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sand on tarmac roads? sand on tarmac roads?
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Morocco Topics specific to Morocco, including Western Sahara west of the berm
Photo by Helmut Koch, Vivid sky with Northern Lights, Yukon, Canada

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Old 27 Jan 2015
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sand on tarmac roads?
are patches of sand brought by wind often on roads?
Wonder how carefully one must ride.
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Old 27 Jan 2015
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You may get a little in the south but on any fairly busy road it never seems to be a real problem
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Old 27 Jan 2015
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On my ride down to Dakar end of last year across the Sahara, I only had one day like this. This was in Western Sahara, south of Gulmim, on a very windy day. The interesting bit was when it built up in the corners on my line as in the second picture.
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Old 28 Jan 2015
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Where this happens regularly you will see a sign warning of 'ensablement'.



In places like the photo above, JCBs are often used to dig out the accumulated sand on the windward side and carry it across the road, rather than let nature drift it across.

The bigger problem is grit and gravel on bends everywhere in Morocco, especially after rainfall has brought it down from higher up.
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Old 28 Jan 2015
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Originally Posted by Tim Cullis View Post
The bigger problem is grit and gravel on bends everywhere in Morocco, especially after rainfall has brought it down from higher up.
that's what I was afraid of, bends with surprises

thanks guys for tips.
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Old 28 Jan 2015
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On the road into Erfoud from Erg Chebbi there's a small crest about 5km south of the river bridge. There's always a patch of sand over the crest just like the first picture. I always slow down since I saw a Spanish Pajero hit it about 60 mph and it flipped the car.

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Old 1 Feb 2015
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are patches of sand brought by wind often on roads?
Wonder how carefully one must ride.
Sand on the road is the last thing you should be worrying about; there's more dangerous hazards such as large potholes appearing or whole sections or road sinking, animals in the road or a bus overtaking a truck coming towards you.

The golden rule is you should be able to stop safely on your own side of the road in a distance you can see to be clear. If you can't then back off and slow down and try to avoid travelling in the dark.

I wouldn't worry to much as it's probably no worse than any other country but you do need to be aware of other vehicles' dangerous overtakes.
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Old 22 Feb 2015
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When you see a sign reading 'ensablement'...
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Old 22 Feb 2015
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Sand
Wow Jim, that's a bit more sand than I came across. Where was this, near Laayoune?

I saw the bulldozers on the side of the road as I passed and I suspect they had just been used as the sand was neatly piled up at the side of the road.
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Old 22 Feb 2015
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It was about 60 km inland of Laayoune coming in from Al Haggouinia after a cross-country stint.
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