It was another superb day today. Last night I was thinking of heading north to Rabat but this morning I thought I would stay in the mountains and head over to La Cathedrale – which is a large monolith like mountain – so that’s where I headed.
It was a relatively short journey of around 44 miles but it took nearly three hours because there’s lots of wiggly roads and you really have to take your time. I also stopped for a small break at one point to admire yet another awesome view. Every time you peak another crest you see an awesome view, then another, then another… It never ends.
Leaving the olive grove this morning I missed yesterday’s tyre tracks and ended up in some soft sand. I couldn’t go backwards and ahead of me was a lot of large stones so I gingerly got the bike over them and onto the road. Phew…! If you get off the road, always try to re-trace your tracks when going back…! Heading back towards Bin El-Ouidane and the lake I visited yesterday, I went around it and headed east into the mountains.
After leaving the lake it was P-roads and R-roads for most of the way, which means a single track road. P-roads are mostly tarmac, whereas R-roads can be tarmac or can be dirt roads. The tarmac road ran out a few miles before La Cathedrale but it’s a really firm dirt road with some light gravel.
A few miles before La Cathedrale as you crest a hill you get your first glimpse of the mountain – and its an incredible sight. As you get closer, and with every hill you crest you get more sightings and the mountain just gets bigger and bigger. According to my map there is an official campsite nearby but about 3km before I saw a lovely area next to the river that would make a great campsite. The intention today was to come here then backtrack and go to another campsite near Beni-Mellal, but as soon as I saw this flat area next to the river I decided to call it a day and camp for the night.
It’s a great spot to camp and it’s really quiet, and towering above me and opposite the river is the mountain. I almost feel like I am in some kind of fantasy world, or seeing something that’s straight out of the Lord of the Rings. It is truly an awesome sight and something I will never forget.
There is the occasional passing car, donkey, chicken or person going to the nearby village. Two dogs seem to have adopted me as well. When I arrived and got the tent up they were hanging around so I gave them some spare food and now they have taken up residence and adopted me. Other than that, it’s a great place to camp, especially as you can hear the lovely sound of the water running over the rocks in the river. I may stay for the night or I may stay for two days here, I really don’t know. I’ll see how cold it is overnight before I make a decision…!
