Tazzeka National Park

A couple of weeks ago, when the world was a far saner place than it is now, we were driving in the Tazzeka National Park and came across a tortoise crossing the road. Our first wild tortoise. I was very excited and jumped out for a closer look. He promptly disappeared into his shell. Right there in the middle of the road. Tortoises are an ancient and venerable species. They wandered the planet millions of years before humans when dinosaurs ruled the world. They can live long lives. Often over a hundred years and occasionally twice that. This one however, might not last much longer if he stayed retracted and immobile in the road. I carried him to the forest edge and waited. Slowly, slowly, for tortoises are not hasty creatures; he came out of his shell and plodded off into the woods.

Back on the main road to Fez, we passed many storks on poles. Big stork nests, some well over a metre across, balanced on top of telegraph poles. One section of road, easily over a kilometre, had a nest on every single telegraph pole. Here and there, we spotted a young stork peeking out over the edge. We drove past the Barrage Idriss, a massive reservoir full of bright blue, fresh looking water. The occasional palm along the bank lent an exotic air to the scene. Fruit and veg in Morocco is very seasonal and the season of the moment is squashes. Giant squashes. Lots and lots of squashes. Fortunately, we could also still buy a good assortment of other veg.

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Short of Fez, we turned south into the mountains. We wanted to find the other end of a road we had spotted in Tazzeka that made a big loop through the hills. Approaching Jebel Boulblane from the north, we first dropped into a wide, open and remarkably fertile valley. Ground crops nestled in between fruit trees. Fields of carrots, potatoes, beans peas, herbs and onions. Every square inch green and vibrant. Climbing out the far side, we passed rows of olive trees and smaller palms. The road kicked up steeply bringing us to a great parking space overlooking the valley.

Next day was a bike day. Small mountain road. Sunshine. Snow on the peaks. Fantastic views. What better way to spend a day? The road became thinner as we climbed. We passed a hole where a large chunk had slid away down the steep hillside. No problem on a bike but we were very happy we were not trying to negotiate it in a heavy truck. The road became a track. The vegetation thinned and the air became colder. We reached 2,500m and the snow line. Then, much to my surprise, we came across a ski resort. Well maybe it was once. Now it was some dilapidated building and a draglift. The lift may have been serviceable but there was no snow. Even if there were snow, it would be a long, hard drive just for a single lift and, at most, two ski runs.

Snow or not it was still quite cold. We enjoyed heading back down and feeling the air grow warmer. Alongside the track, we spotted half a dozen trees with strange cobweb like constructions in them. They reminded me of a bush we had once seen in the Yorkshire Dales that had been completely draped in a heavy cobweb type covering from caterpillars. However, this was different in that each tree contained several funnel shaped constructions each up to half a metre across. They looked a bit sinister so there was no way I was going to try and climb up a tree to poke one. Anybody any ideas what they are?

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