High Atlas: Places to Explore

Cascades d'Ouzoud

TheCascades d'Ouzoud are among the most stunning sights in the Middle Atlas. Approachable from the S508 via the 1811, you'll rarely see this spectacular waterfall without a rainbow hovering over the twin falls. These crash into a basin from which the water again falls, this time in a single white torrent to the riverbed below. A path through a grove of olive trees leads to the pools carved out of the rock at the base of the falls; here you can swim. At dusk families of Barbary apes come out to drink and feed on the pomegranates along the banks. If you have a rental car, the falls are an easy day trip.

Downstream, past the Ouzoud falls on the 1811 road, is the Berber hillside village of Tanaghmelt. Nicknamed "the Mexican village," the small community is connected by a web of narrow alleyways and semi-underground passages.

Continue up the 1811 (toward the P24) to see the river gorges of the Oued-el-Abid.