Morocco is a stunning country with mountains and sea for the views.  One location for your Morocco holidays can be the Ait Bougmez valley.  Ait Bougmez trekking takes you into an uncharted land, except for the Berber tribes who live there.  Most Morocco holidays to the Ait Bougmez valley will take a couple of days to allow for thorough exploration.  The Ait Bou Oulli Valley is one such trip.   When trekking this part of Morocco, it’s best to have a tour operator set you up with everything you’ll need before you go.

 The tour operators are familiar with the territory you will be visiting, which is most important since many of the villages and points of interest are not mapped.  Ait Bougmez is located in the High Atlas Mountains; however, the Ait Bougmez region is mostly for walking Morocco tours or shorter explorations. In the High Atlas Mountains you have two very tall peaks: There is the Jbel Toubkal at 4,167 meters and the M’Goun.  The M’Goun Massif is in the Ait Bougmez Valley.  It is the longest trek you can take in that region.  The other treks can be day trips or two day+ trips. 

 The Ait Bou Oulli Valley trek will first take you to Agouti.  Agouti is a local village at over 2,000 meters.  Heading west from Agouti you can take a day trip to the valley.  This trekking tour can be walked, driven, or mules can be used.  If you take the walking trek mules will be available to help you pack your gear. 

The trek starts with a steep downhill on a sheer mountain side into the valley.  The valley is narrow with thick walnut trees throughout the entire wadi.  The wadi is used to irrigate small areas of land for farming, which is the sustenance villages will live on year round. 

Rising up from the valley a slight distance away is the Jbel Ghat.  The Jbel Ghat is a mountain peak with mythical associations and histories.  Many Berber’s will travel to the Jbel Ghat once a year to pay homage to the legend.  Also on the trekking Morocco tour throughout the Ait Bou Oulli Valley is the village of Abackhou.  This village is set a little higher than the valley itself, and is most well known for the white capes the villagers make. 

By journeying to this remote region of Morocco, you see the culture that lives through their hands–from making beautiful garments, creating paintings in their homes, and living off the land, they use their hands to create, live and work as though time has stood still for ages.  

by Sam Mitchell