The ascent (& descent!) of Tazarhart (3980m)

It was still pitch black at 5am. Above us the stars shone and below us, the bright lights of Marrakesh were twinkling in the distance. It was a stunning scene, which felt like a little reward that made getting up early worthwhile. We forced down some very watery porridge and weak coffee, knowing that we’d need the energy later, even though my body protested a bit at the time.

We were walking away from the hut by 6am, by which time there was enough of a glow on the horizon to not need our head torches any more. It was blissfully cold and perfect climbing conditions. 

By 7am, we’d reached the first snow patch that we needed to cross. Back in the village, I’d been assured that there was no snow and no need for an ice axe. Against my better judgement, I’d left it behind, and now found myself wishing I’d still got it. It was only a short fully crossing, but a slip would have sent you a long way, with no chance of stopping. The snow was rock hard, so we laboriously kicked some shallow steps, and carefully spotted everyone across. It worked, but would have been a lot less stressful with an axe! 

Higher up, we crossed a waterfall and continued up grade I/II scrambling terrain, with helmets, but no ropes. The gradient eased off on the final hike upto the Col (Tizi Melloul), at 3850m. We have all acclimatised well, but we all felt a little slow at this point. 

Views from the pass were tremendous. From there, about twenty minutes of interesting scrambling saw us up at the summit of Tazarhart. The summit is on the edge of a huge gently sloping plateau, which was an extraordinary feature. (A bit like an enormous Ben Nevis summit, if you’ve ever been there?). 

Hamed, our mule man, unable to bring his mules, had accompanied us to the Plateau with a rucksack full of food, and prepared a very nice picnic on the cliff edge, from where we could see the hut down below. After traversing along the edge of the plateau, I’d read that at the descent gully needed to be correctly identified as there were several and they are all steep! 

Looking over the edge, John and I agreed that it was indeed ‘steep’. Very steep. It was also filled with very loose rocks of all shapes and sizes and no obvious sign of a path down. Hamed, assured us it was the correct place and set off like a mountain goat, singing at the top of his voice. We stopped and pulled out all our mountaineering kit, helmets and gloves and braced ourselves for what was likely to be a memorable few hours of hard graft!

John and I took three students each and slowly but surely short-roped them down the entire 600m+ gully! It was a serious test of skill, stamina, balance and route finding. At times, the whole rope of four people were sliding together downhill on a movable bed of scree, with me at the back, trying to keep a check on the speed. 

Huge dust clouds billowed up around us and every now and then a massive block would get trundled down the gully. It was far from ideal, but the only viable option at that point in the day. Luckily, the students thought it great fun, which it was, but we’ve had safer afternoons! 

Being at the back, I was literally engulfed in a cloud of dust at times and by the time we reached the safety of the lower valley, my teeth we black and my nostrils clogged with dirt. Our clothes were coated in brown dust. 

Back at the hut, there was a feeding frenzy as mint tea, popcorn and something resembling flat churros and jam were served up. 

Afterwards, it was down to the waterfall for a wash again. I had to wash my trousers too, which were stiff from the rock dust. Felt so refreshed afterwards.... What a day!. Pics below...