0410 Tata to Tafraoute

31^st Jan 2016

6 WOW day !  A gorge like no other ever seen ! Anywhere !

I woke up at about 8 am and looked out of my port hole to see a sky of amazing and varied hues just before the sun came up.  I got up to take a photo (my camera was down below !) but unfortunately by the time I got out there the sun was just about to appear over the horizon and the sky lost some of its variations in colour.  Still a pretty scene though.  Spent some time trying unsuccessfully to upload photos for my blog – The poor quality wifi down here is getting somewhat frustrating.  I have everything written – Just cannot get it uploaded.  Also got caught by a few other campers wanting to chat, so it was about 10.30 am by the time we drove out of the camp site ! 

0409 Zagora to Tata

30^th Jan 2016

Garage adventures, and a journey through the desert

Well it all started out well.  And then it slowly got better !

The campsite in Zagora was easily one of the nicest we have been in for a long time.  As soon as we arrived they brought us a mat, a table to put on the mat two stools to sit on, a tablecloth for the table.  Sweet !   Then they brought us a pot of Moroccan mint tea and glasses as a welcome drink.  The wifi area (not such good wifi though !) was a Bedouin type tent with cushions to sit on, and they would serve meals if you wanted them (tagines of course !) and had f

resh bread from the market in the mornings.  Very pleasant.   In the morning our cyclist neighbours from Brisbane, Matt and Alison, were up and off quite early – They had a long way to go and don’t go quite as fast as us – But they were heading down the same road as us, so we expected to catch them up later.  Once they had gone, we said our farewells to Bastion and Bridget in the Austrian Troopie, and Peter and Helga in the German one, and then headed into town. We had been asked to stop by one of the garages for a tea, and I had a jacket to give them, so wanted to try to find them before we set off down the road.

0408 Zagora to M'Hamid & back to Zagora

28^th Jan 2016

A journey to the end of the road in the Sahara Desert….And back !

It was very kind of the guys at the camp site to offer us the use of a shower and toilet in a private room, but it didn’t work THAT well !   Yes there was loo paper, so a promising start.  But when Janet returned from the shower, she reckoned it took over 10 minutes for the hot water to come through, and then it was a bit sporadic – Albeit acceptable.  My turn, and I waited my 10 minutes, but no hot water arrived, so I gave up, washed a few important bits, and then called it quits !  Ah the joys of Morocco !  Off to the Sahara.........

0407 Ouarzazate to Zagora

27^th  Jan, 2016

Kasbahs, Oasis’, Mountain Passes & a Moroccan Campsite !

I think we have done almost everything today – Except snow ski, maybe !!  We only drove about 180 kms in the day, but I am exhausted.   We drove through the stunning Draa Valley, a green oasis that follows Morocco’s longest river (The Draa) and contains some incredible Berber fortified villages built as protection against raids by Saharan nomads.  But first we had to pack up and leave our campsite that was walled with the common mud earth bricks, and we decided to first walk into town and the local Kasbah.

0406 Marrakech to Ouarzazate

26^th Jan 2016

Mustapha, mountains, and coffee at the top of the highest paved pass in Morocco

Well, we started the day early, but everything conspired to mean that we never really hit the road to Ouarzazate until after noon !   First I had to fix a zip on the tent – And if any of you have ever tried to fix a zip, it is NOT easy.  And this one is 6 foot long !  Anyway, after about 30 minutes, I got it sorted, although from experience, once a zip starts to go wrong, it keeps on going wrong.  Then the sticker man Mustapha (Skidmore’s favourite Arab name !) came by for the third day – I had fobbed him off with a Bukra Inshallah for the past two days saying I was too busy, but today I had no excuse !  So I ended up with a few camels and palm trees for this my Saharan adventure – Photos will be posted when they are fixed to the car !   Then we had to fill our drinking water tank up, and that took a while, then we had to pay, and after that we went off looking for a place to fill up our calor gas bottle.  On the way there we passed a shed that we thought was covered in rocks, only to find as we got closer they were hundreds of storks !  While stopped there a car stopped and a guy introduced himself as Mohammed and asked us if we were OK and where were we headed.  When we told him, he told us he came from Tagounite, way out in the Sahara desert, and said if we passed though there to stop in and take tea with him !  Very friendly chap. After that, we found the gas bottle filling place, but they refused to fill my bottle so we left.  After that it was off to look for a supermarket, but the road took us through Marrakesh first, so that took a while too !  Finally, about noon, we got on our way to Ouarzazate ! I was exhausted before we started !

0405 A Day in Marrakech

25^th Jan 2016

Coffee, Souks, Spices and a tagine

Woke up on this cool winter morning in Marrakech, and had a further explore of the camp site.  They have really done it well, with the pool surrounds enticing (even more so if the weather was a little warmer !), and the tiles of the shower and toilet facilities quite amazing – Easily the fanciest of anywhere on our entire journey, if not the cleanest as well.  While we were having breakfast the chickens (including the rooster !) came noisily by to make sure we were wake, and then a couple of peacocks came over in all their finery – No noise (they can be VERY noisy – we used to have them at my Prep School !) and they didn’t want to display their tail feathers either, so after a bite to eat, they went on their way.

0404 Casablanca to Marrakech

24^th Jan 2016

Finally make it to Marrakech !

Interesting camp site last night – Out in the middle of nowhere really, about 30 kms south of Casablanca.  Only 3 people in the camp site – 2 French vehicles and us.  And 10 Police live there on a permanent basis, so quite safe really !  But not much in the way of facilities, although what they had was clean……ish !!  No wifi though !

0403 Moulay-Bousselham to Casablanca

23^rd Jan 2016

Interesting minor roads, and then ...... Casablanca !!

Woke up fairly early to a very humid morning – Inside the tent was the dampest I have ever seen, and the outside was soaking, even though no rain.  I try to dry it out as quickly as possibly, but hope the damp is not going to rot any stitching !  Tried the wifi before everyone in the camp site got mobile, and though I was able to send a couple of emails, I couldn’t get on to download and photos or blog.  Its all written, so you are just going to have to wait till I get decent wifi !  The plan for today was to mosey down the coast towards Casablanca, and see what happened…….

0402 Algeciras Spain to Moulay Bousselham, Morocco

22^nd Jan 2016

Marrakesh Express, Kasbahs, and Casablanca !!

I woke up with a start at about 6 am, with so many things going through my mind I wasn’t sure whether I had been dreaming about them all or just thinking about them all night in the back of my mind.  Oddly enough, none of them were about today’s trip to Morocco – Although I have to admit I do get apprehensive when crossing into a new country – Not in a bad way, more just a wondering what it will be like and whether they will be friendly !! So we packed up and headed into the port of Algeciras at 10 am to catch our 11.30 ferry.  Lovely drive back along the coast from Tarifa into the port, with the sun coming up and Africa not quite visible across the sea to the south due to the haze.

0401 Alhambra Granada and on to Algeciras

21^st Jan 2016

An amazing Palace, and then almost to Africa !

After our fact finding visit last night, our plan was to be at the Alhambra bu as close to 8.30 am as we could, so we could not only (hopefully) beat the crowds, but also be finished in time to hit the road on south by about noon so we could reach Algeciras this afternoon in time to buy tickets for the ferry to Tangiers the following morning.  So we were up at 6.30 am (almost unheard of), breakfasted and showered by 8 am, and on the road by 8.10 am (totally unheard of !).  And as we drove off through Granada in the dawn light, the cloud formations over the Sierra Nevada were more like some kind of supernatural happening than a normal cloud formation.  Fascinating.

0400 La Nucia to Granada

20^th Jan 2015

Desolate scenery, snow and mountains

 

Today was one of those days when there really wasn’t a lot of interest to look at because the scenery was so dry and desolate, but at the same time, that is the essence of this part of Spain, so one has to see it to understand the country.  We packed the car after 3 days at Jill’s, with all laundry done, the fridge restocked, and the water tank filled, and headed off down the road. We have had a wonderful if all too brief time in La Nucia, and can’t thank Jill enough for running us around and showing us some of the sights.  It has been a really enjoyable stay, and we have eaten some great food, drunk some good local wine, and had some laughs.  A perfect way to spend the time.

0399 Around La Nucia

17^th – 19^th January 2016

Relaxing in the warmth !

Early on Sunday morning we drove the last bit down the coast to La Nucia, past Culpe and its rock, through the tunnels carved through the mountains, and eventually turning up away from the beach to La Nucia, just 5 minutes up into the hills.  Garmin guided us straight to our friend Jill’s house and we spent a while catching up and getting our bearings in the area from the wonderful view of her balcony.

0398 Daroca to Oliva

16^th January 2016

Snow, cold, cranes, castles, and sunshine.  All in one day !

Sometimes I wonder how we can fit so much in to one day !  We knew it was cold during the night, but we were snug with plenty of extra clothes on, and some chemical handwarmers in our socks.  So when we eventually opened the curtains and peered out, we were surprised to see it all white outside !!  Snow and minus 4 deg C during the night !   Even the loo was covered in snow, which made for a chilly start to the morning !   We ate our breakfast inside the van, and I started the engine early so the heater warmed up, and it was actually nice and warm in there.  The tap to the water tank was frozen solid, but luckily we still had enough water in our bottles inside to enable us to make a hot cup of tea before we set off down the road !

0397 Burgos to Daroca

14^th January 2016

Ice, cold, snow, and Muslim towns

Last night was C-O-L-D !!  I woke a few times during the night but was basically warm as toast – I just had to pull my sleeping bag hood over my head to make it perfect.  Unfortunately Janet has a harder time in sleeping bags and had cold feet which prevented her from having a good nights sleep.  Ah well, the joys of camping !!  How cold was it  ?   Well, at 8 am, it was minus 0.4 deg C, so not THAT cold !!!

0396 Santander to Burgos

13th Jan 2016

Rain, cloud, snow ploughs, and an incredible cathedral.

We woke up to heavy and continuous rain – Oh no !  I hate wet pack ups in the morning.  To be fair, we have had very few really bad ones – Unfortunately this was one of the worst on the entire trip !!  We were close to the sea, and I guess the rain had blown in overnight, and there was nothing we could do except try to pack up as much in the dry as we could, and then just put our rain coats on for the last bit when we had to put the awning and pop top away.  So by the time we jumped in the van and headed down the road, we were a bit wet !

0395 Portsmouth UK to Santander Spain

12th January 2016

Life on the ocean wave……

The time has come to hit the road again, and at 6 am on the 12^th Jan we left Margaret’s in Milford in the dark and headed to Portsmouth to catch an 8.45 am ferry to Santander Spain.  We had decided to catch the ferry to Spain instead of driving through France because it was only a few pounds more expensive, yet saved us 2 or more days of solid driving.  Whether we would have bounced and crashed quite so much if we had driven rather than sailed is a mute point !

0394 Christmas and the New Year

Christmas 2015

Great fun despite the flu !!

As I write this, Christmas and New Year have come and gone, and at 5 am tomorrow morning we are off to Portsmouth to catch the ferry to Spain, and then we drive down through Spain to Morocco.  But more of that later !  In the meantime, we enjoyed a wonderful Christmas and New Year with very close friends and family, even if the local winter bugs decided to do their best to thwart our fun !