Quote:
I am thinking of going to Mauritania early 2024 and more interested in riding trails than the main road south.
|
In that case, assuming you have an appropriate machine and not a heavy bike suited only to bitumen, you will find loads of great trails inland or even along the coast (see the recent 2CV post), but as Mossproof says, off-roading in Mauritania not like mainland Morocco, or even WS where riding can be remote but is technically easy.
Smara to Dakhla in a day was good going on a flat piste, but note that Itchy Boots hired a guide in a 4x4 midway on the increasingly sandy Railway Piste and retained him all the way round to Atar. There may be downloadable tracklogs for the interesting areas she covered with him, but doing so alone will be stressful. Setting apart the dune fields, the sandy/rocky and even tussocky terrain makes trail biking in RIM full-on, especially when compared to the much greater expanses of Algeria, for example.
That is why, along with the long road ride there (should you choose it) so few do it, even with the freedom to roam widely without compulsory escorts.
Note also that Mori is substantially warmer than southern Morocco/WS. On technical pistes that affects water consumption/payload/health.
Fyi, from Atar (a good base for the most interesting area) the road SE to Tidjikja appears to be complete. From there road SW to NKT.
Last edited by Chris Scott; 19 Jun 2023 at 19:25.
|