Tiznit, Tafroute and a very interesting man

We got a public bus to Tiznit from Marrakech and then took a grand taxi to Tafroute, a small town in southern Morocco. A grand taxi is an old Mercedes which goes to a certain place, and leaves when crammed full of 6 people, plus driver. Its a quick service but can take hours waiting for a full taxi. We were very proud that we worked it all out, but when we arrived there were about 100 campervans parked outside town! Our way was way more fun. Tafroute seems a popular place for grey French nomads.

Tafroute is at the head of the pretty Ameln Valley, which we wanted to walk through, so we set about finding a tour to take. It was here we met an interesting man. His name was Ahmed and he ran what looked like a very respectable guide/tour service. After some haggling and some good natured banter we decided on a tour of 2 days 1 night, staying with a family and with an english speaking guide.

The next day, ready to start the tour, we met Worrel and Gretha (not their real names - to protect their reputations, and our blatent inability with pronunciation, I hope they don't mind). As we began walking out of town, hopeful at leaving the Camper sea and satellite dish waves behind, cracks began to emerge in the tour experience. Our guide was fluent in French, which was Ok with some hand gestures and translation by our walking mates. The walking was ok but you really thought that we were walking along roads a little too much. We saw a rock formation which looks like the face of a lion, the locals say it keeps a protective eye looking out for the local women. That night we stayed in a big room, with freezing cold water to wash with, but our tagine meal cooked by the guide was brilliant and we had much fun just talking and joking.

The views in the morning were wonderful and the valley has a its reputation for good reason. Just after good lunch in town we again met our friend Ahmed (who hung around a lot and generally made a nuisance of himself) and told him we weren't happy and wanted a cheaper price. Unhappy was an understatement, he acted in a very childish way. We got a lower price, but that dummy of his was dusty from where it hit the ground.

The last part of the tour took us to a series of nice gorges, where we relaxed before heading towards a transport hub called Inezgane for dinner and sleep. We were grateful to have shared the experience with Worrel and Gretha as they made the experience a lot better.