The road to Boumalne Dadès runs through country that looks like another planet. The town sits at about fifteen hundred metres on the edge of the High Atlas, on the old route known as the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs, and from here the Dadès river cuts a gorge into red rock that is among the finest in Morocco. The settlement itself is small and dusty, a stop on the highway with a market, cafes and a handful of hotels, but it is the gateway to some serious riding.
The gorge is the big attraction. The road runs north along the river past orchards and fortified villages built of mud and straw in the colour of the earth, and then climbs into the narrows, where cliffs close in. A set of tight hairpins at Tamellalt climbs a steep face in a tight zigzag that riders love, and a short distance on, strange eroded rock pillars known as the Monkey Fingers rise above the road. Surfaces are generally good but narrow, with sand and gravel on the bends, and landslides or flash floods can close sections after rain.
The people here are Amazigh, the Berber inhabitants of the mountains, and their culture shows in the weaving, the architecture and the language. Tea with mint and plenty of sugar is offered as a sign of welcome, and a tagine of lamb and vegetables cooked in a clay pot is the standard meal. About twenty kilometres west, Kelaat M'Gouna is the centre of the rose harvest, and in May the town holds a festival to celebrate it, with rose water, soap and perfume sold in the shops.
Boumalne Dadès has fuel, though it is wise to fill up whenever you can in the south, and Kelaat M'Gouna has more services. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, since summer heat can be fierce and winter nights are cold, with snow on the passes. The light in the gorge in late afternoon, when the cliffs turn deep red, is something to stay for.