Mention Africa and you unlikely to think of skiing are you? However, the continent does actually have some skiing opportunities, though most of them involve elements of cross-country trekking or mountaineering. One of the very few exceptions is Oukaïmeden (pronounced you-kye-mee-den) in the High Atlas Mountains (Haut Atlas) in Morocco, classified as a ski resort suitable for alpine skiing, 2726 metres above sea level (8944 feet) and 75Km (46 miles) from Marrakech. As a BHSC committee member I felt duty-bound to check it out. So over one weekend in February, which is apparently the best time to go, I did!

Friday, 11th February 2005

The flight was a straightforward 3½-hour affair, departing from Gatwick just before lunch. However, there was only type of in-flight meal available. This contained beef and consequently didn't go down too well with some of the vegetarians onboard! Most of the passengers were either students, clearly going on a walking trek, or people of the age where they can get benefits from Saga and thus probably on a more leisurely sightseeing holiday. Was I the only person on-board who was intending to ski?

As Morocco is in the same time zone as the UK, I arrived in Marrakech mid-afternoon and in only having hand luggage I was able to leave the airport quickly. Outside, a festoon of taxi drivers greeted me, each keen to take me to any part of Marrakech I desired. I picked one at random and after agreeing on the fare was taken on a 10-minute ride to my hotel. Though I was planning to ski at Oukaïmeden, I decided to stay in Marrakech, as this would offer me things to do in the evening, particularly if the skiing didn't amount to much.

After checking-in, I ask for a taxi to be arranged to take me to Oukaïmeden on Saturday. I half expected the hotel porter to question why I would want to go there. However, before I could reveal my reason, he suggested I should try the skiing there! He seemed pleased if not somewhat honoured and proud to learn that skiing was my very intention! This sort of reaction would be something I would experience at lot over the coming days.

After a short rest I locate the local Tourist Office, which luckily was just around the corner, to get a city guide and map book. A single chap sat behind a desk and assuming he wouldn't speak (much) English, I asked in French for a guide and map. A phrase I purposely memorised parrot fashion before coming out here as my French is lousy. I was duly rewarded with a city map, but it wasn't until I had left the place that I realised that all the guide bits were in French! But the map itself told me enough of what I needed to know.

I walked to the Jemaa-el-fna Square, famed for it's continuous day and night-time activities. The hotel literature stated this is just 10 minutes away. It took me ½ hour, so I assume they meant by taxi! En route I pass the minaret of the Koutoubia Mosque, one of the most significant city landmarks of Marrakech.

Photo: The Minaret of the Koutoubia Mosque.

The Jemaa-el-fna Square was alive with people playing music, dancing and eating. After admiring the spectacle for a while I sat down at one of the many food stalls present to enjoy some traditional Moroccan fare including couscous and kebabs (skewered chicken). There were other stalls selling snails, freshly squeezed orange juice and one stall selling cooked sheep's head! At 7:30pm the noise of the square, loud as it was, found itself competing with the evening calls to prayer at the mosques nearby, thanks in part to the loudspeakers installed at each mosque's minaret!

Photo: The Jemaa-el-fna Square at dusk.

Saturday, 12th February 2005

Breakfast was of the classic continental affair, consisting of bread, jam and either tea or coffee, plus a pain de chocolat - obviously a throw back to the French colonial days! At 8am I leave for Oukaïmeden. En route my taxi drivers stops at a village called Ourika (pronouced you-ree-kah). He says he has to quickly see an old friend. I think that's what he said, as his English was as poor as my French was! However, I'm invited to join him, so I did. His friend was in a little open-air butcher's shop cutting some meat. I'm offered some Moroccan tea. The tea tasted sweet with a slight hint of mint, definitely of the herbal variety. After a lengthy discussion, which incidentally I contributed very little to as it was in either Arabic or French! We returned to our journey.

The road out of Marrakech was of the asphalt type and well maintained. Even up through the mountain range towards the High Atlas Mountains. After a 1½-hour journey we arrive and my taxi driver takes me directly to a local shop renting out skiing equipment.

The ski equipment was straight out of the seventies, rear-entry boots and thin long slalom-style skis that were taller than me. I looked at the snowboards in envy as they clearly looked more modern! After handling over my passport as security, my taxi driver takes me to the ski resort car park where we agreed a time for his return.

I am then met with a horde of local guides keen to offer their services. I decide to pick one for three reasons; first I didn't really want to ski alone in terrain I wasn't familiar with, secondly I needed someone to take some photos of me to prove to the doubting folks back home that I've actually been here! Thirdly to get rid of the other guides! My guide directs me to a little hut where I buy a ski lift ticket.

Initially, there were very few skiers and snowboarders around and only one button life open. But after a while the other button lifts opened as more people turned up. The slopes - for want of a better word, weren't groomed. In fact they consisted of part powder, a couple of moguls and part packed snow that had clearly become packed due to people constantly skiing on it in the previous days!

I hadn't skied using long skis since I first learnt to ski over 12 years ago. Trying to do carving turns in skis not designed for carving in unpredictable terrain was interesting in the very least, but at least I was staying upright!

Photo: The resort's one and only piste map!

By late morning, the skiing area was getting busy with the numerous locals and foreigners, mainly French present. So my guide decides to take me across to the solo 2-man chair lift to ski the quieter "runs" there. There are two ways of getting to the chair lift, either a long walk up a road or ski across cross-country. My guide chooses the latter option. Clearly the quicker one but as I soon found out, also the more treacherous one. The odd rock and bit of fauna would occasionally make an appearance and stop you in your tracks.

A relaxing ride on the slow chair lift provided a spectacular view of the horizon. For anyone who's skied at Heavenly at Lake Tahoe and admired the view of the Nevada plains from the top, then this is similar but on a far grander scale. Instead of Carson City I saw Marrakech spread out below.

Photo: Oukaïmeden and the African plains, but the photo doesn't do justice.

We get off halfway up and descend down basically a naturally formed gully. Here I would have my first of only two falls of the day. At the bottom of the slope we get back on the chair lift and ascend to the very top for an even more spectacular view of the African plains.

The slope down was all powder with a few ski lines made by previous skiers. It was clear few people had been here of late. During our descent my guide falls over halfway down. I on the other hand managed to get to the bottom unscathed. I think my guide was a little miffed by this, as he then suggests we stop for lunch. Though I had made it in one piece I was physically drained and gladly welcomed the idea.

We skied back to the car park where we sit in the glorious sunshine at the only café place there, drinking the now familiar Moroccan tea with some soup and bread, resting for a while before returning to the button lifts.

Photo: Yours truly and yes, the photo was taken in Africa!

By late afternoon we ski back over to the chair lift, on the way I hit a rock and end up being thrown forward out of my skis landing on another rock. My left arm took most of the impact and it was some time later I would find out I had grazed it but nothing more. Incidentally I was wearing a Spyder shirt that Mr Hon-Sec worked hard to get for me on the recent Tahoe trip. John, you'll be pleased to learn that it came through the incident unmarked. Obviously it was made of sterner stuff than I was!

As the afternoon passed we head back to the button lifts for a few more runs before calling it a day around 3pm, where my taxi driver greets me and after returning the ski equipment at the rental shop we return to Marrakech.

My goal had been achieved, but being fatigued from the day's events and not being able to find any beer to celebrate my achievement. I have an early evening meal at a nearby restaurant and then straight off to bed.

Sunday, 13th February 2005

Still feeling a little sore and tired from the skiing the day before. I got up at a little more leisurely time today and decided that the day would be best spent looking for a carpet and being pestered by endless street traders. So after breakfast I head back to the Jemaa-el-fna Square in search of the Souk market nearby.

I soon found the Souk market but soon got lost in it! The market area was like a huge labyrinth as much of it was under roof cover with narrow twisting streets full of traders and tourists alike. Occasionally interrupted by impatient cyclists and motorcyclists, so you had to have your wits about you!

There were shops aplenty selling just about everything including carpets, spices, fruits, lamps, silverware, pottery and wooden carvings. I couldn't see any kitchen sinks but one stall was selling sink taps! However most of the non-edible stuff on offer was your typical tourist tat, until eventually I found a shop selling fossils. I remembered our club president buying an ammonite on the recent Tahoe trip so I took a closer look.

The shopkeeper showed me some pieces and since he spoke good English we get in to discussion about my time in Marrakech. His eyes lit up when I mentioned I had been skiing. Apparently he was born not too far away from the ski resort. With this he offers me some Moroccan tea and after some bartering, I decide to buy some ammonites and a trilobite found apparently in the High Atlas Mountains. I then seemed to impress him even more by spluttering out the one word of Arabic I knew. This prompts him to offer me another ammonite at no extra charge, as I was such a "gentleman" as he puts it.

I then let slip that I was interesting in a carpet. The guy had none to sell but said that the best place to go is direct to a carpet factory and he would be happy to take me to one. His argument was that most of the carpets for sell in the stalls were specially made for tourists and were of an inferior quality (made of cotton rather than wool) and sold at high prices. Whereas at the factory I would be able to get a genuine Berber or Marrakech carpet at a "good" price.

We arrive at the carpet factory and I'm introduced to the owner who also speaks good English and who then shows me around. Various people are busy sat behind looms making carpets or blankets. I'm told that all carpets are made my women with all blankets made by men, something to do with tradition apparently.

Photo: One of the looms at the carpet factory.

The owner then explains the different types of carpets available before inviting me into a room full of carpets. Another guy turns up and unravels a number of carpets for my consideration, whilst the factory owner and I discus my time in Marrakech over some Moroccan tea - naturally! I eventually decide to purchase a Berber old-style carpet, especially when the owner reveals that I can pay using a Western modern-style form of payment, namely a Credit Card. My carpet is then suitably wrapped and packed and with it I leave.

Photo: A lot of carpets!

Weary from my shopping experiences, I decide to sit outside a café and whilst enjoying my lunch, I spend some time watching the world go, before eventually returning to my hotel.

In the evening I return to the Jemaa-el-fna Square for my final meal and enjoy the night-time spectacle once more.

Monday, 14th February 2005

I had to get up at 5am in order to get to the airport in time for my 7:30am flight. I hadn't arranged a taxi so I had to hail one, luckily, it would seem taxis are available 24-hours here! The flight back to Gatwick was straightforward and I used the time to try and grab some sleep. I arrived back at Gatwick by lunchtime and then headed back home and straight to work!

Some Facts

Languages Spoken

Arabic is the official language but just about everyone I met spoke French. All the road signs are in Arabic and French. Few people spoke English as I soon found out! So it's worth brushing up on your French before you go and not rely too heavily on what you can remember from your school days like I did!

Currency

The currency of Morocco is the Dirham (DH). However the currency cannot be imported in or exported out of the country. So your local High Street bank is most likely to offer you US$. However Euros are probably a better bet as €1 is about 10DH, so the conversion is easier to remember! I think GB£1 was about 16DH and 1US$ about 9DH. You can of course change your money at the airport.

I didn't bother taking any traveller cheques as I had read on the Internet that these are only accepted at the banks, which were rarely open from what I saw. Instead use either your Debit Card, which I did or your Credit Card as ATMs are widely available in Marrakech.

Getting There

There are direct flights from Gatwick to Marrakech with either Royal Air Maroc (code-shared with Atlas Blue) or British Airways (code-shared with GB Airways). I opted for the former as they had an earlier return flight that would let me get back to work for the afternoon. You can also fly to Marrakech from Paris, Toulouse and Casablanca.

Costs

I stayed at the 3 star rated Tachfine Hotel for £23 (€32) per night with continental breakfast included, booked via Octopus Travel. The flight was booked via Royal Air Maroc's web site for around £200 (€284).

A taxi between the airport can cost up to 100DH depending on the time of day (or night) and how good your negotiation skills are! The taxi to Oukaïmeden was 300DH each way.

A half-day lift ticket at Oukaïmeden costs 50DH. A full day costs 100DH. Beginner lessons were apparently also available. A ski guide (or ski buddy and photographer) cost me 700DH after I refused to pay his initial asking price of 800DH!

Meals on average were between 20H and 40DH plus whatever tip I thought was appropriate. A large glass of freshly squeezed Orange juice cost just 3DH, making it the cheapest drink available! Not surprising, as orange trees are everywhere in Marrakech. Moroccan herbal tea could often be obtained free when offered, otherwise it's around 6DH. Water comes in at 10DH or more for a small bottle. Soft drinks even more. Forget alcohol unless you go to the nightclubs. This is an Islamic state after all.

A quality carpet can cost anything up from 1900DH.

The Ski Resort

The resort at Oukaïmeden does have a hotel, the Kenzi Louka rated 4 stars, but most people travel to the resort from Marrakech like I did, if the full car park was anything to go by. There are 5 button drag lifts as well as a single slow and long 2-man chair lift that takes you to the top at around 3273m (10738 feet). People from the Ski School of France (Ecole de Ski Français) were there, I assume giving skiing and snowboarding lessons. You can get a 3-day snow report at the Snow Forecast web site.

Climate

At Oukaïmeden, it was clear blue skies and fairly warm making it similar to sunny conditions in the Alps around late March. However due to the altitude the snow didn't turn to slush in the afternoon. I took a skiing jacket and a fleece but had to discard the fleece by mid-morning. In Marrakech it was mainly hazy sunshine and during the day the temperature was closer to that of early summer. So you can get by with only a T-shirt, but in the evening, the temperature drops considerably and a fleece is recommended.

Transport

Taxis are the most common form of travel, followed by cycling, motorcycling and cars. Horse-drawn carriages are available for rent by tourists. Walking is also popular but can be rather hazardous when crossing roads. Some of the traffic seemed to ignore the few pedestrian crossings present. Walking across roads at night can be particularly interesting, as many motorcyclists don't bother with lights! I tended to cross the road when the locals did, as the traffic seemed to stop for them!

Local Customs

The favourite Moroccan pastime seems to be drinking herbal tea (thé) and conversation. Cafés, and there's plenty of them, seem to sell little else. Even in buying goods you offered some tea during and after the negotiations! If you enjoy bartering, then you'll love it here!

Contacting Home

Mobile (cell) phones work fine within both Marrakech and at Oukaïmeden. Though I couldn't get MMS (picture messaging) to work.