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The South
Day 1: Would
see your arrival at Ouarzazate where you would transfer to a local hotel.
You will be given your riding gear, and a visit to our workshop will enable
the bikes to be set-up to meet your preferences. A quick ride-out is
normally fitted in during the afternoon.
Day 2:
Most people are keen to get started,
but anxious about how they will get on. We leave Ouarzazate and head North
into the High Atlas. A fast, smooth piste enables a gentle learning curve,
before we loop across gravely flood plains to the delightful oasis town of
Skoura for lunch. A short tarmac link sees us back on piste for the rest of
the afternoon, on a route used by some of the Rallyes that pass through the
South of Morocco.
Option of a short, technical
"goat-track" at the end of the afternoon to take us to the village where we
will spend the night at the auberge "Chez Houcein.".
Day 3:
A delicious breakfast with home-made
breads at the auberge prepares us for our first piste of the day across to
the start of the Dades Gorge. We climb 500 metres as we head up the gorge on
fantastic tarmac, before heading off on a truly challenging piste that will
lead us over the Tizi n Ougouered (2700metres) to the spectacular Todra
gorge on the other side. A casual lunch before heading down the gorge itself
for the compulsory photo stop at it's narrowest point, and onto the town of
Tinghir for our evening meal.
Day 4:
An early start is preferable to allow
us to do the longest bit of tarmac during the week out to Erfoud. From here,
we pick up the piste heading out to the dunes at Merzouga. We navigate
straight to our auberge (using GPS) where we make our base. We now have the
rest of the day riding the demanding tracks around and even into the dunes
themselves in the wheel tracks of the Dakar rally. A circumnavigation and
traverse of the dunes is normally enough preparation for an assault on Erg
Chebbi, at 200 metres, the highest dune there. We witness the changing
colours of the Saharan sands at sunset before getting off the dunes and back
on piste to the auberge. A tiring but enjoyable day.
Day 5:
Another prompt start for this, our
longest day in the saddle. Back to Risani on piste, where we refuel and have
an hour on tarmac heading West along the line of the anti-Atlas mountains. A
stop for coffee, and then we get started on the 200km of piste that remain
to Merzouga. Fast, smooth and a delight to ride, but requiring complete
concentration. High average speeds possible here. We arrive at our
hotel in Zagora late afternoon to a thorough sense of achievement.
Day 6:
Various options available on this, our
last riding day. For the keen, another full morning of demanding trails
across the anti-Atlas is suggested. For those wanting something less of a
challenge, we head up the beautiful Draa Valley, stunning especially in
springtime, and swap between tarmac and easy piste up to our lunch stop. A
spectacular mountain pass brings us to within sight of our starting point of
Ouarzazate. A shower, and quick rest before our team banquet.
Day 7:
Depart from Ouarzazate.
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Mountain
Day 1:
Would
see your arrival at Ouarzazate where you would transfer to a local hotel.
You will be given your riding gear, and a visit to our workshop will enable
the bikes to be set-up to meet your preferences. Again, a quick try
out of the bikes give you an idea of what lies ahead.
Day 2:
Aoulouz via Tazanakht. A demanding mountain
route, via a small valley dotted with palmeries in the morning.
The afternoon sees us staying above 2000 metres for much of the time, before
dropping down to the start of the Mediterranean like Souss Vaslley and our
evening rest halt in a converted Kasbah in Aoulouz.
Day 3:
Aoulouz to Agouim, another rocky mountain day, followed by
the route from Telouet to Ait Benhaddou. Popular tourist sites and brilliant
trails too. Spend the night at Ouarzazate.
Day 4:
We leave Ouarzazate and head North into the
High Atlas. A fast, smooth piste enables a gentle learning curve, before we
loop across gravely flood plains to the delightful oasis town of Skoura for
lunch. A short tarmac link sees us back on piste for the rest of the
afternoon, on a route used by some of the Rallyes that pass through the
South of Morocco.
Option of a short, technical "goat-track"
at the end of the afternoon to take us to the village where we will spend
the night with at the auberge "Chez Houcein.".
Day 5:
A dramatic piste takes us over a ridge of the Atlas mountains
to the Dades Valley. Boumalne to Tinhir is covered on tarmac before we head
back into the High Atlas, and up the spectacular Todra Gorge.
Continuing North, we reach Imilchil for the night, "the heart of the Atlas."
Day 6:
A beautiful summer morning will see us
backtrack for 20 miles before heading along the Tizi N'Ouerz, at 2900metres,
one of the highest, easily navigable pistes in the area. We drop down the
full length of the Dades Gorge, before reaching Boumalne Dades again for our
lunch stop. Returning to Ouarzazate on tarmac, we stop for coffee, though
can usually fit in some short loops on piste along the way. A shower, and
quick rest before our team banquet.
Day 7:
Depart from Ouarzazate.
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