Aug 22

Aug 22 Sleeping in the Sahara

The drive from Fez was hot with a few stops along the way. The first stop was Imlil – sitting at 1800m above sea level, this town is known locally as ‘Moroccan Chammonix’ A strange sight to see and a little touristy for my like.

The next stop was much more fun as we spent some time with Barbary macaque (monkeys) in a forest. Many happy snaps were taken.

The last 15km into Merzouga along dry gravel roads in the middle of July was probably the hottest I have felt!

After a long day driving from Fez, we arrived at Auberge Les Dunes D´Or in Merzouga.

The hotel sits on the edge of the Sahara Desert, overlooking sand dune but with a very welcome pool to cool off in.

After a restful night, it was time to get out and experience what we came here for – time in the vast Sahara.

The morning was spent exploring the desert in a couple of land cruisers. We ran up sand dunes, experienced some incredible and unexpected landscapes and had tea in a Berber tent with some locals which was an amazing experience.

In the afternoon it was time to saddle up on our camels to spend a night sleeping in the Sahara. We were each assigned a camel, I named mine Prince Ali but his actual name was Amshalah. We set out so late in the day because it was the middle of summer. In the cooler months, they leave into the desert a bit earlier.

We rode over sand dunes for just over an hour into the desert as the sun was sinking over dunes in the distance. Such an other-worldly experience that I am so grateful for. I am also grateful the ride wasn’t much longer – camels are really not the most comfortable way to travel!

Riding a camel is kind of like lolling around on a large barrel with legs, constantly feeling like your saddle might be slipping off…

As we rode along expertly led by our guide (with our other guide for the whole trip Momo, following behind on foot), we had time to admire the beauty of the Sahara. The light grains of sand gracefully danced in the breeze. Soon we reached the highest peak to see our overnight camp below.

The spacious tents were positioned to face each other, with colourful seating in the middle, arranged in a circle to gather around a fire.

After dismounting the camels and letting them rest for the night, the more energetic amongst us decided to run up the nearest sand dune to try and catch the last of the sunset. I chose this moment to sit in camp and soak it all in.

This is probably the one regret I have on this trip. Who knows when I will ever have the chance to run up a sand dune in the Sahara again?

Dinner at camp was an amazing tagine under the stars and the brightest moon I have ever seen. This was followed by a drum circle and singing before we all decided to pull our mattresses out of the tents and sleep under the stars. The summer heat had not abated at all so sleeping outside seemed the better option anyway!

This truly was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I had trouble falling asleep as I didn’t want to miss a moment. I was mesmerised by the many, many stars which shone so brightly.

Rising early the next morning, we rode back to Merzouga and washed all that Sahara sand off with one last dip in the pool and set out on our next Moroccan adventure.