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Oujdad Tower, Taghia

Publié le 25 April 2019 | Morocco

At the center of the Taghia cirque, a gigantic limestone pyramid dominates: Oujdad. The itinerary takes you around Oujdad to the east, past it to the south and back through the Taghia canyon to the west, via the famous Berber passage, a stone and wood footbridge suspended above the void on a series of iron piles. It's not an easy trek, even though it's quite short due to the many hand-climbing passages in the ascent corridor. After the heights of Tagoujimt-n-Tsouyane, a glimpse of Taghia from the inside, in the heart of the rock and at the foot of the great climbing walls.

Technical summary

Type ✦ Hiking

Location ✦ Taghia

Region ✦ Haut-Atlas

Country ✦ Morocco

Length ✦ 10kms

Elevation gain ✦ 600m

Difficulty ✦ D

Max altitude ✦ 2450m

Duration ✦ 5h to 6h

Interest ✦ ★★★

Access to the place

From Azilal, reach the village of Zaouia Ahansal. From here, cross Agoudim and continue on the track for 2 or 3 kms to leave the car at the last small village near a pink mosque (car storage available for 50 dh per day). Continue on foot to reach Taghia via the trail (a road is currently under construction...). For details of how to get to Taghia, see the Tagoujimt-n-Tsouyane post.

Map & topo

Voir en plein écran

Itinerary description

Hiking to the start 20'

Descend to the bottom of the village and reach the school (pink house). Continue along the path that runs alongside the torrent and, before entering the gorge, cross over to find yourself on a small platform with a small wooden hut.

Course 3h30 à 4h30

The route is simple: around Oujdad. The trail is marked but not signposted, except for cairns but not continuously. The loop is about 10 kms long, but it's hard to calculate with GPS in such deep couloirs. Scrambling passages in the III/IV without difficulty, but a little exposed. There's a lifeline on the Berber passage, so no equipment is required.

Part 1: Oujdad Pass (2h to 2h30)

From the platform, follow the path to the right of the torrent (left bank) and cross a large waterfall with an impressive spring emerging from the rock and spilling onto the path (hard not to get your feet wet!). Continue up the right-hand couloir, the left-hand one being very narrow and steep (arrival of the torrent). Climb the boulders and ledges following the path and the small wooden or stone passages. Higher up, the path opens up a little and this time you have to climb a sloping waterfall (see photo on front page). At this point, you begin to see the exit above the rear cirque. Continue along the left-hand side and find a small, winding path that rises up to exit to the left. This climbs until you reach the small pass (plus a gap) behind Oujdad, but on the other side of the cirque. All that's left to do is traverse the flank to reach it without difficulty.

Part 2: Taghia canyon (1h30 to 2h)

Tilt to the west on a long slope. From the top, it's hard to see the passage below between the walls. The path twists and turns until it reaches a small house above the Taghia canyon, which can be seen threading its way between Oujdad and Tagoujimt-n-Tsouyane. At this house, turn right onto the wider, well-marked path that leads straight to the foot of Oujad's west wall, where you'll find the famous Baraka, Taghia's great mythical route (600m, 7b). If you look up, you'll have a good chance of seeing 1 or 2 roped parties in action. This is where you'll find the Berber passage that crosses the base of this wall to the north (50m footbridge). Then continue on the ledge and end up on a shoulder that leads to a sort of wide balcony with a splendid view of Taghia.

Back

From the balcony, descend to the west on a very steep path that literally plunges between the cliffs, facing some 700-800m of impressive rock face. Further down, before reaching the bottom of the gorge, the path crosses to the north to exit towards the village (1 short passage equipped with chains). We pass over the violet rock slopes of the small tooth that grew there above the village, then the path joins the torrent, which we simply cross to return to Taghia.