March 10, 2023
Day 23: Tazzarine to Alnif
On a long desert highway
“That smooth asphalt is nice,” Patrick says, “like butter going downhill.” The road out of Tazzarine is nice asphalt unlike the chip seal that has been the last few days. After about 25km it goes back to rough chipseal though.
Right at 7:30 we walk our loaded bikes to the restaurant and the waiter has already set-up our juice, coffee and tea. We get more bread, honey, jam, olives, a nice omelet and a thick pancake with some kind of filling. We only eat about half of all the food, but rest assured, we are sure no food goes to waste. People in the back will take care of the left-overs. We tip the waiter and set of.
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Right out of town is a small hill, then a long gradual downhill on very smooth asphalt. The sun has just begun to rise and we are riding right into it, already needing to wear our sunglasses. The road makes several sharp turns today. It all makes sense now: we hop from one valley to the next. There are many dry river beds and evidence of flash flooding. We pass by several small towns with nice palm orchards, but except for one café there is not much along the road today.
About 20km from Tazzarine we meet a Swiss cyclist who has already done 40km from Alnif. Soon after this the road surface is again chip sealed.
We want to keep moving too, the forecast is for a headwind today and so far this morning it is wind still. In the afternoon the wind does pick-up but by then we have crested the second high point of the day and are cruising towards our goal.
Today is the first day we are seriously bothered by kids. Early on we meet several groups of young boys on their way to school who consider tourists a source for bonbons, stilo’s or chocolate. If all that fails the demand is for Dirhams. Patrick tries several approaches, first trying to shame the kids for begging, then making threatening gestures and shouting at them. Singling out the leader, pointing the finger and shaking a fist do make an impression, but it is not always successful. What are these tourists that turn these kids into beggars thinking? What will our behavior toward them do possibly make the kids more aggressive?
This area is known for its fossils, minerals and Tribolites All along the road are shops and displays. We like the looks of them, but they are way too heavy to carry on a bicycle.
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At about 1:00 we arrive in Alnif, just in time to get out of the heat. There was no shade along the ride today. Googlemaps shows two hotels. The Swiss cyclist we met today recommended the Hotel Palmiers. We probably should have gone with his recommendation, but we check out the first hotel we come to, the room is fine for 300Dh. This is Hotel Bougafer. Patrick considers walking down the hill to check out Palmiers, but turns back about halfway. We settle in the room on the first floor and once we get the hot water sorted take a good shower. There are at least two more hotels downtown.
Later in the evening we walk along the edge of town to see the palm orchards and end up eating dinner at Palmiers. It is a nice place with a friendly owner. Next time we will stay there. Tomorrow will be our longest day so far, there is not much in between here and Rissani. Patrick spent some time this afternoon mapping out the remaining days in Morocco and it seems we just have enough time to ride the route we want to do.
Today's ride: 64 km (40 miles)
Total: 795 km (494 miles)
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