Hiking in the High Atlas to Tizi n'Tamatert Pass (2279m)

With my 2 Kids we spent 7 days in Marocco and among others, we wanted to get a feelin for the region around Toubkal Massiv. A simple 2 days reco in order to see if further outings will be worthwhile...

Anfahrt: from Marrakesh with the common taxi to Imlil (ca. 1.5h, ca. 50 Dh /Person, leaving from Bab-el-Barr). The white mountain dominate the Marrakesh skyline and they come closer and closer during the trip. And they are more than 4000m high... In the village Imlil there are many cheap pensions, shops, guides, mules, gear for mountaneers, etc, a very nice mountain village. We fulfill a longtime dream and stay at the ecolodge Kasbah du Toubkahl. It is expensive (150EUR) but unique. It has been built in 8 years and looks like a castle (Scorsese used it as a tibetan monastery in 'Kundun'). The Kasbah is on a rocky outcrop and dominates the valley andis facing the snowin Toubkal North FAce - spectacular !

In the pm SamX and I do a hike to the berber village Aroumd - in the incredible Berber terasses we meet many children and admire the outstanding man-made terrasse fields (T2, 2h). We get lost in the fields (A bit on purpose... ) until a kid comes a rescues us...

The next morning we pack our backpacks and now the 3 of us hike down to the river, across a bridge and on the other side of the valley cross a village and then into the tamatert valley. First on a road, then through a pinetree forest and at last quite steep 
we hike up to the pass (2.5h, T2).  Here we see the neighbouring valley and the villages of Ounaneskra und Tacheddirt, which are part of the classic Toubkal trek. Long break at the pass in the simple restaurant, mint tea,.... the hike down we follow the road partly with a great view onto the white summits. Back at the Kasbah we have a classic Hammam und relax in the afternoon sun gazing at the Toubkal Northface.

The area is fantastic, the people hyper  frendly, the food great.... a skitour on the Toubkal in spring or a trek in June on passes above 3500m would be interesting... Marrakesh is great for 1 day - thereafter I had to escape...Essaouira is great for a week...