Anezal to KM104 is tar so ok in 2wd any further west and you'll hit problems

Oct 2012

P1040067 by Trackasylum, on Flickr

Pic doesn't really show but looking west behind is a short steep climb and where the track goes over the ridge were big rocks that almost got us stuck.

IMG_0126 by Trackasylum, on Flickr

When we went through the landslides had been cleared but after winter it could be damaged and very muddy. I would think in a 2wd you'd get so far and then have to turn around and head back. West of KM90 Tizi-n-Melloul there was very little sign of regular local traffic use

Well guys, mant thanks for the answers!

To round up:

* Pistes MH6-MH7-MH8 (I want to go from Aouloz -> Taliouine): do-able but sometimes tricky, even in a 4WD;

One question remains: how long is the proposed route (approximately) and how long will it take in a LR? A day?

* Piste M9 Taliouine - Foum Zguid : no problems, no asphalt then?

* Piste M8 Zagora - Foum Zguid: folow Peter Girlings routes to avoid tarmac!

Any more updates?

Tnx already! Much appreciated!

Conditions can change of course but I would say MH6 is much easier than MH7 or MH8. Ancient Transits run to the very top of MH6. It is easily doable in a day but with an LR MH7 or -8 will be more fun.

(Fyi I once passed a carefully driven local VW Golf on MH7 heading west just after the passes, so it can be done, but maybe not currently).

If you mean MS9 I hear the eastern section passing the many villages is sealed. This is not the greatest piste in the area. With an LR I would be tempted to do the MA routes going over the jebel south of Issil. Both fantastic routes.

Ch

@ Chris: I meant the M9 route from your book Sahara Overland, not Morroco Overland book or website.

Oh, didn't think anyone uses that anymore. Info in there is ancient.

That route is long time sealed from Tali to Akka Ighern and now beyond a bit heading into the Jebel - and in progress eastwards from there about 60km to the Tlite junction (MA7), about 35km from FZ.
A great drive. We did it last March.

Ch

Chris,

Do you mean the whole route MA6 (Taliouine towards Akka Ihern) is sealed? That's a pity then!

The rest of MA7 (except for the sealed parts as mentioned above), reading between the lines form you and others, is sometimes "interesting".

Mmm, seems that I should rethink the piste section of my Easter holiday then.....

This is actually MA11 in the MO1 book and only a pity if you are looking for off road action. In a regular vehicle it's a great drive.

Very interesting and what an LR is made for, unless it is a Freelander or similar.

In that area (MA) there are many great pistes in the Jebel Timkouka and no real mud issues like there can be in MH.

Ch

I wonder what the situation is on the way from Ait Orrhar to Imilchil, not Jaffar? Or road is marked?

All versions of the same village name, I think. If you mean the one just of the N12 about 10km NW of Midelt, it's now graded/tarmac most of the way and a fairly easy ride/drive all the way to Imilchil. 3-4 hours should do it.

Happy trails,

Peter

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MW6 Tarmac this year from KM270 all the way into Smara taking you north road Hawza and the military base.

We joined at KM214 so no update for the first section

Recently back from Morocco and thought I'd feed back on some of the routes we did (or tried to do). We were in a Defender 110.

We did most of MS2,3,4,6,7 and 8 albeit with a bit of chopping and changing when routes intersected. We did a lot of the routes in reverse which is obviously more challenging if you are following the directions. We were surprised to see hardly any other independent travelers.

MS2 - there is now a big new road from Zagora to Tissemoumine over the Tafalet pass. It isn't tarred but is well graded, wide and high with big culverts passing underneath. We did 70kmph on it and I expect many would go a lot faster. There are very limited places where you can get off the road. There is also a lot of new irrigation/cultivation in the area which has removed some of the old tracks.This meant finding the turning north on to MS2 was a bit of challenge and when we did the track was very rough in places.

MS3 - we did sections of this on different days but covered all but the first few km. The tar no longer ends at Taghbalt. There is a big new road, again very well constructed, which sweeps round Taghbalt. Try as we might we couldn't find our way through with the waypoints and ended up leaving town on the tar. In an attempt to get back on route we followed good tracks off the tarred road to the NE but they turned out to be quarrying tracks and we found ourselves on top of the escarpment. We spent several hours following various tracks to dead ends/sheer drops before being directed by a quarry worker to a track down. Let's just say it was not for the faint hearted...

MS4 - as mentioned above from Tissemoumine it's now a straight run on a new road. We didn't do the other end of the route as we joined it from MS3.

MS6 - we started from Merzouga. There were no real surprises here. The first section was a bit grim with the road churned up by quarry trucks, creating a lot of dust. Crossing the Rheris was OK. We went right at the building just before the crossing, following raised paths through a cultivated area and then into some small dunes. Then the tracks we were following stopped dead at a dune. We climbed up to the left hand side of it and found a way through.

MS7/8 - we started from MHamid. Deep sand started at km 25 (138) and carried on, albeit with a few opportunities to stop, for at least 12km. You need to crest some small dunes. It was fine in a Land Rover but I imagine could be hard on some bikes. We spent a couple of days camping out at Cheggaga and it was well worth it. We switched to MS8 at Lak Iriki. No sign of any damp patches but we drove on the existing tracks.

We also did MA1,2,3, 4 and 5. Another post to follow on these.

Great report!

Enviado desde mi JY-G3 mediante Tapatalk

We traveled in Feb/March 2014 in a Defender 110.

MA1 - Tiserkine Gorge was lovely. It was tricky to find the track out of Afella along the oued at km 52. Just very faint tracks in the oued and we kept losing it. Just go on direction. Some road building going on in the area around the engravings. We planned to go south on MA1 and then back north on MA2 turning at km 89. As it turned out MA1 would have been a much better place to camp due to road building on MA2 (see below).

MA2- We started at km 17 having come down MA1. We had hoped to camp around km 26 as per Chris's suggestion but there is a big new road passing through the valley. It is up high and even if you can get off the road to the argan trees you would be completely visible. The road goes past Igmir and climbs up out of the valley.

MA3- The piste off the main road at the start is now tar and this continues for the first 8-10 km. This makes the directions at the start of the route a little redundant - no more crossing in and out of oueds etc. Tagahirt seems to now be a lot bigger. We also couldn't find the turn to the engravings.

There is a lot of work going on on the R109 they are building three big new bridges.

The track through the gorge is the bed of the oued. I don't know if the stones have compacted with use but it was a good and fairly smooth driving surface. We were also expecting the track to be a lot narrower than it was. We passed a few small trucks coming the other way. The climb out is indeed steep! Once up on the plateau there is a big wide new road with the odd quarrying truck barreling by at 80kmph.

The steep loose descent into Aouklid is also no longer. Actually I think it is still there as a turn off from the road but there is a brand new wide graded road which switchbacks down the other side of the drop. It is still a stunning descent. I have a great little video if I can ever work out how to post it.

When you approach Tamegroute the road to the left is a kind of bypass around the village. Right if you want to visit the shop.

We took a wrong turn after Afella. There was a sign right to Tafroute which we took which took us back via Ait Mansour.

MA4 - a nice drive but if you are doing in reverse remember to carry on along the N12 until the waypoint Chris gives. If you take the earlier turn to Taghhjit you can't get through.

MA5 - we started from Tafraoute. At km 30 don't bother turning SE onto the piste. it is now just 100m of very rough track that joins the new tar road. The tar doesn't last long and the road down through the gorge was lovely. We camped at Amtoudi along with half the population of France, and "enjoyed"an evening of accordion playing and dog howling. There is a very nice place to stay at the other end of town which I wish we'd found. You can also eat there if you give some notice.

Herewith a quick review on MH10 (Alnif Dades) and MH1 (Dades Imilchil), ridden in one day, April this year.

Loaded bikes(tyres) were: Africa Twin (TKC80), Multistrada (TKC80) and R1200GSA (E07).

MH10 - Alnif-Dades, reverse order as featured on Morocco Overland
Overall an easy piste, gravel all the way until Iknioun. No sand at all, some loose gravel requiring a bit of attention when you go through Oued Tazlaft dry bed.
Nice rocky formations as landscape.
From navigation the crucial points are:
- N31 8 0.72 W5 26 25.98, km81 from Morocco Overland route, where you should turn North to avoid the MH5 part
- N31 10 41.3 W5 25 23.3, not featured in Morocco Overland. Here the direction to take is North, the GPS is pointing to W so can be misleading
Duration 3h30m including two relaxing stops. Then tagine in Dadés for lunch.
Pictures can be found here https://www.flickr.com/photos/148874...57675345912122



MH1 – Dades Imilchil, reverse order and second half of MH1 as featured on Morocco Overland
Most of it is sealed.
Gravel can be divided in two parts:
- going up to Tizi n Ouano, 2900m, the progress is slow on the sequence of hairpins. But the landscape is worth it!
- after descending the piste is flatter, easier and faster until Agoudal. Oncoming traffic were big groups of 4x4.
No troubles with navigation, in some villages just roughly follow your GPS bearing and you’ll find your way.
Duration was 5h30m with several stops. Then tagine (again?!) for dinner at Malika’s, near Lac Tislite.
Pictures can be found here https://www.flickr.com/photos/148874...57676976823835



MS6 we did in Nov2011, reported in the HUBB here http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...9-2#post356122


Regards and all the Best,
Luís

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Luis Cabrita, Honda XRV 750 Africa Twin '97
Flickr & PolarSteps

As above....

MS5; still about 40kms either graded or stony/sandy, a few diverts off road.

Attached Files

Me MS6 north ramila.gpx (604.0 KB, 507 views)