Morocco in August?

[Lonesome George]

I'm planning on going to Morocco in August. Two-up on a GS. I've done lots of travels, in Europe and beyond and I'm not concerned about anything - except the heat.

I don't plan on doing any off-road and we'll probably just ride for a couple of hours in the morning and stop. I'm hoping the Atlas mountains will be a little cooler than the lowlands but 40 degrees C sounds too hot.

I'm just wondering if anyone has been to Morocoo in the summer and if they have any advice?

[Mattbibby]

This year I did a month's tour of Morocco in September. It was very hot, I carried lots of water, occasionally got sunburned and sometimes had trouble sleeping (camping) due to the heat. Higher areas are a cool relief.

If I had the choice, I'd return at a cooler time of year. That said, the heat never stopped me doing anything that I wanted.
My favourite times to ride were early morning soon after first light, or in the evening. Often I would rest/siesta to avoid the midday heat.

Enjoy your trip!

[Tim Cullis]

I've did Morocco several times in August in the 1980s but not on a bike. However I've been there when it was 43ºC in October!

If you are lucky it will be low/mid 30s plus a very hot sun. If you are unlucky it might be 40ºC or more.

Get up before first light and have breakfast if needed, then set off at dawn. It might well be 25ºC already but at least the sun won't be hot at that time. Chugalug at least half a litre of water before setting off, and take a hydration pack with you so you can sip water constantly. Aim to drink 3 to 4 litres of water per day. If you overheat whilst still on the road the best way to cool down is to thoroughly soak your jacket and trousers in water—remove passport first—the cooling effect is amazing.

There's a reason why Moroccans serve mint tea and peanuts to guests when they arrive; the sugar and salt replace what the body has lost, so use more salt on your food than usual.

Stop for the night no later than 2pm, preferably somewhere with a pool and . The hottest part of the day is 2pm to 7pm. Have a siesta and then enjoy the cooler evening.

Make sure your hotel room doesn't have the full sun playing on it all day otherwise it will be like a storage heater when you go to bed. Ask your hotel to stick a 1.5-litre bottle of water in the freezer for the next day.

The mountains will be cooler by approx 0.5ºC per 100m of altitude, so Imlil at 1750m will likely be 6.5ºC cooler than Marrakech at 450m. Cities are always hot anyway due to all the airconditioning units. The coast will also be cooler than inland.

Southern Spain might well be as hot as Morocco, we've seen over 40ºC in the summer at 1000m altitude.

[backofbeyond]

Originally Posted by Tim Cullis

Make sure your hotel room doesn't have the full sun playing on it all day otherwise it will be like a storage heater when you go to bed. Ask your hotel to stick a 1.5-litre bottle of water in the freezer for the next day.

The mountains will be cooler by approx 0.5ºC per 100m of altitude, so Imlil at 1750m will likely be 6.5ºC cooler than Marrakech at 450m. Cities are always hot anyway due to all the airconditioning units. The coast will also be cooler than inland.

Southern Spain might well be as hot as Morocco, we've seen over 40ºC in the summer at 1000m altitude.

Tim's hotel room advice is worth remembering - get one on the wrong side and it can be like sleeping in an oven. If you can get one with a/c that should cool it down but you'll be staying in a better class of hotel than I've normally used. At least tents cool down quickly once the sun sets.

I've been to Morocco a number of times in August over the years and it can vary between hot and unbelievably hot. The hottest day I've ever experienced anywhere was in southern Morocco with a shade thermometer registering just under 125F (near enough 50C) at 6.00pm. How accurate that was or whether there was heat soak from buildings I don't know but until a year or so ago in the Mojave dessert in the US it was the only time I'd ever given up riding through heat. Bear in mind that 40C in the shade will be a lot higher in the direct sun and if you're wearing a black jacket for example the heat you're experiencing on the bike could well be into the 50's.

Early starts and early finishes are probably the best way to cope with it. The gel vests do work and last a bit longer than soaking your jacket in water but make sure you have plenty of drinking water available with you on the bike. 2L per person for a day trip would be my minimum. You'll get through a lot in 40C heat even just sitting around .

Lastly, and at the risk of restarting one of the perennial discussion points, "all the (UK level) gear all the time" while you're riding may not be the best way to cope with that level of heat. Pillions in particular, without quite the same need to focus as the rider and shaded from direct wind blast, can suffer badly if overdressed. I've seen one literally fall off a bike and another have trouble standing up after getting off through heat exhaustion.

You might be lucky and this summer turn out to be cooler than average in which case you won't have any real issues. It'll just be hot. I don't know what temperatures you experienced in Scandinavia last year but we were in Sweden in late May and it was high 20's /30C for most of the time we were there. Most unexpected but most welcome and a lot better than the snowdrifts we had there in November.

[g6snl]

Originally Posted by backofbeyond

Lastly, and at the risk of restarting one of the perennial discussion points, "all the (UK level) gear all the time" while you're riding may not be the best way to cope with that level of heat. Pillions in particular, without quite the same need to focus as the rider and shaded from direct wind blast, can suffer badly if overdressed. I've seen one literally fall off a bike and another have trouble standing up after getting off through heat exhaustion.

Some many moons ago my wife was very suddenly extremely poorly for this very reason in August in Morocco. It's no joke when it happens and quick action is required. We both learnt a valuable lesson that day - black bike jackets in Morocco in August really is a dumb-ass thing to wear

Since then much more stuff is available for hot riding and it works well, combined with copious amounts of water and common sense. August is a good time for water melon too, they're great fun trying to keep tied on the back of a bike.

[chris gale]

Rehydration sachets are worth taking with you. Know the signs of overheating and dont ignore them. I got mild heat stroke in Oct it was in the high thirties and I was wearing vented gear. I just about made it into the hotel room and into a Luke warm bath, followed by lots of fluids taken very slowly so to avoid cramps. Loss of bowl control was also a side effect............. Enjoy the country, it's fantastic, but your fluid intake will be around the four litre mark me thinks.
Be safe

[PanEuropean]

Originally Posted by backofbeyond

..."all the (UK level) gear all the time" while you're riding may not be the best way to cope with that level of heat.

That is true... I toured Morocco in late April / early May one year, and was uncomfortably warm wearing the full leathers that I normally wear in Europe & Canada all through the summer without any complaint.

There are riding suits available that provide the full level of protection as "all the (UK level) gear all the time" and are comfortable in very hot climates. The BMW Airflow suit comes to mind. Although it will be expensive to purchase such a suit, it might be money well spent due to the high level of comfort it will provide you with when riding in hot weather. I have one such outfit, and it really does let the 'air flow' when riding. I don't wear anything underneath it other than underwear and a thin cotton T-shirt.

Michael

[Arma]

I was in Morocco on the bike in August 2015, it's hot but still enjoyable as long as you are sensible. Try and ride in the morning when you can, it helps a lot. I would be remiss not to mention that I didn't do a lot of hard, physical riding while I was there - I was riding two up on a big bike. If you're planning to do more physically demanding riding off road I think the heat might be pretty limiting.

I brought a HyperKewl evaporative cooling vest which did get a lot of use when it was really, really hot in the south (Chigaga / Chebbi) and it helped. The effect is much like soaking your riding gear in water but lasts a lot longer.

[Lonesome George]

Thanks for the sound advice. Pretty much what I expected. If I want to go to Morocco (which I do) it has to be in August so I'll just have to live with it!

My plan is certainly to ride just in the mornings, no off-road, and find accommodation with AC and occasionally a pool. I'm not even taking the camping gear for this trip.

I plan to focus on the High Atlas so the altitude will help - I've read that Marrakesh is 40C in the summer - horrible.

The last couple of summers I've been to Scandinavia so the heat will be different!

Thanks again - I do appreciate you all giving up the time to write something.

[PanEuropean]

George:

Do be extremely careful to not become dehydrated - dehydration in a hot and dry environment such as Morocco in the summer can creep up on you very quickly, and the results can be fatal.

Other HUBB members have made good suggestions above. My suggestion is that you might want to consider getting a 'water backpack' such as a Camelbak and wearing it while you ride.

I have one, and have used it when riding in hot weather. It's really great to have, because one loses a lot of moisture from the body due to perspiration, but you don't even know you are perspiring because the sweat evaporates so quickly in the hot dry air. With the Camelbak, you will always have water available - you just reach for the little tube and suck away on it as you ride.

Michael

[Bandit GS]

Good morning from Spain. I will give a piece of advice as Spanish who rides in summer. In case you use leather, leave it at home and buy an airflow suit, gloves and boots. And even more, I have a cooling vest which I wear under the airflow jacket. This one:
http://www.macna.com/products/dry-cooling-vest/
This way you will travel much more comfortable through Spain and Morocco.
Here you are a couple of stores where you can buy summer stuff in Spain:
https://www.motocard.com/
http://www.autoserviciomotorista.com/
In my opinion, that's the difference between suffering and enjoying.
Regards
Jorge (Bilbao, Spain)

Enviado desde mi ZX Spectrum 48K mediante Tapatalk

[Arma]

Shameless advertisement here, but if anyone reading this is planning a summer trip to Morocco and wants a highly ventilated suit I'm selling the Rukka AirRider suit I used in Morocco in Augsust 15. The whole thing is ventilated, I'm only selling it because I have a Badlands suit now which is pretty good on air flow and more feature packed.

Size 52 trousers, 54 jacket. I'm a 6ft tall average build guy and it fits me perfectly. Back protector included, good condition. Originally 600E, selling for 250.