Monday 10th March 2008: We leave our desert camp at our now usual time of 9am and head towards the Atlas Mountains. Firstly a refuel and the internet visit in the town of Erfoud and to send postcards home.

Just as we were about to leave town, Lyn’s front tooth fell out. It was an implant done some 20 years ago. Not wanting to look like all the local women, we needed to come up with a quick fix. I did not have any superglue on hand but I do have some metal mend engine block repairer. With some quick puttying of the mixture Lyn’s tooth is now back in place and she can comfortable smile again….Three days later it is still in place!

We were driving past some old water wells, some of which were still in use so we stopped to investigate.

As soon as we stopped a young man ran out from is tent and invited us in for tea. I do specifically remember him saying free and no obligations. We thought how friendly.

He explained that each line of water wells belongs to a different tribe, (the Berbers, the Nomads etc) and as one goes dry they dig another in the same line but deeper into the aquifer.(now at 25metres)

The tea was very sweet; particularly as he kept breaking big roughly cast lumps of sugar into the tea pot.

Then came the crunch, “Look my brother digs these fossils” and “My sister makes this jewellery out of camel knee bones”. Actually it was not camel knee bone but a cowrie shell, and looked very ‘junkie’.

Mohammed was very cleaver in is persuasion but I could not come at 700Dh (A$120) for this piece of junk, even including the cost of the cup of over sweet tea. Anyway with lots of back and forwards and by this time we were back in the vehicle and I had started the vehicle engine and ready to drive away the price was concluded at 50Dh (A$9.00). With much kissing of Lyn’s hands in appreciation, we considered it an expensive cup of tea with a piece of junk jewellery as a bonus.

The country has changes to vast gibber plains as we head towards Todra Gorge in the High Atlas. We camped in Todra Gorge at the town of Tinerhir, at de Soeil Camp ground.

Camp 12: Todra Gorge Camp.

Distance travelled: 226Kms. Total: 4192Kms.

Tuesday 11th March: Today and tomorrow we plan to do some off road tracks (pistes) between Todra Gorge and Dades Gorge crossing the High Atlas Mountains at 27,000metres. I had downloaded from the internet some brief directions from previous adventurers, and with a few local directions we headed off.

The piste followed the water course up the valley. Initially steep vertical walls on both sides, finally breaking into slightly wider valley as we climbed past 23,000 metres.

The surrounding country is dry and barren, the hill people or Berbers just etching a living from herding goats and crudely growing potatoes, carrots and wheat in small isolated wet patches of the river valley.

Finally the piste winds its way out of the valley up a snaked road cut into the mountain side onto the high plateau at the mountain pass of Tzi Tierherouzine at 2.7Km high.

Women are walking along the road carrying huge piles of sticks for the cooking fires back home. We can not see any timber so consider they must travel quite some distance with this heavy load carried on much arched backs.

At the village of Agoudal we had lunch at the local café. The Bruchette or shashlik as we know it and salad was good washed down with that sweet tea.

Leaving town we headed higher into the mountains on a much smaller piste.

At 27,000 metres snow blocked the road. It had turned to ice, and below was soft clay, added to that the side slope angled the wrong direction towards the steep drop off way below.

I do not need adventure like this.

We returned to the mountain pass at Tizi Teiherouzine, and camped the night alone and high in the snow covered Atlas.

Camp 13: 27,000metre Camp.

Distance travelled: 126Kms.

Total: 4318Kms.

Tuesday 12-13th March: Well we thought we would be alone, at 8.30pm that night however 3 Berber men approached the vehicle and called out “Want to buy hashish?” Following my decline “Do you have Bom Bom?” I thought this meant smokes, but we learn later in the day that it means lollies. They left us in peace to enjoy out mountain top camp in seclusion.

We could not find the other road across the top of the mountains to Dade’s Gorge so retraced our steps down Toda Gorge and then the main road to Dade’s.

It was market day at Boumaine so wandered around the markets and purchased our eggs, and a few dates. We also spot a seller of colourful spices; coffee, ginger, tamarind, cumin, nutmeg, cinnamon, and curry.

Dade’s Gorge is just as spectacular, the valley floor is green with new wheat, and trees are either flowering pink almonds or figs about to break bud.

At the end of the gorge the road snakes itself back and forth up a near vertical incline. At the top we turn round and camp in the valley village. We prefer isolated/remote camps but we are now resigned to campground accommodation.

This morning we watch the women cut both local grass on the road verge and field grown grasses for drying as winter feed. The young boys carry manure on donkey back to fertilise the fields. All very slow intensive work.

Heading to Ouarzazate, we stop for lunch and shared cooked pigeon, chips and salad. Very tasty. We have now left the Atlas Mountains and now travelling over vast rolling gibber plains heading south east. Still villages manage to edge a living from this arid area.

From Ouerzazate, we turn east in the direction of the Sahara Desert again and follow the Draa River Valley. This valley is known as “The valley of a 1,000 Kasbahs”. As we descend from the dry strataed plateau we can see the meandering river valley and the green date palms stretch off into the distance.

Tonight we are camped amongst the palms in the valley. Our pre-dinner drinks accompanied by olives, dates, and some French cheese.

Camp 15: Date Palm Camp.

Distance Travelled: 176 + 223Kms.

Total: 4717Kms.

Tuesday 14th March: Our day started with a two hour tour of the old Ksour or fortified stronghold, and its associated Kasbar at Tamnougalt. Built around 400AD, for a mud construction if has withstood time well.

All day we followed the Draa River valley and its date palm filled valley towards the desert. As we reached the more modern town of Zagora the air began to fill with dust blown up from the winds over the Sahara. The river has cut its way down from the plateau, but we must follow the snake road around and down the mountain edges until finally we pass out onto a dust filled plain.

We know that 18Kms before the end of the road at the town of M’Hamid that there is a piste that leads out into the Sahara dune field. We find a track and guestimate that it is the correct one. We have no GPS readings for the dunes but know that from ‘Lonely Planet’ they are approx 50Kms east of M’Hamid.

We let the tyres down to 28psi and happily travel along.

It is lateish in the afternoon so we cross-country to some dunes to the south and call camp. With deck chairs in hand, drinks and nibblies, we climb the dunes and watch the sun set. It is a shame that the air is so filled with dust; it does not make photography conducive.

Camp 16: Dune Camp.

Distance travelled: 235Kms.

Total: 4952 Kms.

We are now in the dry Draa River Valley but it has now spread out over a 20 kilometre wide valley, bounded by the hills of our far right (North) and the small sized dune field to our left (South).

There are no roads or tracks and my plan is to find the big 300metre high dunes. Driving west for 50K’s, keeping the dune field in site on my left we track down the valley.

We crossed gibber plains, and sandy river valleys, often we had to skirt smaller dune fields, but occasionally we had to punch through them. At 45K’s from the turn off we arrive at Erg Chigaga Morocco’s largest dunes at 310metres.

There are a few scattered tents catering for the more adventurous camel trekkers. (3 days by camel out from M’Hamid)

From one of these tents, three men wave us down; reluctant at first, we accept their offer of tea. It is around mid day and that sand storm was brewing again.

Visibility was down to 50 metres and the sand blowing off the tops of the dunes, and really impossible to go outside. We pleasantly accept their invitation to join them for lunch. The local speciality is tajine, (like a hot pot), but because they have no refrigeration it is all vegetables.

All afternoon the wind blows, Lyn is reading her ‘Who’ magazine and the three guys take an interest. Each reads it from cover to cover, well looks at the pictures anyway, and Lyn explains the stories.

Lhsan (Lassin) has discovered the sudoku and is intent on completing the puzzle. Eventually we must tear out the page so he can continue.

The head man is Mbark, is brother runs the office in M’Hamid organising the camel trekkers to here, where Mback looks after them well. I am keen to move on but Mback insists we stay for dinner of Couscous. These guys are really genuine so we accept.

It is only 3pm, so Mback suggests he leads us to the top of the biggest dune. It is quite a climb but rewarding. The view to the south of this dune overlooks one of the stages of the Paris-Dakar event.

Preparation of a couscous dinner is a 3 hour event, no 3 minute couscous here. Hence we spend this time comfortably in their rudimentary but adequate kitchen watching he preparation as we chat.

Lhsan is still hard at work trying to solve the sudoku. Now his two friends are trying to help and that really confuses the issue. Finally there are so many options on the original piece of paper that the initial numbers have to be copied again and again on to new bits of paper.

The soup, followed by couscous and vegetables was great. This was followed by some singing by Mback, his friend Mohammed, and Lhsan on native drums.

Lyn and I were truly impressed with these guys. Friendly, well spoken, and very genuine.

They can be contacted at http://www.caravanerenard.com/or [email protected]

The air is now cool and clear, and we camp where the truck is parked out side the camel rug clad desert tents.

Camp 17: Desert Fox Caravan Camp.

Distance travelled: 81Kms.

Total: 5034Kms.

Tuesday 16th March: This morning the air is clear again. Mback suggested yesterday that we could follow the valley another 80Kms to the outpost of Fourm Zguid, then head north on the road and pick up our planned trip. We agree this sounded great.

As we leave the sudoku puzzle is still unsolved.

For 30kms we follow a very soft sandy track along the edge of the dunes. The Canter handles it well and we float over one small dune after another following beside what is left of the mighty Draa River.

Finally we are on the remnants of a vast dry lake. Mback said the last time this had water was in 1945. A flat plain with nothing in every direction, except for that water mirage at the edge of the every horizon.

Our rout had taken us along a path within 40Kms and parallel to the Algerian border, so it was not surprising that eventually we would be stopped at a military outpost and a scant check of our documents.

It was then a very rough stony track into Fourm Zguid where we lunched beside the bitumen road that would take us all the way back to Ouarzazate on the edge of the High Atlas again.

We are camped at the UNESCO world heritage site of Benhaddou, apparently the most exotic and best preserved Kasbar in the Atlas region. That will be tomorrow’s discovery!

Camp 18: Benhaddou Kasbar Camp.

Distance travelled: 258Kms.

Total: 5292Kms.