Discovering Berber Culture: A 5-Day Trek from Marrakech to Remote Villages

After breakfast, we now set off on our hike up along the Assif n'Ait Oussaden Valley, passing through the walnut groves, up to Tizi n'Taghrhourte (1995m ), and through a rare, almost flat stretch to arrive at Assaka spring, where we will stop for our field picnic amidst an awesome silence after some 2 and a half hours of relatively easy walking. Our afternoon's hike takes us down along the edges of the forest until we reach the Berber village of D'knt (1870m) or Agouns n Assoul, where we will have our dinner and spend the night in a bivouac or gite.

We set off for our morning's 3-hour hike up through groves of walnut trees, fields of corn, and barley to greet the many sheep and goatherders—and women and children bent over with 20kg of faggots and dried herbs. We traverse the Tizi n'Tagdalte to descend amongst the juniper trees till we come to a small spring set amongst the trees, where we will stop for our picnic. Once refreshed, we are off down the winding tracks of the upper slopes for some 3 hours to come to a small river at the beginning of the Valley of Assif n'Ait Oussaden. From here, we enter the village of Tizi Oussem (1850 m), then up to the summer village of Tamsoult for our camp or gite.

Trek to a small waterfall at Azib Tamsoulte and return to cross the Tizi 'n Mzik pass (2,500m). We join the main Toubkal Valley at Imlil (1,800m), where we have lunch and spend the night in our guesthouse, Riad Atlas Prestige.

A 6- to 7-hour trek past Berber hamlets and 2 mountain passes. The route is circular, taking in as much scenery and natural beauty as possible. Today's walk begins by heading east from Imlil (1,740m) along the Tamatert Valley before turning north through the pass Tizi n’Tamatert (2,300m) and down via the Berber village of Tinerhourhine into the Imenane Valley. This valley is then followed to the north along winding mule trails through almond, walnut, and apple groves and terraced Berber hamlets to the villages of Ikiss and up to Amssakrou. Here a picnic lunch is normally taken, offering a superb view of the peak of Jbel Oukaïmeden (3,268m) and the 2 passes, Tizi n’Ou Arg (2,258m) and Tizi n’Tiratene (2,268m). The return is in a westerly direction via the pass, Tizi n’Aguerssiouâl, then through the Assif n'Ait Mizane Valley and back to Imlil. Next, the walk continues along mule trails and past escarpments through the Tizi n’Aguerssiouâl Pass (1,767m) and on to the village of Aguerssiouâl in the Assif n’ Ait Mizane Valley (2,664m) and then south back up the valley towards the peaks of Jbel Toubkal, Aguelzim, and Aksouâl to the villages of Taddart and Ait Souka, where the walk heads east back in Imlil prior to driving to Marrakech on the afternoon. Thank you for taking a guided Marrakech to Atlas mountain trek with our experienced travel company. At the end of the trek, we transfer you to your hotel in Imlil, Marrakech, or to the airport, and our Morocco Atlas hike finishes.