Moroccan Ocean Boulevard

I could not leave Casablanca without visiting the Hassan II mosque, build on the edge of land and water. The bike ride through the hectic city was more than worth it, though there was no way to come anywhere close as police had the mosque solidly fenced off.

I left next morning in grey wheather and half an hour later I was already sheltering for the rain at – or rather in – a bus stop. It did not delay me too much, after all I had only planned a 100 k trip to El Jadida, also situated at the Atlantic, as I am following the inofficial Moroccan Ocean Boulevard..

After another – even heavier – shower, which I could not avoid, it cleared up. Still, not really warm with 16 C, barely good enough for biking.

Today was also donkey day, never seen so many of them; they were used to pull carts or were loaded with baskets full of grass – at least that’s what it looked like. Traffic is more used to donkeys then to bikers; they honk only for me. I gave up taking pictures of them, apart from the one for my grandkids to show how they could go to school.

Destination today was El Jadida, only a 100 k trip, to make it fit the schedule for Agadir.  Karim, my Casablanca bike mechanic, had advised me to make a stop in Ouarradi to have the best oysters ever. Passing the village I did not manage to find a restaurant to serve me an oyster lunch. But I found camels instead..

El Jadida is a thriving city, big enough to host a Decathlon and an Ibis hotel. I opted for a local hotel, next to the soukh, which was a good choice.

El Jadida was established by the Portuguese, as Mazargan, back in the 16th century or so. The old city is still there, could use some renovation, to use an understatement.

Had my fish dinner, but the restaurant had no notion of starters and main courses; it was all put on my table in one go. Then the tuna was cooked as if it had to be used as shoe soles. I gave them another chance, but also the second version did not really pass my test.

Next morning I enjoyed this great view from my hotel room.

It was a cold morning, I left at 9 and needed shirt, sweather, jacket and trainers to keep warm. I could have used full gloves too.. It was going to be a longer trip today, 145 k, as I could not find a decent hotel option any earlier. It turned out to become a great ride, initially with a crosswind as the smoke shows.

Later the wind backed to become a fierce tailwind. It was like having a turbo on my bike, at times I reached warpspeed!

Scenery remained amazing, I can’t get enough of oceans, must be my diving history. I had booked the hotel in Sila, a riad type hotel where the rooms have their windows facing the central hallway.

I walked the enormous boulevard in Sila along the rocky coast; no beach for the people from Sila.

Even had a beer in a coffee bar! I decided for a hotel dinner, bad decision. Just try to get a medium steak and it will be served as a thoroughly cooked piece of leather. The chicken I got instead was not much better.

Drove off next morning at 9 and visited the first bakery I came across. They had a great selection of sugared breads and pastries which would bring me easily and tasty through the day. 

The trip came with some tough climbs – and consequently the descends. At times I felt like a jojo. Luckily my legs did not complain. Worth mentioning: on a gravity assisted descend I set (and claim) the speed record for my – Superstrata – bike: a whopping 75 k+! Best of all was the stability of the bike, even under luggage load. As the saying goes: ‘never underestimate an old man on a bike’ 🙂

There was also this surprise climb. By now I thought the average elevation was only 110 meters, not realizing the mountains towards the south, even along the coast, were on the rise. I learnt the hard way when the road flattened out at 200 meters. 

I met the first camels in the wild and even more donkeys. I also wondered how people could make a living by tending just a few sheep. Or by guarding a single cow all day..

I arrived in Essaouira – known for its wave surfing – where I booked a hotel in the middle of the old city, the kashbah, a place which you can’t reach by car. The hotel was hard to find to start with but once I arrived I could not check in as there was no place to park my bike. Could not even take it to my room. It was in the small print after all: no parking available, but it did not mention bicycles…

No big deal, hotels galore this time of the year, so I quickly found another one. That’s to say, the first one I tried was charging tourist rates, as they were a ‘traditional riad’. I had not seen tourists over the last few days, but here, in Essaouira, it confirmed they were! And if there are tourists, there are also tourist traps like overpriced camelrides on the beach… 

In the evening I returned to the soukh again, biked around and had a good meal – with real beer – in a European run restaurant, just outside.

Next stop Imsouane, half way to Agadir.