The plan was to cycle to Oukaimeden, a height of 2400m. I spoke with the hotel worker and he assumed i would cycle down to the town of Asni and then up. I said no, my route takes me up to Tacheddirt, the highest rural settlement in this area, and then down and back up again to my destination. We reviewed the route on a map together. He wasn’t sure and called a friend, who confirmed it’s doable but that you would need a 4×4 to do it, but should be ok on a bicycle. That filled me with confidence.
The first 3/4 of the ride was great. Up hill wasn’t too bad. I saw another bike tourer who air fist pumped and cheered me on, “allez allez allez!”. I was confident that this day was going to be smooth, so much so i even took little detours to check a bit more out. I spoke to a local in the area and told them where i was going, and again he directed me down to Asni and up. I said sure, thanked him, and carried on with my plan.
On to the route that 4x4s take (where i depart from the “Asni” route). The road was freshly laid. A little loose stones, but that’s all. I was so happy! The only problem was it went up hill FOREVER. After about an hour and a half of grinding away, the fresh road turned into gravel, sand, and uncyclable with tired legs. I was on and off my bike, pushing through small rural villages. Lips dry and burnt. Locals chuckling at my stupidity.
I kept going. There was no way i was turning back after all that climbing. The moon came out. The sun set. The odd farmer passed by with his donkey. My bike lights and head torch came on. Not enough food for a comfortable camp, i wanted to get to Oukaimeden in the hope of a shop. The temperature dropped but the pushing kept me warm. I did make it.
There was one shop at Oukaimeden. The village was so quiet. I bought some water, filled my water bottles, glugged some. Stocked up on snacks and tins of tuna, in my mind thinking I’m camping tonight. On a whim, i asked the shop owner if there was anywhere to sleep and he pointed me to a mountain hut.
I checked in (warmth! Only person there), ate my snacks, and went to sleep still hungry.
Feverish during the night, i threw my guts up around 2am…