Northern Morocco and Gouffre du Friouato

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Parent Category: Travel Over There
Category: 2014 - Gap Year
Created: Tuesday, 18 March 2014 18:29

Nor001We arrived to our hotel, located just inside the medina, in Fez as the sun was setting. The Medina is the largest and oldest in the world, the hotel staff quickly informed us, along with the areas nearby that were safe to visit at night (which was very small). We are told that the Medina is an immense sprawl that is mostly safe by day but not so much at night. There are pickpockets and various other disreputable individuals prepared to take advantage of tourists. Fez is the first place we have been in Morocco where we didn’t feel completely safe.

We took a tour of Fez, from ancient ramparts overlooking the city and into the medina itself. Fez was a larger more labyrinthine variation of Marrakech and it seemed that Fez was all about scale: The medina was bigger, the streets narrower, the interior decorations grander; the city which was once three towns, now one, consumed every centimetre of available land. One thing that stood out to me more than any of the other medinas was the amount of stores selling the same items. It’s a common thing you find in any market but the sheer volume made me wonder how any of them earn enough to stay open.

Nor002In Fez we were taken to a couple of buildings that stood out as impressive, but our local guide did not take us to the famous Bou Inania Medersa and museum, telling us it was currently closed to the public. He did however take us to a different restored madrasa, another restored building that sold carpets and supported a local Women’s Association, and the tannery which did not smell as bad as I thought it would. We watched a while as skins were worked, soaked and tanned, a small bushel of mint at hand in case the smell began to over power.

From my dealings with the local guide in Fez, and the style of city tour he provided, I realised that like any large city Fez as less about satisfaction than profit.

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The next day however was the highpoint of Northern Morocco for us, Tazekka National Park and the Gouffre du Friouato. The park is located east of Fez, and there several routes available including a relatively new toll road, but for the outbound journey we opted for the scenic route. Through the country side past fertile fields we drove heading back into the Middle Atlas. The road weaved along a beautiful valley then up along the mountains themselves. There were a few small villages along the way but the road was essentially deserted. The views were spectacular as we drove this lonesome narrow road, each crest more beautiful, each turn bringing a panorama grander with the Rif mountains visible to the north. Dotted periodically were national park and hiking signs, promising a difficult hike through pristine country (a promise I will take up when I return here sometime in the future).The drive was one of the best and most beautiful we had in Morocco.

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Eventually we descended from the mountains to again drive the valley floor which gradually opened to a plain dotted with houses. When we arrived at Gouffre du Friouato (Abyss of Friouato) we almost missed it. We drove up the road where there was a small office and café, and stopped for green tea with absinthe.

Nor008-CThe Gouffre office has a small selection of overalls and equipment to choose from, and an experienced guide to take you through. The cave is roughly 3 kilometres in length with broad paths and hollows. The initial descent to the grotto involves going down a steep metal staircase then a slightly less steep stone one. The grotto is broad with an incredible amount of light due to the large hole in the cave’s roof. Wherever the light reaches are mosses and lichens. Anyone can go into the grotto without equipment, which is impressive, but we wanted to venture inside.

In the extra kilometre we explored, there were only a few sections that were small or difficult to traverse. The biggest trouble people may have is that this is a wet cave, almost every surface is moist and slippery. It is a young cave filled with some beautiful large stalagmites and stalactites, but their number is smaller than in other cave systems such as those at Naracoorte in South Australia. The cave also has numerous pools being fed by the perpetual dripping of water from the roof above.

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The Gouffre is a beautiful cave, and well worth the 400MAD (for 4 people) price of entry, and for us it was truly a highlight of northern Morocco. It was also great to see the enjoyment on Barhou’s and our friend Said’s face after the experience, as they didn’t know that there were adventures like this. The Gouffre du Friouato is not well advertised, but is easy enough to find and offers a unique Moroccan experience.

Nor024We headed north to Chefchouen, our last stop on our Moroccan Odyssey. Chefchaouen is also known as the blue city, due to the number of blue buildings in the old city you can see from a distance. We wandered around Chefchouen for the afternoon and relaxed with food. It is a beautiful town but sadly after three weeks of moving place to place, experience to experience, we did not give it enough energy to make it possible to report on.

The following day we departed Chefchouen for Tangier Med to catch a ferry to Spain and the next stage of our year long journey across the globe.

 




	Nor025Other Experiences in Morocco:



	 


Marrakech
Essaouira
Marrakech to Imil
The Route of a Thousand Kasbahs
A Walk in the Dades Gorge
A Night at Erg Chebbi, the Sahara
The Middle Atlas



	 



	

		 









		

					

			

	

					
			The Middle Atlas
			


	




 

 
Details

		

										Parent Category: Travel Over There						

		

										Category: 2014 - Gap Year						

		

		Created: Monday, 17 March 2014 16:08		

 	



	Mid001Driving north out of the desert, the land begins to subtly change. Sand gives way to pebbles, pebbles to rocks to scarcely occupied fields and into hills that rise steeply and suddenly you are in the mountains. The Middle Atlas is starkly different to what we have seen in Southern Morocco. At first it is the volume of greenery, verdant fields of crops in lush soil, then come the extensive forests of cedar, rising from every available surface on each side of the mountain road. The temperature drops rapidly as we drive into the forests and clouds are thickening, clinging to the mountain tops.



	Mid002As we near Azrou, the cloud is low and thick water droplets begin to fall. Through the cloud we can see an occasional village, each looking more like it belongs in Europe than Morocco. This is why they call the area Moroccan Switzerland. When we enter Azrou the transition is complete, the homes are 2-3 stories with white walls and heavily slanted red tiled rooves. The wealth is astounding, and it appears that most of the homes are unoccupied. Our driver Barhou explains that Azrou has many homes owned by wealthy people from Rabat and Casablanca that they use during the snow season and summer. We pull into our hotel a short time later with the view almost completely whitewashed.



	When we woke the next day, the cloud was lifting, and we made our way to the nearby Cedar Forest to walk a while. When we arrived at the park a local supplied us with a hand drawn map estimating the route through the forest, he also pointed out a trail marker to help us navigate. We walked the short length of trail to the first marker, then looked for the next and continued on what looked like a path. It turned out it wasn’t a path at all, just a natural flow up the mountain and the marker we thought we saw just a rock. So, we decided to follow the hand drawn map as best we could and see if we could find any of the waypoints (two valleys with a creek running through that met in the middle) described. The map was not particularly helpful for navigating, but at least it gave us a bearing to aim towards and the walk turned into a ramble through the forest.



	Mid005-01The ramble was excellent. It had been quite a while since I had walked in a forest without designated trails and choosing the right path up and down valleys was excellent. There had been snow recently, and there was ice pack in many shaded spots along the way. Where the sun shone through the trees the Earth steamed, the trees, so green after the desert, slowly shed their ice drop by drop. The beauty of it all was enhanced by the silence. Only a few minutes from the first marker we lost any human noises aside from our boots crunching in ice, or crunching fallen leaves, and the occasional bird call.



	We came to a road and followed it a short way before again entering the forest. Throughout this section we heard the occasional rustling in the trees without seeing the cause. Shortly thereafter the sounds of civilisation interrupted our reverie and we saw a Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus), indigenous to the area, descend from a tree a make its way toward a fence. Within minutes we saw dozens of macaque and emerged to a tourist spot where they feed the local population. What surprised me most about visiting this area is that most people drive to this point to play with the macaques, and don’t take the time to wander the surrounding forest and enjoy its wonderful beauty.



	 



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	Unmarked Hike in a Cedar Forest, Morocco



	



	Mid008-1After our walk, we drove through the surrounding area including Ifrane and found the whole experience to be quite bizarre. It was as though we were no longer anywhere in Morocco. The streets were lined with luxury European style buildings belonging more to the Swiss Alps than any Arab or African culture.  We then drove North to Meknes for lunch and onward to Volubilis, an excavated city that had been occupied by Phoenicians, Carthaginians and later Romans.



	Volubilis is an UNESCO site administered by the Moroccan Government, with a 10MAD entry fee. The city is quite large and has some excellent constructs and some excellent signage (mostly in Arabic and French, but some in English). We wandered the city for close to two hours admiring the ruin and views of the nearby town of Moulay-Idriss, which is in the shape of a camel. If you come to the North of Morocco, I heartily recommend a visit. The opening line of UNESCO’s description of this site is “Volubilis is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a large Roman colonial town on the fringes of the empire.”



	 



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	That night we stayed in Fez, one step closer to the end of our Moroccan journey.



	 





	Mid015Other Experiences in Morocco:


Marrakech
Essaouira
Marrakech to Imil
The Route of a Thousand Kasbahs
A Walk in the Dades Gorge
A Night at Erg Chebbi, the Sahara
Northern Morocco and Gouffre du Friouato



	 







		

					

			

	

					
			A Night at Erg Chebbi, the Sahara
			


	




 

 
Details

		

										Parent Category: Travel Over There						

		

										Category: 2014 - Gap Year						

		

		Created: Monday, 10 March 2014 17:39		

 	



	Sah 01Tonight we stay at the Morocco Key’s permanent camp in the desert.



	Erg Chebbi is the edge of the Sahara. We drive out from Rissani across the rocky plains, the road stretching out, seemingly forever, with only vague outlines of mountains marking the horizon. As we drive a new set of mountains appear in the distance, orange and vague, rising from the pale grey plains. As we get closer, we realise they are sand dunes, grand and majestic. Sand begins to build on the rocky plain, small ripples forming into waves coalescing into small dunes. It is an incredible transition. Black stones pit the early sand dunes creating a bizarre contrast while the horizon becomes filled with giant waves of pure, burnished sand.



	We drive along the edge, between the black desert and the dunes of the Sahara, making our way to the end of the road where we will meet our guide for the camel trek. Today we are greeted by Brahim with four camels, and are joined by an Italian couple.



	It is late afternoon and already deep shadows are forming over the dunes. Brahim and the camels snake through and over the dunes offering spectacular and ever changing views. To our west, they rise massively and to east they form a sea stretching to the Algerian border. The sands are patterned by the wind, each dune as unique as a fingerprint. There are ridges where you feel like you are travelling a camel highway while others feel isolated.



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	We stop along a high ridge and dismount. Brahim sets some carpets and from here we will watch the sun set in the valley between two very large dunes. Sunset is an exquisite time in the Sahara. The sands change colour, from reds and oranges to pale cream, the intricate details fading with the light.



	With the sun fallen behind the dunes, we made our way East to the camp through an increasingly eerie landscape. In the fading light perspective began to shift, distances hard to infer, heights hard to discern. Brahim knew the way, and it makes you wonder how the Berber accomplished this in the first place.



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	We are welcomed to the camp by our hosts in full dress. They guide us along a path made of carpets to the dining tent which is large and beautifully adorned, easily capable of seating twenty people. We take tea before being shown to our tent. The tent is incredible – it looks fully lined, has a comfortable king sized bed, and even has electricity, plumbing and piping hot water! This is desert luxury at its finest.



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	We settle in for the night and take our meal – Soup, Salad, Roasted Vegetables, Tagine, and fresh fruit – before joining our hosts by the fire where they are playing Gnauwa music. As the drums beat I gazed upon the clear night sky, admiring the constellations in the orientation of our ancestors. What amazed me most in this star gazing was how desolate it felt when compared to the skies in remote Australia, as though the stars, while plentiful, somehow seemed smaller and less intense.



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	The following morning I arose with the dawn to see the sun rise over the Sahara, the colour of the sand changing subtly every few minutes as the earth rolled and the golden orb flared across the desert. We breakfasted on a dune, with a wonderful panorama setting the mood. We rode our Camels back along a similar track to the previous day, admiring the textures, like fingerprints, of the sand, a gentle breeze riding the crests of the dunes, small curls of sand dancing along ridge and valley.



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	Riding a camel over the sands is an incredible meditative experience and it is easy to get lost in the sensations, physical and visual, and absence of sound. An hour is all we get before once more we hit the road.



	Erg Chebbi, Camel trek, Morocco



	 



	Sah 10


Other Experiences in Morocco:



	 


Marrakech
Essaouira
Marrakech to Imil
The Route of a Thousand Kasbahs
A Walk in the Dades Gorge
The Middle Atlas
Northern Morocco and Gouffre du Friouato



	 



	 







		

			




	
		






						


					


				
			
					


				
 

			


		


		
		
	
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