Morocco High Atlas: M’GOUN Mountainbike DOWNHILL, uphill by mule on a rough beduin trail (7 Min. English)
21 Km langer Wüsten-Downhill im Hochgebirge – für Mountainbiker die sich auf heftigen 1700 hm konzentrieren können.
21 km long desert downhill in a high altitude mountain range – for mountainbikers who are able to concentrate themselves on a rough trail with 1700 m of altitude difference.
The story:
The M’Goun mountain range is magic. Beduins hike all the way up to the highland where they tend their sheeps. That means there must exist a trail for mountainbiking!
So why should I walk instead of riding my bike?
Cities are far away. It`s a full day drive on a remote road from Fes or a half day drive from Marrakech to the basecamp in Agouti. Agouti (1800 m) is one of the traditional villages with houses built out of clay in the Valley Ait Bougemez (La Vallée Heureuse) that are declining slowly.
Down in Marrakesh it has 50 degrees celsius in August. Locals follow their traditions by charming snakes. In Fes tanners try to survive in a constant growing moloch.
The climate in the Atlas Mountains is cool. Nomads live a quiet life. Therefore they are very privileged.
We start with my mountainbike at 5 o’clock in the morning. A berber helps to carry the bike on a mule while my friend Mohammed is looking for the best track to climb one of the highest mountains in Africa. It`s a two day uphill hike and ride. Once arriving at the Terkeditt Plateau (2910 m) it`s time to enjoy yourself. It’s great fun to ride some small downhills from the hills around the mountain shelter.
But the M’Goun peak (4071 m) is still 1150 meters above the plateau. One day more of walking is left.
But a full day downhill on the following day pays for all the effort.
To be honest it’s a quite rough trail, maybe never ridden before by bike and the remote location makes you fell like an empty soul. You do not push your limit, because you know that the next hospital is far away.
To me mountain biking means exploring and discovering new terrain to ride on and to get in touch with the locals.
If you feel the same – let’s ride the Beduin BIKE M’GOUN Trail in the High ATLAS mountains in MOROCCO!
ROUTE uphill
(downhill the same trail vice versa):
1. Village Agouti (1800 m)
2. Ait-Said
3. Clay build village Arous
4. Clay build village Azib n Ikis (2300 m)
5. Pass Tizi n Aghouri (3400 m)
6. Terkeditt-Plateau with Terkeditt hut/ shelter made out of stone (2910 m)
7. M’Goun peak (4071 m)
Alternative Jebel Toubkal (höchster Berg Marokkos):
Das Video von Bernhard Warnecke & Günther Kothgassner zeigt teils recht detailierte Ansichten der Trails am Jebel Toubkal (4167 m) und am M´Goun (4071 m).
Beduin Bike – RIDER
CUT, VOICE OVER, SOUNDDESIGN , directed by
Pedro May
Beduin Bike – CAST
Mohmad Benaissa (Morocco)
Beduin Bike – CAMERA
Elfi Eicher, Pedro May (Germany)
