Leaving the city of Marrakesh the first things to note were
the large resort developments on the outskirts. Most were still under
construction and many featured golf courses. Given the amount of sand blown in
from the Sahara it must be a challenge to keep them in good condition, not to
mention watered. According to our guide, Hamed, this is causing problems
and conflict with people who live and farm in the area. Still, it
shows how many foreign tourists they must be attracting.
 |
| At the top of the pass ... |
The countryside between Marrakesh and the Atlas mountains is
fertile and irrigated with the water flowing down from the mountains. Lots of
orange and olive groves. The Atlas mountains, which look huge from Marrakesh,
are just as big close up, with a very windy road up and over the high passes
and even some snow on the tops just above the road. Along the rather barren way
are many villages, often quite hard to see as the buildings are made of
whatever stone is local to the area and blend in very well. Plenty of trucks
and tourists travel this route, and a lot of motorcycles look like they
are preparing to cross the Sahara, but most are probably just enjoying the very bendy
road. Plenty of deep gorges and good viewing spots plus little shops selling
jewellery, ceramics and tagines.
 |
| Ait Ben Haddou |
Coming through the other side of the Atlas mountains is the
famous UNESCO World Heritage town of Ait Ben Haddou with its dramatic Kasbahs
(fortified buildings) and the scene of many films including Gladiator, Alexander,
Kingdom of Heaven, and even Games of Thrones. Almost all the inhabitants live
across the river in the modern town.
 |
| Ouarzazte |
The first city across the mountains is Ouarzazte, which is
home to the local film industry with a huge walled film lot as you enter the
town. We noticed numerous shops and factories selling fossils as this area is
famous for them. One factory we stopped to see had jewellery, plates and huge
slabs of stone embedded with fossilised creatures. We really liked the bathroom
bench/sink tops cut out of the stone – very dramatic and stylish.
 |
| Fossils in a slab of rock |
 |
| Into the Dades valley |
The geology is spectacular and it must be a well-visited
area for students. There are frequent rocky outcrops, very colourful rocks, and
clear strata lines that have been tipped and squeezed into all angles. There are a couple of very spectacular gorges
too and these are well populated as they tend to be a bit cooler and shadier than
the surrounding desert. We noticed a lot of quite nice houses lying empty in
the villages and hillsides. These belong to the lucky workers who are based in
Europe and just come home once or twice a year. We stayed in a rather nicer
hotel that the basic one in Marrakesh but it was getting a bit late and cool to
take a dip in the swimming pool. And that was our fault as we had Hamed, our
driver, stop every few minutes throughout the day so that we could take
photographs! The hotel was situated in the Dades Valley. It is a rose growing
area and though we weren’t quite in time for the annual rose festival, there
were a lot of boys at the side of the roads selling wreathes of roses.
 |
| Selling roses at the roadside |
 |
| Todra gorge |
Another impressive gorge is the Todra. This is quite narrow
with towering cliffs – it puts the “famous-in-England” Cheddar Gorge to
shame in a big way. There are more locals here out for a picnic and to relax in
the cooler air and shade. A river runs through it and on the opposite side to
the road are several buildings, apparently hotels but now abandoned by law –
there is a huge rock squashing one of them! It was a particularly wet Spring
which explains fallen rocks, plastic bags in trees beside each river, and the
amount of growth in the rocky desert.
 |
Line of wells on a qanat stretching
from the mountains in the distance |
Even though the desert is barren there are many photo
opportunities. It is not sandy here, just stony and covered with some grass and
acacia trees and quite a few interesting rocky outcrops. All quite colourful.
Signs of human habitation are sparse, but every so often there will be a Berber
with a herd of goats, or a few camels. The most interesting human element are
the qanats. These are underground water channels that slope gently downwards
from the Atlas Mountains, bringing water to the desert communities. They may be
10m or more in depth and every once in a while there are vertical access shafts
so they can be serviced, usually to clear a fall of mud. You can see the qanats
from the lines of access shafts that spread across the desert. Traditionally
each qanat is looked after by one tribe. Unfortunately these days with climate
change there is very little water in them and most are now dry.
Occasionally a Berber family will live in them to escape the heat.
There are many picturesque desert oases with mud-brick
buildings. Sadly many are falling into ruin as the mud brick needs constant
maintenance to prevent it washing away. On the plus side, though, there appears
to be a lot of new construction in the larger desert towns with new schools,
public buildings and even subdivisions. Clearly the government are encouraging
people to stay rather than migrate to the major cities.
 |
| Someone has to do the work while the men are in the cafe! |
 |
| Rugs are washed in the stream and spread on rocks to dry |
As we head across the desert we can see a tall line of dunes in the distance, away near the border with Algeria. This is to be our stop for the night …
Leaving the city of Marrakesh the first things to note were
the large resort developments on the outskirts. Most were still under
construction and many featured golf courses. Given the amount of sand blown in
from the Sahara it must be a challenge to keep them in good condition, not to
mention watered. According to our guide, Hamed, this is causing problems
and conflict with people who live and farm in the area. Still, it
shows how many foreign tourists they must be attracting.
The countryside between Marrakesh and the Atlas mountains is
fertile and irrigated with the water flowing down from the mountains. Lots of
orange and olive groves. The Atlas mountains, which look huge from Marrakesh,
are just as big close up, with a very windy road up and over the high passes
and even some snow on the tops just above the road. Along the rather barren way
are many villages, often quite hard to see as the buildings are made of
whatever stone is local to the area and blend in very well. Plenty of trucks
and tourists travel this route, and a lot of motorcycles look like they
are preparing to cross the Sahara, but most are probably just enjoying the very bendy
road. Plenty of deep gorges and good viewing spots plus little shops selling
jewellery, ceramics and tagines.
The geology is spectacular and it must be a well-visited
area for students. There are frequent rocky outcrops, very colourful rocks, and
clear strata lines that have been tipped and squeezed into all angles. There are a couple of very spectacular gorges
too and these are well populated as they tend to be a bit cooler and shadier than
the surrounding desert. We noticed a lot of quite nice houses lying empty in
the villages and hillsides. These belong to the lucky workers who are based in
Europe and just come home once or twice a year. We stayed in a rather nicer
hotel that the basic one in Marrakesh but it was getting a bit late and cool to
take a dip in the swimming pool. And that was our fault as we had Hamed, our
driver, stop every few minutes throughout the day so that we could take
photographs! The hotel was situated in the Dades Valley. It is a rose growing
area and though we weren’t quite in time for the annual rose festival, there
were a lot of boys at the side of the roads selling wreathes of roses.
There are many picturesque desert oases with mud-brick
buildings. Sadly many are falling into ruin as the mud brick needs constant
maintenance to prevent it washing away. On the plus side, though, there appears
to be a lot of new construction in the larger desert towns with new schools,
public buildings and even subdivisions. Clearly the government are encouraging
people to stay rather than migrate to the major cities.
