Day Hikes from Fez
Cedar Forests, Cliffs & Cascades
LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY
GRADE ONE - WALKING MOSTLY ON PATHS AT LOWER LEVELS, SOMETIMES ROCKY, SELDOM FLAT, FOR ABOUT 6 HOURS EACH DAY. GOOD TRAINERS WOULD DO, BUT TAKE BOOTS IF YOU ARE USED TO THEM. FOR ANYONE WHO LEADS A REASONABLY ACTIVE LIFE. HIKING ALWAYS INVOLVES SOME EFFORT.
ITCTFES01 - departures: daily (5 hours hike)
Departure from Fes at around 8.30 in the morning for an exciting 2hours' drive towards the south and the foothills of the Middle Atlas Ranges After some 30 minutes, we arrive at the small 1920s French-built hill station of Immouzèr du Kandar (1220m). Here we'll pause for ten minutes by the kasbah for a look at the little medina and take in the pleasant Saiss Plateau and distant Fes, continuing on to the squeaky-clean Moroccan pseudo-Swiss town of Ifrane (1650m), with its slanted, russet-tiled roofs hidden amidst a forest of cedar, which cannot grow below 1600m. Ifrane is mainly a winter ski resort - and a summer hideaway for rich Moroccans wishing to escape the hustle and heat of the large cities.
We now drive through to the first real town in the central Atlas - Azrou - which, in the local Tamazight Berber dialect means "rock," for next to the mosque, is the massive outcrop of rock from which this town takes its name - was for a long time a strategic settlement established to effect some form of control of the independent mountain Berber peoples. On Tuesdays there is a souq to where the Beni M'Guild tribes come to trade. From here we set out on our easy hike up through forests of evergreen holm oak, cork and juniper until we reach some 1600m where we shall find the giant cedar trees. We continue our easy hike up alongside coves and little gorges to the summit of Ras Kharzouza (1900m), where we shall stop on a ridge for our picnic, overlooking the verdant Tigrigra Valley, Azrou and the important Amazigh village of Aïn Leuh, with ruined kasbah and flat-roofed houses in tiers overlooking the valley, and with Ifrane beckoning in the distance.
When ready, we descend down the other side of the mountain through stands of cedar and along a plateau which the semi-nomadic Berber shepherds use to fatten their animals and where, doubtless, during the months of April to October, we shall be welcomed by these Berber tribespeople who have set up here their large, black felt nomadic tents. We stroll down through the Tizi Tioumliline (1600m), where we'll get to see the Barbary apes which patrol this area before taking a long, winding mule track alongside Oued Sebbab, with its little waterfalls until we reach the traditional Amazigh green-tiled roofed arcades of Azrou's market square, medina and ruined kasbah - built by the unusually ruthless and notorious Sultan Moulay Ismaïl in 1719 - and our awaiting coach, at around 5 in the evening, to take us back to Fes.
Costs per person:
(minimum 2 persons) |
£125 |
(4 persons) |
£83 pp |
Our price includes:
Experienced, licensed, bi-lingual mountain guide throughout. Round trip transportation Fez - Azrou - Fez. Light picnic lunch.
Picnic lunch - fresh Moroccan salad, cheese, tinned tuna fish*, bread, fruit, mint tea.
* If vegetarian or vegan, please pre-advise.
Our prices do not include:
Personal medical or accident insurance. Any expenditure of a personal nature. Bottled or gaseous water, nor anything not specifically mentioned in the itinerary. Gratuity to guide.
It is recommended that you bring:
Good trainers or walking boots. Hat, sunscreen, sunglasses, nibbles, filled water bottle, binoculars, hygienic 'wipes'.
NB: 48 hours' notice is required when booking for 3 or more persons, given the scarcity of minibuses in Fes.
Tel: (08707) 406 306
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