UKH

Hi All

What's currently the best/most up to date guidebook for climbing in the Tafroute area of Morocco? 

Thanks

Will

In reply to Will_Thomas_Harris:

IMO, the Steve Broadbent/Oxford Alpine Club guide is best. But, if your partner gets the Emma Alsford and co. one too, then you'll get the best of both worlds. Some routes are in the latter but not the former; some in the former and not the latter. But, I think the Broadbent is generally a little bit more detailed and accurate in terms of route descriptions.

It's a wonderful place... gorgeous. Especially further north toward Afantizar/Samizar valleys. Enjoy!

In reply to Will_Thomas_Harris:

Just to be contrary I'll say the opposite that I think the Alsford/Donnithorne guide is better. I think the topos are clearer, and the broadbent one has a tendency to give 3 stars to average routes that he did the first ascent of.

In reply to Will_Thomas_Harris:

We had both on a recent trip. They complement each other but I wouldn't say one is better than the other. I would say worth the investment of getting both.

In reply to Robert Durran:

Agreed: it's worth having both.

In reply to Robert Durran:

How was your trip, Robert? I know you were sceptical about Morocco before.

In reply to Will_Thomas_Harris:

Supposed to be a new edition of the Broadbent guide this year.

I've only used the Broadbent guide. The classics select guide was quite handy for more detailed topos of some routes (and lighter to carry). 

In reply to Robert Durran:

I thought one guide had a much more attractive layout/presentation than the other. Guessing it was the Alsford one, though not got them to hand at the moment. Picked it up at Muhammed's carpet shop in Tafroute at the end of the trip; he had multiple copies of both guides. Don't remember there being a huge difference in route selection.

In reply to mike barnard:

I don't have either to hand, but you may be right about one being more attractive. John brought one and I bought the other there at least partly because it had some good looking crags not in the other one - I know we made use of that at least once. Maximising options just seemed to make sense for a longish (and hopefully future!) trips.

In reply to Will_Thomas_Harris:

sent you a PM

In reply to El Greyo:

Well remembered! Yes, I went there for a week in 2003 before there was any guidebook, few routes and extremely limited shady options. So we struggled with the heat (though we did one good new route on The Thumb). We also got completely fed up with the hassle we got all the time from people trying to sell us stuff in Tafraoute, so not a very enjoyable trip. The same year I went to Wadi Rum for the first time, fell in love with the place and just kept going back. A few friends who went over the years weren't overly enthused with the climbing, so I was never tempted again until last November when it seemed the obvious alternative after Easyjet cancelled our flights to Jordan. We had a great time! Firstly it had become a far nicer place to be, with great places to stay and an almost complete absence of hassle - wonderfully laid back and friendly in fact. Seemingly limitless user-friendly crags of all sizes with shortish approaches and loads of shady options in beautiful surroundings, and climbers thinly enough spread that we hardly ever shared a crag with anyone else. And, of course, refreshingly totally bolt free UK-style climbing! I would still maintain that the quartzite tends to be a bit samey and pitch for pitch is maybe not world class with many routes overstarred (though there are, of course, plenty of very fine ones), but I don't think there can be anywhere else quite like it for packing in loads of enjoyable and convenient "proper" trad climbing with almost guaranteed sunshine and a holiday feel. I am now a convert and would definitely go back! 

In reply to Robert Durran:

Re: shade/hospitality

I think Tafraoute has a different vibe to many other places due to being touristy, and a lot of the crags there face south. But, further north, things were peaceful, the people were lovely and very kind and welcoming, and there are many north- and east-facing crags.

Re: quality of climbing/quartzite, etc.

On big routes, there were definitely some less good pitches, but having repeatedly tried to convince a friend of the quality of climbing on offer, here are just a few almost random climbs with a real line off the top of my head:

Reach for the Stars, E3 5c: 40m vertical handcrack.

Poet's Corner, E1 5b: 50m excellent bridging up a huge corner.

Marrakesh Express, E1 5b: climbing up a distinctive rib via slabs and cracks.

Scimitar Ridge, VS 5a: a gradually steepening 300m ridge line with a funky pitch through a roof and a fantastic arete on the penultimate/final pitch.

Spitfire Tongue, E2 5b: up a distinctive corner crack and then the wall above.

Sahara, VS 4b, and Jedi Grooves, HVS 5b: lovely open face climbing up a pillar, then two pitches up an exposed, narrow ramp/groove system.

Brisingr, HVS 5b: an intro pitch and short wall lead to a fantastic 40m pitch up a technical bridging corner, before an exposed groove pitch.

There were other great pitches that I did over two shortish trips, but many, many more striking lines that I looked at with longing and didn't get done: cracks, aretes, corners, slabs. On the first trip I was there with people climbing harder, and remember looking over to them climbing E3 - E4s in outrageous positions.

I did do some overrated pitches... including one that got 3 stars but was dirty, loose, poorly protected and uneven in difficulty. But, I felt I got a three-star route done every day of my last trip, and when I came back to the UK I felt disappointed for a while by the comparison.

In reply to Will_Thomas_Harris:

I really like the place for some quality winter sun trad climbing - am going back for the 3rd time in November with some friends.  I also agree with Robert that Tafroute itself seems to have got more chilled for visitors over the years since I first went 10 years ago (unlike some of the bigger Moroccan cities where the level of hassle and hawking can be very aggravating).

I enquired about guides with Climb Tafroute recently and got a response from Steve saying that they hope to have the new Anti Atlas and Tafroute Granite guides "published around August or September this year".  So could be a good option for those that already have the Alsford/Donnithorne version within the group.

Cheers         

In reply to Will_Thomas_Harris:

C Witter is correct in saying the Steve Broadbent/Oxford Alpine Club guide is slightly more accurate. We visited with both guidebooks recently and ended up trusting that one. Worth having both if possible though, one thing to note is that the Alsford/Donnithorne book tends to have longer pitches and also has some useful walk suggestions. We visited this gorge at Anzgarne - https://maps.app.goo.gl/Nkw3HnnCDvsQyXiE7 which was beautiful but we had to turn around due to dense brambles.

In reply to Robert Durran:

Good!

I had a very similar experience, finding the locals relaxed and friendly in a very unassuming and non-imposing way. We met a quite a few on the way to and from crags and the hospitality reminded me of Jordan.

I guess quality, or enjoyability, of climbing is always going to be personal preference. I liked the relatively few routes we did (we were hampered by weather) and would definitely like to explore more.