A hair-raising road through the Ziz Gorges

Located in the Middle Atlas Mountains of Morocco, the Ziz Gorges offer a spectacular and dramatic scenery created by the River Ziz.

The paved road running through the gorges is called N13 (or P21). There are sheer drops virtually along the entire route and enough hairpins to make a whirling dervish dizzy. Hemmed in by inhospitable and barren cliffs, the mountainous and winding road can be hair-raising. When you’re driving a Unimog, the road feels very narrow and with crazy bus drivers hogging the road and even daring to overtake on blind bends and on steep inclines, you’ll need to have your wits about you.

The cliff road affords superb views. The drive is definitely worth it. There are many excellent photo opportunities. Don't forget your camera with lots of film/memory and fully charged batteries! The most spectacular scenery of the Ziz Gorges begins at the Legionnaire’s Tunnel. It was built by French colonial troops in the 1930s in order to create a passageway to the Ziz Valley. The gorges end at the dam of Barrage Al-Hassan Addakhil, an artificial lake.
Pic: Bruno Papais