Erfoud makes a base for exploring the sand dunes of the Sahara. Here you can hire a 4×4 grand taxi to take you into the desert. About 50km south of Erfoud is one of Morocco’s most enduring images: the monstrous sand dunes of Erg Chebbi. Rising 125m into the air, the dunes are most enchanting at sunrise and sunset, when they become bathed in golden light and you’ll appreciate the relief of the cooler air. If you’re feeling adventurous, you can complete the experience with a camel trek into the dunes you’ll camp overnight in a Bedouin tent, and eat by a campfire under the flawless starscape.
Heading back out of the desert, the shaded souq (market) in small Rissani offers an exciting place to stock up on essentials and bargain for local handiwork and fossils. Heading west from here leads to the spectacular Todres and Dades Gorges. In the more developed Todres Gorge, hikers can walk beneath the sienna walls that rise almost a thousand feet high, framing a blue strip of sky above and falling to a rocky riverbed below. At Dades, the wild, stunning scenery attests to the power of nature, as the earth seems to have been literally ripped away. Towering kasbahs (citadel forts) rise up on the slopes and dissolve into the surrounding land.
Traveling farther west leads through the tourist towns of Zagora and Ouarzazate (where you will become reaquainted with the faux guides), and onward to the imperial city of Marrakesh where you can return your car before losing yourself in the fabled Medina.
