Trip
I had a great holiday to Morocco. We rode as far south as Fez and then home again. A total of 4000 miles in 8 days.
Day 1: Left Colchester at 11am. My carbon exhaust can started working loose down the M20, at about 155mph so we had to stop to bodge it back on. Eurotunnel under the Channel. Raced some other british Bikers down the E5 around Poitiers. The sun went down and we hit heavy fog and thick yellow pollen in the air after Bordeaux. Pulled up in Saint Jean-de-luz just after midnight to sink a couple of pints on the seafront, and to stay the night. Apparently this is a great area for surfing.
Day 2: Set off via San Sebastian and Vitoria-Gasteiz along some winding roads through the edge of the Pyrenees. Had lunch in Valadolid before dropping down to Salamanca then the long stretch to Sevilla on a combination of extremely fast new motorway sections, [on which I went the fastest I've ever been on my bike of 160mph, and we drained several tanks of fuel cruising at above 130mph] and scenic winding old trunk roads which broke up the journey. We dropped down the cliffs into Algeciras at about 10:30 pm to enjoy views of the African coast. We ate Tagines, drank lager and stayed in a hotel over looking the port and Gibraltar.
Day 3: Took the ferry to Ceuta and Experienced the border crossing into Morocco. Rode down to Chefchaouen and took the 'scenic' road to Fez, through the Rif mountains via Ketama. The road started off well, but deteriorated with diesel on the road, thick fog, the sun setting, torrential rain and road works that diverted us off the tarmaced roads onto dirt roads. Sports bikes are obviously a rare sight in Morocco. There were people lining the road sides, and those not trying to sell us pot were all pointing and waving, as if we were Royalty. We stopped at a cafe in Fez at 10pm and a local escorted us to a local hotel inside the city wall, in the old town on his Suzuki 50 with no lights!
Day 4: We did not go anywhere near the Motorcycles, walked round the Medina all day, and took entertainment from watching the traffic chaos in the city.
Day 5: Rode back via Souk-el-Arba-du-Rharb, through the planes and racing a speeding train. The roads were biking bliss, and the scenery was beautiful, lush, green farmland with mountains as the backdrop. We sampled Moroccan take on the motorway, took the ferry back to Algeciras and rode up to Granada, where a tourist guide showed us to a hotel. We ate dinner under the Cathedral. Three courses with a bottle of local Rioja for 50 Euros! Followed by a few beers, shots of Rum and a Table Football competition with some locals.
Day 6: A late start. Up to Benidorm to visit friends with an Apartment overlooking the beach. The development of Villas and Apartments all along the Spanish coast is phenomenal. We then hacked up to Barcelona and booked into a hotel on the outskirts of the city just after midnight.
Day 7: Took the road towards Ropoll, then Bourg-Madame and into the Pyrenees for the day. The Roads were biking Nirvana. The hairpins and constant radius curves went on and on all day long. My best mate got his pegs down and I got my Knees down. Rode through Andorra through the snow, into France, through cravasses, alongside rivers and railway lines. To Carcassone and cross country to Millau. Staying the night in the town that gives its name to the worlds tallest Viaduct, which looks amazing lit up at night.
Day 8: Up the Autoroute via Clermont-Ferrano to Paris. We became split up around the Peripherique, and discovered there are two routes to Calais that are just as quick as each other. Before getting on the Train back under the Channel to England and riding home to complete the journey of a lifetime.
Day 1: Left Colchester at 11am. My carbon exhaust can started working loose down the M20, at about 155mph so we had to stop to bodge it back on. Eurotunnel under the Channel. Raced some other british Bikers down the E5 around Poitiers. The sun went down and we hit heavy fog and thick yellow pollen in the air after Bordeaux. Pulled up in Saint Jean-de-luz just after midnight to sink a couple of pints on the seafront, and to stay the night. Apparently this is a great area for surfing.
Day 2: Set off via San Sebastian and Vitoria-Gasteiz along some winding roads through the edge of the Pyrenees. Had lunch in Valadolid before dropping down to Salamanca then the long stretch to Sevilla on a combination of extremely fast new motorway sections, [on which I went the fastest I've ever been on my bike of 160mph, and we drained several tanks of fuel cruising at above 130mph] and scenic winding old trunk roads which broke up the journey. We dropped down the cliffs into Algeciras at about 10:30 pm to enjoy views of the African coast. We ate Tagines, drank lager and stayed in a hotel over looking the port and Gibraltar.
Day 3: Took the ferry to Ceuta and Experienced the border crossing into Morocco. Rode down to Chefchaouen and took the 'scenic' road to Fez, through the Rif mountains via Ketama. The road started off well, but deteriorated with diesel on the road, thick fog, the sun setting, torrential rain and road works that diverted us off the tarmaced roads onto dirt roads. Sports bikes are obviously a rare sight in Morocco. There were people lining the road sides, and those not trying to sell us pot were all pointing and waving, as if we were Royalty. We stopped at a cafe in Fez at 10pm and a local escorted us to a local hotel inside the city wall, in the old town on his Suzuki 50 with no lights!
Day 4: We did not go anywhere near the Motorcycles, walked round the Medina all day, and took entertainment from watching the traffic chaos in the city.
Day 5: Rode back via Souk-el-Arba-du-Rharb, through the planes and racing a speeding train. The roads were biking bliss, and the scenery was beautiful, lush, green farmland with mountains as the backdrop. We sampled Moroccan take on the motorway, took the ferry back to Algeciras and rode up to Granada, where a tourist guide showed us to a hotel. We ate dinner under the Cathedral. Three courses with a bottle of local Rioja for 50 Euros! Followed by a few beers, shots of Rum and a Table Football competition with some locals.
Day 6: A late start. Up to Benidorm to visit friends with an Apartment overlooking the beach. The development of Villas and Apartments all along the Spanish coast is phenomenal. We then hacked up to Barcelona and booked into a hotel on the outskirts of the city just after midnight.
Day 7: Took the road towards Ropoll, then Bourg-Madame and into the Pyrenees for the day. The Roads were biking Nirvana. The hairpins and constant radius curves went on and on all day long. My best mate got his pegs down and I got my Knees down. Rode through Andorra through the snow, into France, through cravasses, alongside rivers and railway lines. To Carcassone and cross country to Millau. Staying the night in the town that gives its name to the worlds tallest Viaduct, which looks amazing lit up at night.
Day 8: Up the Autoroute via Clermont-Ferrano to Paris. We became split up around the Peripherique, and discovered there are two routes to Calais that are just as quick as each other. Before getting on the Train back under the Channel to England and riding home to complete the journey of a lifetime.