Trekking in the High Atlas

Toubkal

We left the breezy coast behind and drove into the stunning high Atlas mountains to the base of Mt Toubkal, the second highest peak in Africa. 

Here we lodged in a small mountain village in a traditional lodge made of stone.  Up on the terrace we had great views of the valley below and the snowy peaks above.

We enjoyed a delicious home cooked meal of clay pot chicken and vegetables followed by fresh watermelon.  the next morning we set off on an easy trek up the valley through groves of walnut trees following a rushing mountain stream.  It was so peaceful and green - like a garden in paradise - the temperature was just perfect.  We stopped by a local home for lunch where we enjoyed on of the best meals of the trip featuring the local specialty, rfissa (msemen bread with lentils and chicken cooked with turmeric).

 After lunch we made our way back through the village to the mountain stream and back too our lodge where we enjoyed a crisp bottle of local Moroccan rose which was quite nice - thank to the french colonial presence there are some very good wines here in Morocco.  We met some nice travelers at our lodge that evening and shared a meal with them as they told us about their epic 2 day trek to the summit of Toubkal.  Good fun!