Berber Raid: Conquer the Moroccan Atlas

Six nights on a Royal Enfield Himalayan through the Central High Atlas, with considerably more dirt than the operator’s other Moroccan routes and two passes near 3,000 metres crossed in a single day.

Marrakech opens it in the medina, then the climb to Bin El Ouidane brings the first track sections and the Ouzoud waterfalls, the highest in Morocco at around 110 metres, before a night by the reservoir. Imilchil follows on tracks used mainly by herders, with the Imsfrane cathedral rock or the Asif Melloul gorges on the way and an optional detour to the cliff granaries at Aoujgal.

The Dades Gorge comes next past the twin lakes at Tislit and Isli, on high mountain road into a deep canyon. Then the Tabant valley, known locally as the Happy Valley, reached across an ochre desert track, with the highest pass of the trip at 3,005 metres and a second climb over 3,000 metres on the same stage. The final day works back to Marrakech through Berber villages and over a 2,200 metre pass, with up to 56 miles of trail, the most sustained off-road riding on the itinerary.

Bike rental is included and the price is quoted per person. This is the Atlas route for riders who already have some off-road experience, or who want to acquire it with a guide and a support vehicle rather than alone, and the Himalayan is a sensible bike for it. The Central High Atlas is also the quieter half of the range: no tour coaches, few other bikes, and villages where the arrival of a group is still an event. Anyone wanting tarmac throughout should take the Wonders of the Atlas loop instead.