied at the UEA (Norwich University) he had some 'kind' words to say about the 'racers' and also a Swiss guy who was travelling in a purposeful looking 4x4 motorhome, accompanied by a very attractive young Russian lady, picture to follow
Whilst still in the mountains, it was at about 2600m and very hot, I spotted a nail head in my rear tyre, not what I wanted to see and I had fitted new K60 Scout tyres and installed some Ultraseal in the tubes to avoid having to repair a puncture on this trip. I decided to leave the nail in and carry on, rather than to replace the tube there and then, I actually did another 70 miles to Quarzazate, before we stopped at an Ibis hotel to have a cold beer and use the WiFi. I was looking to find out the location of Bikershome, where there would hopefully be accommodation, but certainly a more comfortable environment to sort out the tyre.
In the event, I walked out to the GS to get something and the tyre was flat, so we were not going anywhere and after comparing the Ibis with the Karim Palace hotel next door, the price was similar, 700Dm per night for a twin room with breakfast, but the karims *pool was bigger, so the Karim it was. On reflection, the buffet evening meal was very average (500Dm) and the breakfast not much either.

I had contacted Bikershome, via their website, to try and get a recommendation for someone to fix the puncture and got a automated reply, but no email today. So perhaps they are busy. No matter, despite still feeling a bit under the weather I manned up early this morning and while Graham was still in bed went out and found a big lump of concrete to stand the bike on, manoeuvred it with the back wheel hanging over a high kerb outside the front of the *hotel and with the help of the doorman and a Spanish GS 1200 rider, lifted it up onto the concrete block, with the rear wheel hanging high! I had the wheel off in a jiffy and after breakfast Graham gave me a hand to break the tyre bead using the foot of his side stand, I'd never done it before, but read about it and all I can say, is that it works! Even with a K60.
We soon had my spare tube in, but my small compressor was being very slow to re-inflate the tyre, a very helpful hotel staff member then offered to go to a tyre place down the road on his moped to get it pumped up for me, what a kind man!
Repaired wheel re-installed and chain alinement checked *and we are good to go....tomorrow.
Today is now a chill day, We need to re-charge

AV ya gone over the edge.......???

GADGET said:

First picture, near Ilfrane, that is our track in the distance between the bikes, second on the cirque de Jaffar, the third, yes if you look closely you can see what is left of the road.

Click to expand...

I enjoyed Cirque de Jaffar it was still quite muddy in places for us: video by Paul http://youtu.be/LgE0dxSuwsE

Hi all, Sorry its been a couple of days since I last wrote, a lack of a suitable internet connection I'm afraid.

We left the luxury hotel at Quarzazate what, 3 days ago now and after messing around in Quarzazate trying to find a garage with an airline, to pump up the rear tyre that had been punctured to the correct pressure, we left with a full tank of fuel and headed on the R307 road to Demnate, which we expected to be a piste, but was in fact a fairly good narrow, but tarmaced road, passing a group of the first camels we had seen, grazing freely by the road, in what was, more or less, a desert like terrain i.e. flat and barren for miles and a more or less straight road, heading for the mountains in the distance and once into the mountains, the roads became more interesting with lots of twists & turns and spectacular views, the road was quite tricky in places, where it had deteriorated, but we found that they were repairing it along the way, but had to watch out for the sudden changes in road surfaces from tarmac, with potholes, to gravel, particularly as most of the damage was on the bends. After Demote, we were on normal roads until we arrived at our intended accommodation at Zebra Camping, Cascades d'Ouzoud.

Camping, you might say? we had no intention of camping, I'm carrying enough kit as it is, but they do have some small bungalows (rooms/huts) it was difficult to describe, but it was actually okay, the only pain being that the toilet/shower block was about 100 meters away.

Whilst at Zebra Camping we met up (pre-arranged) with none other than Tim Cullis who is the acknowledged expert on motor cycle travel in Morocco (over 40 years worth, if I recall correctly) and was on a solo tour on his KTM690. We had a walk to the nearby waterfalls (hence Cascades d'Ouzoud) which, in my eyes, was a rather tacky tourist attraction (but then I am a miserable B), the waterfalls were quite spectacular, but spoil by too many stalls and locals selling tacky souvenirs. It was good exercise too, going down the stairs to the bottom and then up again

Afterwards we had a good meal at the Zebra (no beer) and Tim gave us some great advice for our our route planning for the rest of this trip and even worked out a route and downloaded it onto Grahams GPS.Next morning, after breakfast, we had a short ride down the road with Tim, before we parted our ways, with Tim heading off towards Imilchil (thanks Tim, great to meet you), where we had already been, and us initially heading towards Marrakesh and then turning off shortly before the city to take the R203 towards Tahanaoute, stopping to refuel, I worked out that the little GS was now doing over 80mpg (full tank to full tank) giving over 200 miles to a tank full, but then I'm a gentle rider.

We got to Asni by late afternoon and took the turn to Imil, a dead end road, which ended at this village in the mountains which catered for walking and other mountain activities. Tim had given us the name of a place to stay there, we drove past the hotel owned by Richard Branson, which is only for rich folks and were caught in a procession of vehicles making their way up the narrow mountain road, both of us had close encounters with a very aggressive driver of a transit van who was in a hurry and was overtaking like a crazy man, we just let him by, he was only just getting out of the van when we arrived at Imil.

Sorry Tim, but there was no way I was going to stop at that village, it was dirty and there where lots of dodgy looking characters around, touting for business. We found somewhere to turn around and headed straight back down again, the only concession was that it was a good ride down.

We couldn't see anywhere to stay at Asni, so carried on the route that we had intended to take the next day, towards Agadir and the coast, when we spotted the Tsar Shama Hotel at Ouirgane. It looked a bit posh (expensive) with a long drive and extensive grounds, but were tired and had enough of riding. So, after establishing a price of 500 MD, with breakfast, booked in (after adding drinks and dinner it was 860MD) It was a nice hotel, lovely grounds, large swimming pool, spa, several reception rooms, good food, should have perhaps stayed 2 nights to take advantage of the facilities. One minus factor is that when I pulled back the sheet, to get into bed I spotted a bug, it was only a small bug, which I squashed, but it did put me off a bit, as I knew the bed had been made up after we arrived (I saw it before it was made up) So I got out my silk sleeping bag liner and slept in that instead.

Next morning we were off on the R203, on a great mountain road, twists & turns, up and down, honestly as good as anything I have experienced in the Alps, when we arrived at the highest point of the road at Tizi-n-Test, it literally took your breath away the view was amazing, I wish I had a camera that could capture it all, I don't know how far it was you could see, but its many miles, there is a restaurant there and sat on the terrace drinking coffee & biscuits & that view.The ride down from the mountains was great too, then we reached broad expanse of flat plains, all the way to the coast at Agadir. I didn't like the look of Agadir, it looked too busy for me, we headed for the coast road towards Essaouira (N1) thinking there would be lots of places to stay en-route. There was not, it was a not a bad road, the view was good, it has lots of twists and turns, but it was windy, a strong wind blowing in from the sea and at times blowing the little GS and me around on the road, and I was tired, but we kept going, until we arrived in Essaouira at about 5pm. There was a back up plan...

We had accommodation booked at Dar Dayana, within the old city walls & the Medina, from Monday 2nd to Sunday 8th May, as our respective wives Ceri & Tracy are flying out to join us for 5 nights.

Arriving outside the city walls we quickly realised that you cannot ride in and parking is controlled by what appeared to be dodgy characters, who find a parking place for you and charge for parking, it all seemed a con to me and I wanted to find out if we could get into the Dar Dayana first anyway. We were approached by a guy who told us we could park, as it was for cars, but he had a garage nearby we could park at, I tried to explain, in my poor french, that we needed to find out about accommodation first and I started to walk away, leaving Graham with the bikes, the guy got verbally aggressive towards me and I responded in kind, using a not entirely kind 4 letter word.. he got the message. (I was tired)

I walked off to confirm we could get booked in a day early, the accommodation is a small riad, with a very nice garden in the central courtyard, the owners are French, but the place is run by a local, who doesn't live here. There are no other guests planned to be here the week we are here so all is good.

So, this stage of the trip will be collecting the Mrs from the airport the morning and keeping her happy for the next 5 days, which will not, unfortunately, or fortunately, whichever way you look at it, involve motor cycle activities, so, nothing more for the next 5 days!

Wreford Miles said:

I enjoyed Cirque de Jaffar it was still quite muddy in places for us: video by Paul http://youtu.be/LgE0dxSuwsE

Click to expand...

Your bike looks more suitable for the off road (piste) tracks, but my Dakar better for the on road, its a compromise at the end of the day, I do have an Xchallenge I could have taken instead. I think overall I'm very happy with the F650 Dakar. Tim's KTM690 looked very nice, its very slim, without the Metal Mules on, but it has a noisy exhaust that would bug me (was noisy travelling behind you Tim) and I think I would want to carry more fuel, as it is, I am carrying a US gallon fuel rotopax, as well as a water one and I haven't need to use the extra fuel, but have the water!

Our respective wife's flew home on Saturday afternoon, after 5 nights in Essaouira, we had stayed in a small riad in the Medina, just 4 bedrooms and for most of the time there was just us there, which was good, it had a lovely garden in the middle, with a 'living room' of it, where Graham found a guitar to use, and a roof terrace with a couple of sun loungers and a shaded area (for me).

The Medina itself was an amazing experience and difficult to describe, so much so that I'm lost for words to begin, suffice to say it was hectic and teaming with local life, but it was good to escape back to the riad, or to the beach, which was a great place to go for long walks and watch the kite surfers. There was also no shortage of good eating places, but no booze available within the Medina, though it could be found outside, at a price.The weather was okay, normally cloudy in the mornings and quite cold, with the sun making a show in the afternoon, along with the winds, for which Essaouira is famous. The evenings were cool again, definitely a fleece needed.

Good timing girls, the evening after they left it turned cold, we did meet a German couple, she on a 1200 Harley and he on an 1800 Intruder, I don't profess to understand cruisers, but they certainly seemed out of place in Morocco, but all credit to them being there, they certainly had tales of rains in the Atlas Mountains, which is where they had been the previous day and showed us a mobile phone video of a raging torrent of a muddy river, at which the Police had halted road traffic for 3 hours, until the flowed had subsided enough for people to cross, and they described that they had to be helped over, locals pushing them across.

After that tale, during the (Saturday) night I heard the wind get up during the night and the rain, it was still there in the morning as we finished packing and had breakfast and after looking at the weather forecast for both Morocco and Spain over the next week, decided to escape back home, as soon as we could get there.

At the moment we are in a B&B in El-Jadida (its 0530) after a VERY wet and windy ride from Essaouira, with a lot of standing water/flooding on the roads and regular drenchings from the lorry's travelling in the opposite direction. Grahams Rukka motor cycle suit is not performing too well and I could see that when he took his jacket off, his T-shirt was soaking wet. My Klim suit is fine, but I'm regretting my choice of army desert boots and waterproof socks (that aren't) I have a fresh pair of socks to put on this morning, but the boots are soaking. My heated jacket will be plugged in today.

Today, it will be mainly a motorway/toll road to Tangier Med, about 300 miles, we aim to be there for the ferry at 1600 to Spain, we haven't a clue if that is achievable, but I have already paid for a hotel the other side, so it had better be.

One other thing, we don't have a booking for the ferry...........

Plan B is to get across what is forecast to be a very wet Spain to Santander and get an early ferry home, the change with Brittany Ferry's will be down to the Mrs to sort out later this morning.

Hopefully, the next message will be from Spain

Hi

I do not think you will get a ferry back from Spain to the UK as Brittany Ferries have a major problem with many cancellations.

Derek