Dates from the River Ziz Gorge in Morocco
No Comments »12th December, 2015; Category: Africa, Exotic Destinations, Holidays, Morocco, Mountains, Plants
River Ziz Gorge Morocco
After travelling through the Atlas Mountains from Midelt we travelled through Errachidia until we came to the River Ziz Gorge. Our tour bus stopped near the edge of the gorge in one spot so that we could get out and wander over to the edge of the gorge to get some good photos.
The River Ziz Gorge is truly spectacular and meanders through this part of Morocco for about 140 kilometres. One of the features of this gorge is the enormous number of date palms. In fact, our guide told us that they number over one million trees. And yes – they have actually been counted! I don’t think I would like that job – you just figure out why!
Soon after stopping our bus a local date seller came along and we bought several boxes of the local produce. For the next few days we enjoyed sharing in this delicious fruit.
Further reading:
River Ziz Gorge Morocco
River Ziz Gorge Morocco
River Ziz Gorge Morocco
River Ziz Gorge Morocco
Errachidia in Morocco
Errachidia in Morocco
A few years ago my wife, daughter and I went on a two week tour of Morocco. (You can read through recent posts here to see some more photos I took during our holiday. Stay tuned because I have many more photos to share in coming days.)
One of the towns we travelled through was Errachidia as featured in today’s photos. This town is in south east Morocco.
Errachidia in Morocco
Errachidia in Morocco
Errachidia in Morocco
Errachidia in Morocco
Snow-capped Atlas Mountains, Morocco
Atlas Mountains, Morocco
The Atlas Mountains of Morocco are spectacular without a covering of snow. The snow just adds another dimension to an otherwise spectacular scenery. The photos I am showing today were taken on our way from Fes to Midelt where we stayed for the night.
While it appears that the mountains had a good covering of snow, our guide Said told us that the snow season was late and to that point (December 23rd) the snow fall had be very light.
Although you can’t see it in the photos, somewhere on those slopes there were well established and popular ski runs.
Atlas Mountains, Morocco
Atlas Mountains, Morocco
Atlas Mountains, Morocco
Subsistence Farming in Morocco
Farmhouse in eastern Morocco
Simple homes like the one shown above are a common sight in the poorer parts of rural Morocco. At this point we were still travelling through the Atlas Mountains south east of Fes. As you can see in the picture, the terrain is very rocky all around. This means that there is no shortage of building materials – cheap, handy, easy to use and effective. Interestingly, the farmer is in the process of improving the look of the house by applying what looks like a form of whitewash to the walls.
Despite the remote location of this farm I notice that they do have a supply of electricity. I also note the satellite dish on the right hand side wall. In some of the towns such dishes could be seen in their hundreds, sometimes dozens on one apartment building alone. If you look carefully you can see the farmer ploughing the ground up the hill behind the house (see enlarged photo below). I have no idea what he was intending to grow. This was the middle of winter so he was getting ready for planting something in the early spring perhaps.
I noticed very few tractors in the poorer rural areas of Morocco. Donkey power was common, however, and this farmer was also using a donkey coupled with what looks like a mule.
Farming in eastern Morocco
An encounter with a local in Morocco
A local boy and his donkey
At one point as we were traversing the Atlas Mountains our guide asked our driver to stop on the side of the road so that we could get out and take a few photos of the scenery. As soon as we stopped one of the local boys rode quickly up to us on his donkey. Because he had a number of large plastic containers strapped to his animal, I assumed he was on his way to fetch some water for his family.
It turned out that he an entrepreneurial streak in his character. As soon as he arrived he insisted on being paid so that we could take his photo. I think some of the touring party obliged. We also gave him some dates we had bought the day before.
Negotiating with a local boy and his donkey
Our tour bus and the tour group in Morocco