Morocco - West Africa - page 633

Getting Around
A petit taxi to Marrakesh from the airport (6km) should cost no more than Dh60. Alternat-
ively, bus 11 runs irregularly to Djemaa el-Fna. The creamy-beige petits taxis around town
cost anywhere between Dh5 and Dh15 per journey.
TOP OF CHAPTER
High Atlas Mountains
The highest mountain range in North Africa, the Berbers call the High Atlas Idraren Drar-
en (Mountain of Mountains) and it's easy to see why. Flat-roofed, earthen Berber villages
cling tenaciously to the valley sides, while irrigated terraced gardens and walnut groves
flourish below.
Hiking
The Office National Marocain du Tourisme (ONMT) publishes the excellent booklet Mo-
rocco: Mountain and Desert Tourism, with lists of bureaux des guides (guide offices),
gîtes d'étape (hikers' hostels) and other useful information. Hikes of longer than a couple
of days will almost certainly require a guide (Dh300 per day) and mule (Dh100). There
are bureaux des guides in Imlil, Setti Fatma, Azilal, Tabant (Aït Bou Goumez Valley) and
El-Kelaâ M'Gouna, where you can hire official guides.
Club Alpin Français HIKING
(CAF; 0522 270090; 50 Blvd Moulay Abderrahman, Quartier Beauséjour, Casablanca) Operates key refuges
in the Toubkal area, particularly those in Imlil, Oukaïmeden and on Jebel Toubkal. The
club website is a good source of trekking information.
Jebel Toubkal Hike
The most popular hiking route in the High Atlas is the ascent of Jebel Toubkal (4167m),
North Africa's highest peak. The Toubkal area is just two hours' drive south of Marrakesh
and accessible by local transport.
You don't need mountaineering skills or a guide to reach the summit, provided you fol-
low the standard two-day route and don't do it in winter. You will, however, need good
boots, warm clothing, a sleeping bag, food and water, and should be in good physical con-
dition before you set out. It's not particularly steep, but it's a remorseless uphill trek all
the way.