My second walk in the Anti-Atlas mountains of Morocco was situated in the awesome and remote Ait Mansour gorge in the very south of the country. Perhaps 200miles southwest of the Atlas Mountains. It’s a one hour car drive from Tafraout through some of the most exciting but nerve jangling scenery - the mountain roads were practically deserted, which was lucky as there was certainly not enough room for two cars most of the time!
The trail head starts from a place called Ait Mansour, which is about 25miles southeast of Tafraout. Its a little settlement in the magnificent Mansour Gorge, and a sort of oasis within the huge canyons located in this part of the country. It reminded me very much like perhaps Arizona or Utah in my opinion. The immense sandstone walls and towers of the canyon and gorge dwarf anything in the valley. Topographically, the geological scars over the canyon walls and lunar-like mountains looked quite awesome on the eye. Almost moon-like I would say?
Planning for the walk was critical, as I chose a 20mile loop with 2000 ft of climbing. Without sounding too demanding in most conditions but in 30 degree heat and rising throughout the day was a game changer. Essentially the main limiting factor will always be water supplies, and exactly how much you are prepared to carry - I banked on 6 litres being more than enough, which ran out on my way home. So not enough in hindsight.
The hike, I would say, would definitely be one of the most remote and isolated adventures I have done. I didn’t see a soul on the hike, which was weird and can definitely play on the mind….but saying that the mountain paths are well maintained and clear. Once I reached the southwest rim of the gorge and the summits, the prize was definitely the magnificent views south towards the disputed territory of Western Sahara and off east towards Algeria. As far as the eye could see were curtain folds of sand dunes and pure desert.
I reached the Bou Jana Col and made camp late afternoon on an over optimistic crest of the mountain. My original pitch turned into a real wind session and a total houley, unsurprisingly- I hope it offers some amusement to viewers. I have no ego ;-). Second attempt was a lot better, and rewarded me with a magnificent sunset over the gorge and the Western Sahara on the horizon. As a bonus, there was a fantastic star filled sky and an opportunity to utilise one of the darkest skies I have ever experienced for some astrophotography shots with the Sony A7C - and of course my fantastic 14mm Sony E mount Prime lens.
I had an amazing sleep in the mountains and came down the next morning back to my basecamp. I cant explain in words the level of isolation and solitude you can experience here, and I will defiantly be back again to explore this unusual and storage landscape in a part of the world few come to. Whilst it was awesome and barren, it was also intimidating. This is seriously humbling territory, and not to be taken lightly. I would certainly stress planning as if it goes wrong, it can go badly wrong and there are no mountain rescue services to the best of my knowledge. However saying that mobile phone reception even in the remotest areas is actually very good.
I have provided a link below to the map on Alltrails.
[ Ссылка ]
This is a relaxing, ambient hiking film without dialogue or commentary. Please enjoy, I hope it warms your soul and brings inspiration and happiness.
00:00 Checking in, planning the route
01:45 Arriving at Ait Mansour
02:56 Puppies
06:09 Climbing through the valley
10:47 First view of the Sahara Desert
12:49 Camp Take 1
15:50 Camp Take 2
17:32 Desert Astrophotography
19:03 The Next Morning
20:50 Descending the Valley
22:42 Coffee in Ait Mansour
23:51 Debrief and Chat about the hike
29:59 Map and Route Explanation
