To escape the wet winter we yet again, decided to head back to the Moroccan Anti-Atlas for our sixth holiday in the area.
Being based in the heart of the mountains is what climbing there is all about for us and we booked into the Ksar Rock guesthouse deep in the Afantinzar Valley knowing full well that temperatures could be low in December. As such we did have to suffer out some days of cold and even rainy weather on this trip.
The first day we headed for Dragon Rock. Arguably the best crag in the range Dragon has multiple buttresses with different aspects so climbing in shade or sun is usually possible.
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| The Amazing Samazar Valley |
We climbed....
Total Recall (VS 4c 50m) - Awkward first pitch but a good climb
Xanadu (HVS 5b, 55m) - A wonderful rock climb. First pitch steep crack climbing. Second pitch bold face climbing.
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.jpeg) | | Pitch two of Xanadu |
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.jpeg) | | Pitch one of Xanadu |
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 | | Xanadu P1 |
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 | | Me on 2nd |
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Day 2 saw us venture up to Alma slabs in the Tizi Escapement. However after recent rain we couldn't get the Duster up the rocky track and had to settle with Porcupine Wall, a convenient little crag. Even then it was so cold we couldn't start climbing until 2pm. The crag is quiet and is sunny by the afternoon, though it does catch northerly winds. It has a friendly atmosphere and is useful for a relaxed day of cragging. We climbed...
Sabre Cut (VS 4c, 40m) - One move wonder
Red Hot Poker (E1 5a , 30m) - A friendly slab
Morning Glory (Diff, 30m) - A quick Solo
Feelin’ Groovy (VS 5a, 40m) - The best of the bunch
.jpeg) | | Me on a slabby E1 |
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 | | Pilar on a VS |
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| Wonderful views |
The long drive to Faulty Towers along the Ouguenz Road is spectacular. Its a fantastic crag with a high plateaux feel and wonderful backdrop and the climbing is convenient and accessible from the parking. The crag does have a broken appearance and routes can feel a bit rambling and escapable and so it doesn't give up many three star routes. We chose Grand Designs (E1 5B, 125m). This route weaves it's way up the cliff in 5 pitches. Pitches go at 4c, 5a, 5b, 5b, and 4a with the two 5b pitches being sustained hard. A great route if a little disjointed (and escapable feeling).
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.jpeg) | | Scrappy looking but good climbing |
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.jpeg) | Me facing the 2nd crux of the E1
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Afterwards Pilar dispatched Glowing in the Wind (HVS 5a, 30m) a superb single pitch that had a strong line and good climbing. One of the best on the edge!
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Pilar on a great line
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What followed was two days of poor weather. Cold and particularly wet. It was nice to see the natural world getting what it needs as a seven year drought has effected the area. We had no choice but to suffer it out in the Afantinzar Valley however, we did manage to escape to the eastern side of the massif and bag a couple of routes on Christmas day at Atkil Edge. Pilar made light work of
Wall Street (E1 5b, 25m) - probably the line of the crag. I climbed
Christmas Crack (Severe, 20m) Simply because of the name.
.jpeg) | | Christmas Crack |
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 | Pilar leading Wall St- E1
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With a day of sunshine we wanted to exploit it and headed to Safinah. This area is a rare commodity in Samazar valley as it faces south all day.
The route Scimitar ridge (VS 5a, 265m) can be climbed in about 6 pitches and has some decent climbing in the upper portion. It summits an aesthetic tower, has breathtaking views, and has a walk off with no abseiling. It fitted the bill and we knocked it out before heading to Dragon rock.
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| The Great Rock of Samazar |
At Dragon the sun had gone in and the temps were low and I struggled my way up Ocre Slab (HVS 5a, 30m) with completely numb fingers. Character building.
.jpeg) | | Me struggling the temps |
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 | | Pilar following |
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In the second week we relocated to the Bio Beldi guesthouse in the Ameln Valley for some relative warmth. Sadly more poor weather arrived and we spent two days going from crag to crag hoping to find dry rock and blue skies.
Eventually after the rain passed we headed to Aqueduct Cliff. Previously known as crag BX it is a typical example of one of the early discoveries in the Ameln Valley. It would be an unbearable heat trap in warmer months and proves a useful crag during December. The routes weren't world class by any stretch. The rock quality wasn't the best and the cliff lacked strong lines. The approach is interesting and follows a concrete waterway with great views.
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| The approach to Aqueduct cliff |
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| Adrar Mqorn |
We went for...
Rust and Bone (E1 5a, 60m) - Mediocre for the most part with some dodgy rock. Still worthwhile.
Pole Dancer (E1 5b, 35m) - The way I went felt way off route and hard. It may have been climbed before but I'm claiming my own variation. A solid E1 5b or maybe E2.
Euphorbic Pleasure (VS 4c, 25m) - More like a severe. Just one mildly tricky move.
 | | Flowing rivers |
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 | | Me on Pole Dancer |
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 | | Pilar on the VS |
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We had long routes on Anergui Upper on our to-do list and so the next day headed up the treacherous road to the village of Anergui (quite the experience) before finding an enormous landslide had closed the road.
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| Collapsed Anergui Road |
Plan B (which we made up on the spot) was to head for Tizgut Gorge. Tizgut has some three star classics though does take some effort thanks to the steep uphill approach. We went for Tizgut Arete (E1 5a, 100m). Pitch one was very bold face climbing on perfect rock and with cold hands kept me focused. After 50m I found a belay! Pitch two was equally exciting thanks to broken rock so some care needed. Protection still wasn't obvious to find. The sun had come round to warm us up at least. Overall, it is a serious route but to my mind at least, worth the 3 stars.
.jpeg) | | Bold Pitch one |
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.jpeg) | | Me at the belay at 50m |
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 | | Pilar still in the shade |
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| Green Tizgut |
Our final day arrived and we still hadn't climbed anything long. Prophet Peak is an eye-catching peak with national religious significance (apparently). We climbed the incredible Pinnacle Ridge (Severe, 600m). Having done several long mountaineering outings in the Anti-Atlas I would argue this route is the best of the genre. We walked in from Tizut as we were familiar with the walk (having climbed Millennium Ridge a couple of years prior). The walk in and approach is about 2hours and from the Tizgut approach we found the route difficult to discern.
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| The rough line of Pinnacle Ridge |
We loosely figured out the start of the ridge and set off scrambling. After about 2 hours of climbing the guidebook descriptions started to make sense. There are three pinnacles on route and traversing between the second and third is the crux, a wildly exposed step off a pencil-like spire back onto the ridge.
We climbed the ridge in Approach shoes soloing for the most part...
We roped up when we encountered an awkward chimney high on the route near the first pinnacle. From there we took coils in and moved together, pitching the crux move...
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.jpeg) | | Rope now being used |
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 | | Moving together |
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On the summit we enjoyed views of snow capped peaks, sand dunes and the whole of the Ameln Valley. Getting down takes some effort as some down-climbing north of the summit following cains eventually lands you on the hillside. From here a gulley leads down to the valley floor but not before a 20m abseil through a narrow constriction. The peak is a well known Berber pilgrimage though we couldn't understand how the Berber people would deal with this steep gully without a rope.
 | | Abseil |
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.jpeg) | | The descent |
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.jpeg) | | Long gulley descent |
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The whole outing took us between 8 and 9 hours car to car. The best of all the long mountain outings we have done in the Anti-Atlas. Continued good climbing and scrambling and a proper summit. What's not to like?
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| Summit Of Prophet Peak |
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