Tag Archives: Anti Atlas

The Seven Passes of the Issil Plain

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Looking north from the Haroun Pass across the ochre expanse of the Issil Plain to the snowy High Atlas
The issil Plain

The new book out this week has a bunch of great routes in the A (Anti Atlas) region crossing the Issil Plain which lies between Tazenakht and Taliouine.
Both are good bases to kick off a traverse of the plain towards (or from) what I used to call Jebel Timouka but might more correctly be called Jebel Tawzart – an escarpment which rings the plain to the south.
These routes cross six passes or Tizis labelled below. From the west Tizi Ounzi, Tizi Tarslemt, Tizi Tawzart, Tizi Haroun, the unnamed ‘Issil pass’ and the Tizi Mourirt which is not on any M4 route but is worth a look and is part of the RoC.

Tizi Ounzi
1750m (Routes A2, A3)
West of Aguins, the Ounzi is not so dramatic but is a fun way of accessing or leaving the plain on the west side. Coming down the Ounzi towards Aguins, you get a good view of the Tarslemt pass up ahead.

Tizi Ounzi
Tarslemt view

Tizi Tarslemt
1896m (Routes A2, A3)
The Tarslemt starts as a broad ramp rising up onto the jebel with great views over the plain before swinging through a few switchbacks to nearly 1900m and down the far side and the canyons beyond

Tizi Tarslemt
Tarslemt summit

Tizi Tawzart
1940m (Routes A3, A5)
Tawzart takes a steep line up the jebel from Algouz and consequently got damaged by the recent rains: big bikes may struggle. And as you’ll read in the book, all vehicles may struggle trying to follow Route A5 right down the Anissi canyon. On A3, once you get to Anissi, the track gets more maintained to the west.

Long climb from Algouz
Snowy Tawzart summit

Tizi Haroun
1825m (Route A6)
Well known from previous Morocco Overland editions, Haroun rises to give huge views over the Issil plain (top of the page), but after the pylon turn-off down to rock-bound Lemdint, the trail turns into an unmaintained ‘BLV’; in a car expect to be crawling for hours at walking pace. And that was before the big rains…

Slow descent to the desert floor
Near the top of the Haroun canyon

‘Issil Pass’
1825m (Route A7)
I’ve found no name for the ‘Issil pass’, as i call it, another old classic from previous editions, with a jaw-dropping reveal if heading northbound on A7 or the TMT. Riding it last week, the valley to Amtazguine is slowly getting asphalted, but the switchback climb between Mawas and Issil remains an easy and epic gravel track.

Cresting the Issil pass

Tizi Mourirt
1825m (RoC)
I’ve often thought there was something up here but never looked carefully enough. The Route of the Caravans pushbikers did and logged a route via Tizi Mourirt (Tizi n’Tlite), which comes down to A7 near Mawas village. One for next time.

RoC map

ⴰⵄⴻⴷⴷⵉ ⵡⵉⵙ 7
Local Amazigh legends speak of a lost pass somewhere in the Jebel Tawzart, an ancient trade route now known as the The 7th Pass or ⴰⵄⴻⴷⴷⵉ ⵡⵉⵙ7 which got smothered in some Atlantis-like cataclysm, just as a treasure-laden caravan was passing through. It’s thought to lie somewhere in the higher reaches of the Jebel’s rim between Mourirt and Tawzart.

S is for Sahara Silhouettes

Other silhouette galleries

Part of the occasional Sahara A to Z series

Ten Days in Morocco ~ Husky • Sertao • XR ~ 2/3

Continuing our short ride through southern Morocco. Part 1 was here. Part 3 right here.


Sunrise at the oasis.


I go for a walk, passing unusual dwellings designed to slide downhill in the event of an earthquake.


Not a place to stagger back to late one night, fumbling for your keys.


We go for a ride back up the cliff

.


Rob tries out his new Touratech Arai-iPhone adapter mount, called a Digital Utility Camera Transom. You’d think they could come up with a snappier name.


Down below, a carefully tended mosaic of gardens lap up the autumn sun.


We take a walk over to the kasbah (fortified dwelling) at Assaragh


Then ride back down…


… to the auberge for lunch. It was built by a local who did well abroad, and chose to return something to his community. A common practise in Morocco.


After a siesta we head out to a curious ruined tsar (similar to a kasbah but more castle-like) which I passed last year.


We wind out way up into a maze of crumbling walls and collapsed palm-trunk beams.


But at the doorway it looks a bit dodgy to go further without a hardhat and full body armour.


Next day we’re back on the piste.


Heading up over Jebel Timouka, Route MA6 in my book.


Into the ranges.


Some oueds (creeks) are hard work on the heavy 650s. So we stop to cool off and let Elisa and Mustapha catch up.


The climb begins.

Deeper

Steeper

Higher

I don’t know about the others, but the occasional landslide repairs with football-sized rocks are barely rideable on the Terra. The suspension shoves the weight back at you in all directions nd you can tell that point is coming where it’s easier to fall than fight it. When I came this way in 2008 I broke a spring on my pickup. I’m up ahead and eventually pull over weak-kneed, strip off and empty my 3-pint bottle. The others catch up and Elisa hands out power bars. Andy’s Sertao is even more of a dog than the Husky and Patrick got pinned negotiating a gnarly hairpin, but is nevertheless amazed at the beating the XR can take. Rob finds his XR a breeze up here.


We carry on to an amazing view back south towards Jebel Bani, now only 80 miles away


Thankfully the track eases up and we reach the equally amazing Timouka Pass overlooking the Issil plain.
In the many tiny Berber villages below (the green clumps) women dye wool and work ancient looms to
produce the fine carpets you’ll find in the souks of Marrakech and Tangier


We drop off the pass, race across the plain to the highway and ride into Tazenacht for a late lunch, babbling about our awesome morning’s ride. Freshly-chopped Moroccan salad (a bit like Mexican salsa), omelette, chips and bread + tea. That’ll be $3 Down the road, plenty of room at the Hotel Sahara.


Night falls over Tazenacht.


While inside the infidels, some in fancy dress, gathered for the feast and then retire to their chilly suites.

Final part right here

Morocco Overland videos

ma6-7g
morocco22s

Here’s Ian Chappel’s short video as he reaches the impressive overlook at KM78 on Route MA7. You look down from the top of Jebel Timouka over the Issil Plain following a couple of hours rough riding. Good work on a hefty GS12! MA6 proved even tougher on the BMW but can also surprise you with a similarly impressive vista at KM48 if you’re heading north.

Ian’s other vids include pistes from the book and thankfully cut to the action.

We’re back in this area over the next few days with a few small XRs plus a couple of 650 singles. They’ll be a report here or on the AMWebsite. And maybe some vids too.