Monkeying around, day 1

New Year’s Day, 2025. The schedule: breakfast starts at 8; bike loading afterward; group photo at 10:15; launch at 10:30. Or something like that. It was incredibly cold that morning. The power had apparently gone out. Oh, and while there was wifi in the camp, it didn’t really work. And we had virtually no cell service. Big issue for people who had mapped everything out on their phones ahead of time.

In a stroke of inspiration, I actually had a paper (waterproof and tearproof) map! There were only a few around.

There was a lot of talk about teams and routes and other things. “Are you going for the northern or southern option?” “Have you figured out who you’re riding with, or are you going to wing it?”

And here’s the problem. I wasn’t convinced I’d make it a quarter of a kilometer. (We’re all metric here.) My bike would die, I wouldn’t know how to fix it, and I’d just walk back to the camp to see if I could sleep in my tent again. Thinking about a route? Give me a break. And who to ride with? I didn’t want to screw anyone’s trip up by making them have to worry about their own bike as well as mine. I was very stressed.

We eventually launched. Lots of fanfare. It was fun!

We left the compound, turned right, went up a slight hill, and in shifting into second I popped a wheelie and fell off my bike. Awesome. I was about 10 feet from the compound wall.

I got going again, eventually got stuck in some stupidly deep sand. A friend helped me out and I was off again. Then my bike just died. Wouldn’t start. Another friend stopped to help me, suggesting I switch from regular fuel to reserve. That did the trick, meaning I was low on gas and needed to fill up asap. I made it a few km to the main road, headed south to the gas station, actually made it there, filled up, readjusted my duffle bag on the back, and then got on the road north to Erfoud. Some incredibly kind people stopped to help me at various points in the few km ride out to the main road. I was really embarrassed. They were cheerful and supportive. It meant a lot.

It was 35 or so km to Erfoud, the first main town where everyone would go. I learned that my bike in top (4th) gear gets to 40kph on flat road. Uphill is a challenge, and downhill can get over 50kph. So it was about an hour’s ride to Erfoud. And I made it! No breakdowns. It was cold and I forgot to wear my riding gloves, but it was okay. Some kids came out to the road to wave. At one point some kids got into the road trying to get me to stop. I blew through. They threw a stick at me. Cool. Oh and I think I drove through a police checkpoint too. Oops.

Erfoud. A few people had talked about a pizza place in Erfoud, so I went in to grab lunch. Some monkeys were there, including a group of people that I’d gotten to know decently well at the camp. They asked about my route, who I was riding with, etc. I had little to offer, having not made any plans at all for after Erfoud since I wasn’t convinced I’d even make it that far. They asked if I wanted to join them. They probably then explained their rough plan to me. I don’t know. I was brimming with excitement and immediately said yes! My fears were dissipating. I wasn’t going to be stranded by myself in the desert.

So here I was in a group with five other people. They were in the process of booking rooms In Goulmima, 80km away, so I got my phone out and got one too. We then rode through desert, then Jorf, then more desert, then more towns. We stopped at a dinosaur themed restaurant for coffee and snacks and to peruse their gem collection. We stopped for pictures along the way. It was amazing. Six of us in a line on the highway (one way in each direction) shoulder, clipping along at 40kph. The limit was typically 100kph, so vehicles zipped past us frequently, generally giving us plenty of space. 

+2

So many kids ran to the road when we drove through the various towns. They waved. We waved. We exchanged hellos (sometimes in Arabic, sometimes in English). I high fived the brave ones who reached out. So many smiles. It was really touching.

At one point one member of our group had a back rack issue. His basket was off center and no longer stable. He pulled over to fiddle with it. Within a minute a Moroccan on a (real) motorcycle had pulled over and was helping to fix it. And we were between towns, with not much around. A few cars slowed down to ask if we needed help as well. We were told that this would likely happen, but to actually experience it.. just incredible.

We got to the hotel just after sunset (which is 6:30pm). You surely know that it gets cold in the desert after sundown. I can confirm that is indeed the case! We had a high in the 50s (F) on this day. The sun felt great when it was out. When it disappeared, the low was surely around freezing.

The hotel had heat! And hot water for showers! This super long day began with shivering under two blankets in a tent. What an improvement!

The hotel also had food (ordered in) for us. Hello chicken tagine and bread and olives and a million other delicious things. I meant to take a picture of the meal. Alas!

One hell of a day. My spirits had lifted immensely. Maybe I can actually make it to Marrakech in 7 days on a hilariously stupid motorbike!