Morocco October 2016

[MarkW]

Following the success of the first forum Morocco Trip................

Who's up for a trip this year??

I currently have 3 weeks booked off work from the 7th to the 21st October for my 6th trip (these dates could possibly be moved slightly). I have some route ideas all ready mentally planned out mostly involving routes through the 4 mountain ranges or possibly a Western Sahara Route.

Maximum group size will be smaller than last years trip to make things smoother day to day. A mountain route will be shorter routes and could be a little more technical. Varied terrain and moments of peril/adrenaline.

A WS route would be long mileages in very remote areas with little water or fuel supplies for a few days. The WS also has FO advisories for landmines and security at present (but that just adds to the fun). We would have to be self sufficient for at least 3 days route depending and help/civilisation could be over a days drive at times. The route could potentially cross the Tropic of Cancer 2000km south of entering Morocco.

Exact Route is TBC but the itinerary on the way out is fixed as follows

Fri - evening ferry from Portsmouth
Sat - arrive in Spain drive to Salamanca area
Sun - get into Morocco
Mon - Drive to El Jadida
Tue - Drive to Essaouira
Wed - day in Essaouira relaxing and preparing for the next 2 weeks of fun

Confirmed

1. MarkW - LC95

 

[Chris]

With a bit of luck this time the insurance booth will be open when you get across

 

[ByronJ]

Well well Mark, you are a glutton for punishment . After all the hassle we gave you on the last trip I thought you would just sneak off on your own this year .

I am keen to join you again (after all we were the only two left for the drive back across Spain) but a big spanner has been thrown into my work/play plans for 2016 so I am unable to commit at this stage.

It will be 5 or 6 months before I will be able to make a plan so don't wait for me. Good luck getting a decent crowd together for a trip.

 

[MarkW]

Yep maybe a glutton for punishment Byron, but lessons were learnt last year which will only make another group trip better

It would be an absolute pleasure to have you along again if things work out. Maybe we can finish the High Atlas bits we missed last year!

 

[mussy]

Good on you Mark to do this again. I think you are right to have a smaller group. Western Sahara for me is the goal, Dakar pistes etc. Of course the mountains are amazing too.

 

[Chris]

Agreed, the morning we had in the desert sand was interesting driving.

 

[MarkW]

From Tantan to Dhakla could be 5 days (3 days without supply points) and a 1000km almost all off road. At the southernmost point it would be 2 days to the nearest city by road

 

[GeorgeG]

From Tantan to Dhakla could be 5 days (3 days without supply points) and a 1000km almost all off road. At the southernmost point it would be 2 days to the nearest city by road

I like that! I realize a month after we got back from the trip...I did not have enough Morocco. When I was alone in TanTan for few minutes (that day when we did Plaje Blanche) I thought it would be cool do go further south....few days later Kamal told me he was gonna go to Dakhla next year.....Long story short - if the plan is to go into WS I will most likely join you again Mark!
P.S. This time I will take the red one- 1HD-T with Safari intercooler.

 

[ByronJ]

Hi George. Is Kamal the chap with the swimming pool full of sand?

 

[Chris]

That was him. And the drink problem.

 

[GeorgeG]

Hi George. Is Kamal the chap with the swimming pool full of sand?

Yep! Thats him!

That was him. And the drink problem.

Haha! I wander if I had more grappa....Byrons truck would still be there

 

[ByronJ]

Ah! Thanks Chris. So it is he with the mechanic friends . I reckon my problem that day was simply that one battery was really flat as it was not being charged properly due to the ill fitting battery connections. I have since properly charged the "dud" battery. It held charge for 2 months so I put it back on the car and all is well... Still we ended up with an entertaining evening . Though, as you suggest, our drink supplies took a severe hit .

 

[ByronJ]

Well George I reckon you are right. Their need for "Grappa/Alcohol of any description" was greater than my trucks need for mechanics...

 

[Chris]

His name was actually Camel. Same as camel, ship of the desert. It was a very strange fault Byron. Why didn't jump leads work? We even had two sets charging your batteries at one point. I can only think that a cell had gone down and essentially the battery had a 'gap' in it. Because you can't jump start from that battery, jumping the other one would not have helped.

Anyway, all recovered and away.

 

[ByronJ]

His name was actually Camel. Same as camel, ship of the desert. It was a very strange fault Byron. Why didn't jump leads work? We even had two sets charging your batteries at one point. I can only think that a cell had gone down and essentially the battery had a 'gap' in it. Because you can't jump start from that battery, jumping the other one would not have helped.

Anyway, all recovered and away.

Ah Camel - also same as the cigarettes I smoked many moons ago . It was a very confusing fault indeed. I think you are correct and my battery was acting as a sink. If we had taken it out of the circuit I suspect we would have started the car. Though as to why the battery is working fine now I have no idea .

 

[MarkW]

I like that! I realize a month after we got back from the trip...I did not have enough Morocco. When I was alone in TanTan for few minutes (that day when we did Plaje Blanche) I thought it would be cool do go further south....few days later Kamal told me he was gonna go to Dakhla next year.....Long story short - if the plan is to go into WS I will most likely join you again Mark!
P.S. This time I will take the red one- 1HD-T with Safari intercooler.

It'd be great to travel with you again George

Getting tempted with another WS trip, my only concern is the shear distances involved and the time I have available. Getting down to Dakhla could mean a long tarmac drive north. But it is the only place in Morocco I want to get to but haven't yet

 

[MarkW]

Been looking at the logistics of the WS all the way down to Dakhla a bit this week, and think it is possible if I come back on the Saturday ferry. This would give another 2 days over last years trip. Heading that far south would likely require 7 days from leaving the UK to getting off road.

We could spend 5 days off road from TanTan to Dakhla over 1000km. These could be long days and would need the group to be organised to get the km covered, ie up and off at agreed times with dawn starts. Alternatively we could spend another day on Tarmac to Smara, getting south quicker leaving us with 3 days off road to Dakhla and giving more time heading back north to come back through the Anti Atlas.

After Smara there is no fuel supplies until Dakhla so we'd need to have a range of 800-900km for fuel, water and food. There are wells for water but that's pretty much it any towns/villages are likely to be military outposts and not really ideal places to visit. Except in an emergency.

The WS is stunningly desolate but can be quite featureless during the drive, there certainly isn't the variety of views the northern parts of Morocco have. Dakhla is supposed to be very nice area and we would have at least 1 day off here to have a poke about, possibly 2.

There no 2 ways about this, its not a trip for anyone who isn't mentally prepared for long days in the desert and whose trucks may have any doubts about reliability. Once into the desert the only escape routes will take at least a day back to civilisation.

This video was from my 2nd trip, 1:07 to 2:22 is the WS for an idea of the terrain in the bit I know
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CDegjjdugg

And some pics

P1060742 by Trackasylum, on Flickr

P1060766 Panorama by Trackasylum, on Flickr

 

[MarkW]

Been looking at the Ferries from the UK over the weekend and it seems that Brittany have changed their timetable slightly this year.

It looks like I'll be catching the Plymouth - Santander ferry on the 7th at 20:30 which arrives at Santander at 17:30 on the 8th. The return journey will either be the Thurday Ferry on the 27th or the Saturday Ferry on the 29th. The Saturday return would suit a Western Sahara route better as it gives 2 more days in Morocco.

Nice thing with the new timetable is the outbound journey is 4 hours faster and on the bigger of Brittany's ferries with better facilities

 

[MarkW]

Just to stir the soul

 

[MarkW]

A couple of guys from over on the HuBB have recently finished a trip through the WS to Dakhla, I'm trying to get GPX track log from them so I can get a better idea of how long it took them and routes they took.

In the mean time they have posted some photos on their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/DublinDakar/?fref=ts