The main objective of this trip is to climb five Moroccan ultrapeaks. This trip worked well in combination with a Iberian Peninsula trip. The easiest and most reasonable flights were from Madrid. We took one of them and arrived at Marrakech airport in the afternoon. After a few hours of driving that evening, we slept…
Country: Morocco
Morocco
We did a lot of travelling between the mountains by car. We started our journey in Marrakesh, then drove towards the Atlas Mountains towards the Atlantic Ocean, then along the entire length of the High Atlas Mountains towards Algeria, and then north towards the Mediterranean Sea. Finally, we finished our journey in Casablanca. As a…
Jebel Tidirhine
The last of five planned Moroccan ultrapeaks is located right next to the Mediterranean Sea. So it feels like a resort: warm, dry, with lots of pine and cedar trees. It is likely that this climate is also very suitable for hashish, with practically all the fields planted with lush vegetation. The fields are irrigated…
Adrar Bou Nasser
Three planned Moroccan ultrapeaks have been climbed, leaving two to go. So, we’re doing a big Northeasterly loop along the Atlas Mountains, and Adrar Bou Nasser is the most suitable mountain for the next climb. We get up early, drive to the trailhead, and leave the car at the end of the unpaved road. The…
Irhil M’Goun
We start in Said’s home valley, in the village of Arousse. Said, his brother, and a helper with two mules, Rockinstraw and myself, all walk up a rough road next to a river. The road is rising gradually and passing through a few farms. The valley turns into a canyon, and at some point we…
Aghouri
Our main objective today is the Irhil M’Goun ultra summit. But this is a long hike, and we will be staying overnight in the refuge de Tarkeddite. Before arriving at the refuge, Said and I will take a 2-hour detour to climb bonus p600 peak Aghouri. In front of the village, there is a large…
Jebel Toubkal
The world’s 36th most prominent mountain is Morocco’s highest mountain, the highest peak in the Atlas Mountains, and the nearest higher mountain is more than 2,078 kilometres away. There’s definitely more than one reason to climb it. A guide is compulsory, but it is not very clear why it is needed. Everywhere there are wide,…
Tinmal Mosque
We’re on our way down from Jebel Igdet, our first trip ultrapeak, and it might not even be lunchtime. Jebel Toubkal is not too far away, so we have spare time. Said offers us a tour of one of Morocco’s older and more important mosques. It is not operating as a mosque at the moment,…
Jebel Igdet
The westernmost ultra-peak of the Atlas Mountains. There are certainly enough reasons to climb it. We get up early in the morning and drive to the village of Arg. We leave the car there, quickly prepare, and start the walk. For a couple of kilometres, we follow a trail trod by locals and mules. On…