Hassan

The Atlas Mountains and Imlil day trip is one of the most spectacular day trips from Marrakech if you wish to escape the hustle and bustle of the city and immerse yourself in the authentic, rural side of Morocco. Our Imlil day tour starts at 09 am from Marrakech with a transfer via 4x4 vehicles or minibusses taking about an hour and half driving time southward through the gorges of Moulay Brahim and past the lively Berber town of Asni which has a famous Saturday morning market; continuing onwards toward Imlil crossing over a vivid emerald-green valley rich and luscious even throughout the warmest months of summer. Imlil itself lies nestled within sight of North Africa's tallest peak Mount Toubkal right at the foot of these majestic high atlas mountains. It serves as a hub where mountaineering guides can be hired along with their trusty pack animals known locally as 'Mules'. The area also offers numerous trekking routes starting directly from Imlil leading onto various other nearby Berber towns making it quite possibly the best place to begin your ascent attempt on mount Toubkal. Upon arrival back in Imlil we disembark from our transport and commence walking approximately 1hr southbound direction towards the remote little hamlet called Aroumd (also spelt Aremd)(altitude approx 1843 meters). On route today we pass many tiny settlements including Ait Souka, Targa & Imoula winding upwards across rugged terrain amongst some truly awe inspiring scenery featuring dramatic western high atlas ranges forming part of the mighty Toubkal massif such as towering above us are the impressive summits of Jbel Aguelzim(3547meters);Jbel Aksoual(3847metres)&the lesser but still imposingly tall summit of Djebel Adrar Adj(3122 metres )all keeping watch over proceedings . After arriving in Aroumd ,we take the opportunity to explore further afield visiting another fascinating isolated community situated deep within the heart of the beautiful Assif Aït Mizane river gorge system –this particular settlement appears almost like something straight out of storybook land being composed entirely of houses stacked haphazardly atop each other perched precariously on top of what seems to be enormous glacial moraines looking out serenely over centuries old irrigation terraces planted densely with crops ranging from hardy varieties of wheat/barley grass seedings interspersed among fruit bearing olive /fig tree orchards alongside rows of nut producing Almond&Walnut groves...