EDC 2018 Maroc Africa, Ride Report.

[crofty]

Love the way you write these trip Keith. Its like having a good television series with a new episode every night.

[WIBO]

240km route to get to start of piste.....

https://www.wikiloc.com/outdoor-trails/ ... m-30014310

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We had a good ride to Taourit where we stopped for street food and fuel. A few dirhams gets you street BBQ and you can tell them to cook it for longer if you wish before it's served.


Tables are quickly arranged and the whole herd sit down to eat, bike parked beside and across the street where a guardian keeps school boys away from poking and touching stuff.....great for a a few pennies as it were.
































Nice chopping ' tree stump just wiped to keep it clean every now and then ' board......









By the time we get to Debdou it's raining and cold enough. We stop and buy water and supplies in the middle of the village. We'll climb up twisties along road that is undergoing road works and is covered with potholes and mud, lorries and diggers.











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[BobH]

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Ready to depart Valadolid

[BobH]

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[WIBO]

Great stuff Bob....I was looking for the terrace pics of the Hotel Doha





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[WIBO]

Once over altitude the rain stopped and by this point we arrived at the start of the piste at


N 33 34 288
W 003 17 171

Roger, who was to meet us at along the trail, if possible, had been before us.




I scrubbed his sign off with my boot and pretended I hadn't seen it.



We rode along great hard pack trail, in overcast conditions with the odd wash out here and there until we found a place to make camp after a rocky gentle step climb. A gear lever got bend here after a drop.


Even, wide ground at 1274m altitude, cool enough but not baltic, and at

N 33 27
W 003 15 379




Here are the freaks..............ladies and gentlemen, allow me to present.......


Steve........nice wind shield......





Angus.........nice container ship........









Mick..........nice gear lever........








Young Steve...........nice sprocket......












Pete.............Max Wall tights on.......













Rob............weirdo.........he keeps coming back.......










Stuart........nice thumb.......











Ricky............nice lunch boxes that his mummy packed........











Bertin.........nice shopping bags.......













Martin........aka Chubby....aka Norman Wisdom......Mr Grimsdale!!!!!!!!





































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[aliwakeskate]

and most definitely...




Great stuff Keith! Wish I was there....

[WIBO]

Missed having you there young man ....it was good craic.....hopefully next time?

You'll enjoy the different routes too.






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[WIBO]

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120kms to Anoual






Download route here .....there's a couple of waypoints showings lakes which may be dry in peak summer and a waypoint for where the piste changes to a graded route. Cords are listed too for village fuel if required.


https://www.wikiloc.com/outdoor-trails/ ... l-30066839





Next morning we break camp and set off with overcast skies.....at least it's not raining.


I advise to pump tyres up hard as we will be hitting rock steps......do not lower pressures because you think it's Morocco therefore you have to have your tyres soft all the time......the soft going is 0.5 percent of all of the other hard pack square edge going. A 200kg plus bike with luggage will not benefit in shallow silt with low tyre pressure as no matter wha, it's always going to be a barge. My XT will have 39/40 psi rear and 36psi front.



We'll head to Er Rachidia to an hotel.

Not long after starting off we navigate a long steep rock stepped part of the trail before starting to descend to lower altitudes throughout the course of the morning.

We arrive at a wide shallow river cause by the previous few days rain.



I dander in half way to find there's no submarines or big rocks underwater......just small rocks.



I then take a few snaps in the hope someone will fall off in the water.........
































Bob fell off on the way out.......of course I missed it but was able to get a picture straight after if that helps at all.....






















Great scenery!!!

[WIBO]

Once over the river we descend over a good few kms to where the weather becomes dry and populated with the odd farm building with sporadic livestock.....very remote.














We ride over a dried up river bed....these have rock and usually at each side they'll have a shirt silt section......it's easier if you just stop and duck paddle like a Hardley Davidson getting fuelled up at a fuel station .........the old Duck Paddle Walk.....what I usually do though is give it a whirl and then fall off ...this time I almost fall off but ride out......fluke as the silt was deep enough.........with this in mind I park up and get jog over ready to take pictures in case any one else falls off.....I mean get ready to help anyone if they fall off.











































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