Winds of change

As Sam described a few days ago, although our initial plan was to travel a little faster through Morocco so that we can spend a bit more time in Senegal before it gets far too hot, we have already slowed right down.

In addition to not enjoying it quite so much travelling through spaces so quickly and not taking the time to stop and enjoy it, so much more has happened (good and not so good) that has forced us to take the pace off.

Firstly, the less good bit. The weather has been extremely windy and pretty wet. The country has been under yellow and amber weather warnings since we arrived and there has been so much rain here recently that the Moroccan authorities have declared that the seven-year drought is now over. We have good wet weather gear and it is warm enough that the rain hasn’t been too much of a problem for us, but it has been for the roads.

On multiple occasions we have had to divert our route due to flooded roads after being advised by locals that the roads were impassable. We have seen evidence of landslides and some sections of roads have only just been passable. We are extremely grateful to all the people who have given us the information to change our routes. And Mr Chtab for driving us in his pickup to check if the river flood was passable (it wasn’t)…

Obviously, changing our plans means that a diversion may be longer and our progress is slowed. Our disruption is minor compared to the disruption to the people who live here but the farmers seem pleased with the rain!

The wet is one thing but the wind is a totally different beast. There’s no protection against it and when you are constantly fighting a headwind, each pedal stroke is three times as hard as normal. The other night as we entered Taza, we were lucky to be doing 11kph down an 8% hill into the wind. It is hard and tiring. Somehow it gets right into your head and the noise is deafening. Controlling the bike becomes a full-time effort, which is hard on the shoulders and hands, and we need to be a bit more careful about holes, broken glass and driving standards. Cooking, trying to get your jacket on without it disappearing over the horizon and finding shelter to put up your tent is all hard work.

We love the tent but sleep is very important and the rattling of the tent all night is not overly conducive to it. For this reason we have been staying in accommodation to get the shelter and the night’s sleep we need. The upside is that these are the places where we’re meeting people and we’re more likely to make a connection and discover something new when speaking with people rather than being in a tent in nature - swings and roundabouts. Again, this has led to us taking shorter days and a different route to find accommodation along the way. Luckily we are in the off-season and there is plenty of space at the hotels, guesthouses and Gîtes.

Secondly (and most importantly), the good bit. We have been welcomed to Morocco wholeheartedly - invited into people’s homes for food and conversations, stopped on the side of the road for photographs and relaxing with a deliciously sweet cup of Moroccan tea. The kindness and hospitality we have been shown has been overwhelming and humbling. We want to spend more time with the Moroccan people as this is where we make friends and learn about another culture. We want to be able to accept an offer for lunch in someone’s home, knowing that it will take several hours and we won’t make it to the end point we thought we would. This will make our trip far more fulfilling and these are the things that we will remember, not how many kilometres we did that day.

So for now, we’re leaning into the changes and we’re going to enjoy Morocco as it comes rather than the focus on our onward travel.