No doubt about it: inland on your way south for the variety of nice riding, scenery, history, etc. But hug the coast heading north a month or more later, and if you’re lucky you won’t hit too much cold or rain. Time that last bit crossing the border around whatever inclement weather might be predicted.

I once hit heavy snowfall just slightly inland at minimal elevation in November: forward progress plummeted, it got dark, I got lost and marginally hypothermic. Try not to schedule too tightly.

Hope that’s helpful.

Mark

That was indeed my plan, for Spain I guess you mean.

So, loading bike into Van today and leaving tomorrow, hope to be in Morocco by the 7th of November, if anyone else is around and wants to hook up for a day or two..

Do I take the tent? Do I take sandals or trainers for apres Moto, I will have enough clothes for cold temps.

New tyres fitted Mitas E07+ which are probably more adventurous as far as terrain is concerned than I will be...

Anything Else?

If hooking up is your plan, best take some condoms

+1 re what Michael said .November in mid Spain is / can be flipping freezing .

For sure, going northbound from Algeciras to Toulouse via the eastern coast will result in "less cold" temperatures than a straight shot north through the middle of the country, but the economics don't favour doing that vs. taking the ferry from Tanger Med to Barcelona.

It's about a 1,200 km ride from Algeciras to Toulouse via the eastern coast if you stick to the coast (meaning, go through Cartagena, Benidorm, etc.). Although that ride can be a really enjoyable one - it's very scenic - those roads are not expressways, so you will need at least 3 days and 2 nights to make that trip. Add up the cost of fuel, meals, and 2 nights hotel enroute, and it's pretty much the same as the cost of the ferry from Tanger Med to Barcelona.

You are an experienced traveller, so it's your call how to do the return trip, but based on my own experiences, one tends to get a wee bit tired of it all at the end of a long tour, and sometimes it's best just to eliminate as many undesirable variables (meaning, winter weather) as possible on the homeward bound portion of the trip. Keep in mind that there is one variable that you cannot avoid, and that is the weather on the Barcelona to Toulouse portion of the trip. Unless you elect to do a lengthy detour through Girona and Perpignan, you are going to have to cross the Pyrenees on your way to Toulouse.

One last "head's up": Double-check to ensure that your insurance policy includes coverage for Andorra, that little gas station & discount cigarette shop country on the border between Spain & France. Many European-issued policies don't include cover for Andorra, which appears as 'AND' on the green card. It is an unusual exception to normal insurance policy practices.
Personally, I wouldn't bother. Accomodation in Morocco is quite inexpensive, and not having to carry the tent, sleeping bag, and all that other crap will greatly reduce your baggage load and logistic/security concerns. Not to mention that at this time of year, days are short, and I don't think you want to be setting your tent up in the dark, or cutting your daily activities short in order to set the tent up during daylight hours.

Have a great trip!

Michael

Good advice. Thanks

I have made it to mainland Europe, now in Belgium. South of France this coming weekend. Then head off.

Morning, today is the day I set off, had the bike serviced in Carcasone yesterday. Today, just before the bad weather sets in I will cross the Pyrenees and head down a bit into inland Spain.

Well, inland Spain was an adventure I ride through storm Ciaran in one memorable day. One of the hardest I ever put on a bike. Arrived at Tarifa and have boat to Tangier tomorrow morning. Once there I'll start following my itinerary....

Now in Chefchoen, nice place, still need to find a map of the country. And my Maroc Télécom sim card is not working properly and I have not been able to suss it out yet.
Fun and games

Well done for getting through the storm in one piece, the winds have been fierce! Good luck with getting yourself sorted, please take photos :)

Now into Fez, took a fairly back road way, virtually no traffic, and some nice views. Will stay here tomorrow too so I can look around, if I get bored I will go for a spin for an hour or two.
photos, I'll sort something out

The French language ‘thing ’was a bit of a mystery to us.
My wife speaks fairly good French so we thought we’d be fine but, apart for officials and one posh hotel no one seamed to speak it. They all spoke Arabic.
In the north they spoke Spanish, everywhere else they spoke English more than French.
My wife’s farther was a fluent French speaker, having lived there, so her accent is excellent - French people think she is French until they realise that she’s not fluent so it wasn’t an accent thing.
I’d be interested to know other peoples experience.
Oh! And a proper write up please……including photos ������

I made the same experience, currently in Morocco. I m Swiss and I speak fluently French, although with the typic accent. Best chance to find French speaker is asking older men, generation 50+. They learnt in school or even worked in France.