This is information about the Morocco trip we did in 2005.
I had a trip planned to Morocco, led by Hamish Brown, for the spring of 2003. With the (ill-advised!) invasion of Iraq looming we decided to cancel. It appears now that the tourist fall-out in terms of travel to Muslim countries has been far less than feared, so I have planned another trip to Morocco with Hamish for April 28 - May 12, 2005. It promises to be a fascinating trip in terms of natural beauty and immersion in Berber culture and Moroccan history. The itinerary Hamish has put together for this trip follows:
Thurs., April 28, 2005. Arrive Marrakech. Stay at Hotel Ali on the edge of the Medina. Well placed for all activities.
Fri. 29 - Marrakech day. Sites and sights. Hotel Ali buffet dinner of Moroccan dishes.
Sat. 30 - Minibus south to spend the morning at the exotic Asni souk (a weekly market). Walk on the Kik Plateau - great viewpoint, on to stay at the comfy Auberge Souktana. It is French run, good food.
Sun. May 1 - To Imlil, the base for the Boubkal massif. Walkabout. Night at a gite. (A gite is a small pension - usually family run.)
Mon. 2 - Walk over pass to refuge (a rough hostel) at Tachddirt. A 5 hours trek.
Tues. 3 - A fine pass to reach Oukaimeden ski resort. 5 hours trek. Chalet refuge.
Wed. 4 - Minibus down alpine road and up the Tizi n’ Tichka (a major pass) to Telout. See Glaoui palace and on to stay at a gite up the Ounila Valley.
Thurs. 5 - Enjoyable walk down the valley to Anmiter. Overnight in nomad tents of village house. Fine village archtecture.
Fri. 6 - Down the Tizi n’ Tichka again and east to Demnate and overnight at a charming gite by the Imi n Ifri (gorge/natural arch). Walkabout.
Sat. 7 - Scenic drive to the beautiful Bou Gumez valle. Gite.
Sun. 8 - Local (Tabant) souk visit agadir (a very pretty fortified granary) on hilltip and walkabout. Gite again.
Mon. 9 - In the minibus, out to Azilal and by the Bin Oudane lake and pass to Beni Mellal.
Tues. 10 - Westing and up into foothills to the fine Cascades d’Ouzzoud (finest waterfall in Morocco). Pleasant walking in the area of the gorge (rainbows!). Hotel.
Wed. 11 - Morning to Marrakech. Local lunch treat. Last chance to visit souks, etc. Eat out. Hotel Ali.
Thurs. 12 - Depart.
In the heading I stated “Morocco with Hamish Brown”. He is an amazing man, with multiple interests and talents, and very much in love with Morocco, its people, history, and culture. Below is some information about him that he sent me when we were doing the initial planning. In parenthesis are my explanations.
About him. “I’ve been wandering the Atlas (the mountain range in Morocco) since 1965, so have a unique knowledge of it. All the trips I do are one-off trips (which he defines as ‘a trip for a single occasion, not one repeated regularly or commercially’), and I do them as much for my satisfaction as for a commercial venture. I never advertise to the public. All word of mouth and very personal. A high proportion come back–one 17 times! I wrote the mountain bits for the Rough Guide to Morocco (the “Rough Guide” is Britain’s “Lonely Planet” equivilant in guide books) and most of the pictures are mine.” (The “Lonely Planet - Morocco” lists Hamish as a ssource for Atlas Mtn. maps.)
More about him, “I have led expeditions to places as diverse as Norway, Iceland, Ethiopia, Turkey, Corsica, Eastern Europe, the Alps, Andes, and Himalayas. In 1965, I spent three months in the Atlas Mountains and have been back ever since–a continuing love affair. I have interests in skiing, canoeing, sailing, tall ships, alpine flower-hunting, and ornithology, and am a book collector, story-teller, poet, artist, and cook. I have published over 100 articles in world wide magazines and was awarded an honorary D.Litt by St. Andrews University in 1997.”
About his philosophy: “Berber life and traditions (culture) are an important part of the trip. We fit in with them, not vice versa. The interest is in Morocco and its people. Trekkers who just want to tick off another country/trek are not of interest. Dress code and behavior is expected to comply.”
About photographic possibilities (I asked–naturally!!): “No worry photographically! I took 450+ pictures in my last 10 days in that area. Think of the film you’d need–and bring more!
About terrorism risk: “When the Gulf War (compliments of Bush, Sr.) blew up, I was in Morocco and people set to join me simply had their flight tickets returned/refunded. No airlines were flying into “Arab” countries. The economic effect was devastating and so uncalled for in Morocco. Any anti-American feeling tends to be expressed in Casablanca and Rabat, not Marrakech. Tourists are business and no one wants to damage themselves. In the Atlas the people wouldn’t know the difference between Americans and aborigines. I’m more worried about the flights being withdrawn and bookings lost than the actual personal risk. Morocco is not fanatically Muslim. I’ve groups planned from early April on to the end of June, so hope nothing does blow up, or if it does, it is over by then.” (He wrote this to me last Jan. when we were trying to decide what to do with the spring trip. He has since told me he ran a full schedule of trips last spring and summer during the Iraq invasion, with Brits, and had not a single problem. I should also add that we recently returned from a wonderful trip to Turkey, another Muslim country even more impacted by the Iraq war and encountered only warm hospitality.)
Cost: For my other trips, I get prices from hotels, restuarants, etc. and work out an “all-inclusive” cost. He operates differently. Basically there is an initial “booking fee” of $150, non-refundable, then each of us pays our own way, utilizing the discounts he gets through his multiple contacts, and splitting the costs of transportation. When we talked with him last Sept. he thought the total land cost would be about 500 British pounds, or $800-900 per person, depending on the exchange rate. A quick check on Travelocity yields a fare of $885 out of Newark to Marrakech on those dates.
Nancy and I met with Hamish while we were in Scotland last fall. He is quite a character! I think the trip would be a fascinating one if we did nothing more than sit around and chat with him. He showed us a shelf of books he has written (mostly on travel). And while we were in Scotland we were glancing through a magazine on Scotland and to our surprise found an article on the island of Mull–written by Hamish! I believe he supports himself largely through his writing. He looks to be in early to mid 60’s, so he won’t be doing this too much longer…
Hamish takes a maximum of 12 on his trips. I have 5 signed up and three on the very interested list already. So if you want to go along on this fascinating trip or want more info, get back to me soon.
Larry Bieber