Agadir

Agadir

We left Marrakech on the 19 August, it took us 3 hours and 3 cars but we finally made our way to Agadir on the central coast of Morocco. Luckily we had a Berber driver who was aggressive and knew the route and the area well. We drove over a mountain range (name?) and saw some amazing landscapes that seemed to change quickly. Lots of almond and olive orchards, eucalyptus trees, cactus and rock formations. The temperature began to drop from the heat of Marrakech (45 degrees Celsius) as we got closer to the coast, quite a relief. Matt had the unfortunate job of riding shotgun, he white knuckled it all the way to Agadir. On the other hand Monica had the seat that faced backwards which was probably for the best. The road is only one lane in each direction, it is also the only highway in the region that connects North Africa and Europe to the Sahara and below, so you can imagine a variety of vehicles, speeds and temperaments on the road. Lots of passing slow trucks heading directly into on coming traffic.

Our stay was a bit north of Agadir, a small community with two mosques and a few markets. We stayed at Moroccan Surf Adventures so that Matt could catch some north African waves. Led by Abdul, Matt got to get some surf time in at a couple of the local spots. The conditions were chest to head high, rights and lefts, with warm water to surf in…. Matt was a happy camper. The coastline here was very reminiscent of home, lots of rocky points and long sand beaches, all practically abandon. Monica, Martin and Ginny along with the kids were led to various outlooks to see the beautiful coast line of Morocco and then for a couple day adventures at Camel Rock Beach. It’s called Camel Rock because there is a rock on the beach that looks like a…… camel! Ani, Sam and Roan got some surf time in with the help of Said. Said was a genius at teaching the kids and got Ani up on her first surf board. She caught a few waves too! Monica and Ani took a ride on one of the local camels as did Martin and Ginny. Sam and Roan said they would wait until Egypt. Okay.

A couple of pleasant days hanging at the beach and surfing then we took off for Essaouira, heading further north along the coast.