Day 13 - Morocco, Bush Camp - Snow!
Trip Start
Nov 09, 2008
1
12
164
Trip End
Jul 02, 2009
Rabat, Morocco
Friday, November 21, 2008
Long drive ahead so left site at 9:00 and headed to supermarket so cook groups 2 and 3 could grab food and others restock personal goodie bags. As we're heading up into the Atlas Mountains where temperatures drop below zero I invested in a lovely full length traditional Jelaba. Ugly as frig but warm as hell. Oliver on the other hand got a pair of push up bars, as you do.
Now on the truck driving, hoping to get to bush camp before night fall. Everyone is either reading or sleeping. Kristy and Muz are up on the beach soaking in some rays. I, as always, are tapping away at the keyboard.
Continued..
Time to freeze
. (written after lunch) Stopped for lunch at a servo around 12.30. Pasta, salad, rice, rolls - once again not starving. Yay cook group over for another week, so glad we don't have to do it in the cold. Oliver's foot has blown up so were quite lucky in being able to obtain him some ice from the shop. Once again not sure what's wrong just all swollen and sore. Right pain as we are currently driving to a gorge which is meant to be beautiful for trekking. He won't be a happy lad having to stay behind with his foot up.
After lunch it was back on the truck this time passing through dry barren rocky land with some parts covered in SNOW! I thought we were in Africa - it doesn't snow in Africa!! Lucky I bought my Jelaba as I have a feeling it's going to be a cold few days.
Continued.... (written next day)
Oh my goodness never before have I been so cold. Not even in Everest . Probably because there we had the proper clothing... unlike here. My Jelaba was a god send, if I hadn't of had that I fear I would have been crying icicles.
Getting off the main road and onto rocky terrain we drove past a lake and behind a rocky hill before stopping to set up camp
Time to freeze
. It was only 16:00 the sun was sinking fast and already bitterly cold. We set up tents and gathered firewood before raiding our packs for as many layers of clothing as possible. Socks, leggings, trousers, jeans, thermals, singlets, long sleep tops, jumpers and jackets - it was all going on, except the Jelaba which I was saving to bedtime. Once again within no time at all we were greeted by a local shepherd who started to clear rocks for us in order to make a fire. Cook group started prepping for dinner... really didn't envy them. The rest of us stood by the fire trying to keep warm.
The shepherd man stayed with us throughout the evening building the fire bigger and bigger and getting shouted cans of larger and our wintery meal of veggie chili concarne with rice. Just what the Dr ordered. Two more locals joined during the evening and stayed for about an hr or so. At 21:00 we called it a night going first for a loo stop which was just plain painful. Thank god for sheewee's.
Crawling into our tents you had to basically crack open the fly as it was just caked in ice. Pulling on my Jelaba, sleeping sheet and zipping totally up inside my sleeping bag, face and all, I would like to say I was snug as a bug but still I had goosebumps and couldn't get warm. It stayed that way for the rest of the night... needless to say I didn't get much sleep, if any at all.
