Road to Morocco

Tomorrow (Saturday June 21st) I am heading off to Morocco for some hiking in the Atlas mountains with a team led by Jason Black. The target is to summit the 7 highest peaks in Morocco in 7 days, though it is really 5 days as 2 of those days are arrival/departure days. The peaks range in height from just over 2600m to the highest being Mount Toubkal at an impressive 4167m.

I signed up for this on the back of returning home from Island Peak last November and convinced my wife, Caroline, to accompany me. We both have done the preparation in terms of fitness, strength and mountain miles and whilst neither of us have done this type of intense trekking before, we are both looking forward to the challenge - with a few nerves thrown in.

The trek will have us off the beaten tourist track, staying in local villages and as Jason operates a fairly pure mountaineering style, we will get to immerse ourselves in the region’s authenticity whilst working hard to summit those peaks.

Funny, whilst I have some nerves, I don’t feel the intense tension I had prior to Island Peak - maybe it is because I have all the gear and have good knowledge of how a Jason expedition works. I hope I am not complacent! I know a few of the team going from previous trips with Jason, so it will be great to catch up with old friends and of course make some new friends.

I’ll post warts and all when I get back next weekend. Wish us luck!