How fit for Morocco?

Join me in Marrakech. We meet at the airport, then climb by minibus over the Atlas Mountains. We cross the Tichka pass at 2,200m. You'll see remote villages and green river valleys. The land turns dry as we drop south. After four hours, we reach Ouarzazate. That night, we share a welcome dinner together.

We start early after breakfast. We drive south across the Anti-Atlas, down through the Draa River Valley, past palm oases. About four hours. We reach our first wild camp near Tidri (590m), at the foot of Jebel Bani. We meet the desert team, take a late lunch, then run our first 10km. Sand under your feet.

Day 3 is our first real stage. We run about 25 km into the desert. The last village fades behind us. It won't come back for four days. We start on stone and gravel at the foot of Jebel Bani. Then come Acacia trees, low dunes, and wide flats of earth. We camp near a dried river bed.

Day four is short but real. You'll run about 16.5 km west toward the great Erg Chigaga. The land keeps shifting beneath you: low dunes, dried river channels, ancient lake beds, and blackened stone. That raw Saharan floor is called hamada. You'll make camp near the Bougarn dunes, around 513m. Out here, the quiet stays with you.

Day five is Stage 3. We run 21 km, tracking the Jebel Bani. We thread through the Erg Nsofa dunes, cross dried river beds, and a huge old lake bed. Then we share one last lunch at camp. After that, the core group rolls back towards Agdz. The dunes shimmer behind us, going quiet.

Day 6 is the long road home. After an early breakfast, we drive north over the Atlas Mountains. We climb through alpine scenery, then drop down towards Marrakech. We get there around lunchtime, and the tour ends. The desert is behind you now. Your legs are tired, your head is full of sand and sky.

This is our last morning together. We climb back into the Atlas Mountains one final time. The road winds high, then drops down towards Marrakech. About four hours of driving, with the desert now behind us. You will watch the dunes fade. The sand still on your shoes. The quiet of Erg Chigaga still in your head.