Start at CASABLANCA End at BEN GUERRIR
Day dist: 175.36 kms
Avg Temperature: 33 C
I was up at 7:30 and hit the road at 8:15. It was overcast and the thought of rain crossed my mind. This would make everything more difficult, including the fact that I do not have any rain gear w/ me. I had to ask several times how to get to the highway which turned out to be a good 9 kms from where I started. There was heavy morning traffic and I was moving slowly and it took a lot longer to get there. Once there, however, I started riding at a descent speed.
Everybody that I had asked the day before had told me that there is only one road to Marrakech. So I found it and it was a modern highway with two lanes and a service road in each direction. I started biking and everything seemed fine. At 47 kms from my starting point I stopped at a gas station to refuel and take a rest. It was a modern gas station with all the facilities. There were trees and grass to decorate it. At the exhortation of the people that worked there, which were very nice to me, I took a nap on the grass for about half an hour. Refreshed I hit the road and 5 kms later the highway police stopped me and, I must say, in a very polite way told me that bicycles are prohibited on the highway. The instruction was to get off at the next exit, which was to the city called Settat and take the local road which is called “route nationale”
I followed the instructions and got off at the next exit and following the directions that the toll booth employees gave me I found myself on N9. Before leaving A7, however, I took a picture to show you how the highway looks like
This move added another 70 kms to my trip, on the one hand, but made the ride a lot more pleasant, on the other. The new road is much more scenic and goes through towns so one can see how the locals live.
Soon I entered the town of Settat. Settat is very beautiful with a different kind of beauty that I am used to.
Town center
View of the town
Impressed from the town as I was exiting I realized that I would not be hitting another town for a while and maybe this was a good time to find my desired fruit, watermelon. I was already at the town’s outskirts and the only person around to ask was a lady that was walking by. She was wearing the traditional garb (not the veil but her head was covered.) In general I am hesitant asking info from ladies on the street, it is like looking for trouble. This time, however, I had no choice. She was very pleasant and talkative and walked me for about half a km to show me how to go to the greengrocer. I did find the place and repeated the feat of 2004 where I was biking in Southern Italy w/ JT and gorged an 11 kilo watermelon on the spot. The proof is in the putting.
I biked on and at 100 kms I stopped and took a nap at the side of the road.
When I got up to hit the road again it was 18:35. I kept biking and the looking at the beautiful scenery
Sheep grazing
Farmers thrashing, using their donkeys
scenery
The dark was soon to come and I had to decide what to do with sleeping tonight. As I was thinking about what to do I saw a gas station that looked like it was a makeshift hotel too. To my disappointment this was not the case and I was told that the only place where I could find a place to crash was Ben Guerrir at 30 kms. I had 150 miles under my belt already and I was tired and could feel it. Nonetheless, it is what it is and I had two options. One option was to camp out in the countryside, which would help me test my untested gear, and the other was to bike to Ben Guerrir, which was also appealing. Biking to Ben Guerrir meant that I would have to bike at night, a total of 180 kms in one day, a thing that I’ve never done before. My personal record is 148 kms. I opted to bike to Ben Guerrir and camp out a couple of miles bf I got there. In this fashion I would satisfy both options. So, I biked on. Amazingly, was my energy renewed and my riding became as vigorous as it is at the start of the day. I was biking fast and with determination. As the old saying goes ανάγκα και θεοί πείθονται (even the gods will submit when need calls it!!) The night fell, and for the first time in my career I took out the two flashlights that I carry with me, one that is red and blinks to hang in the rear side and be seen by the oncoming traffic, and the other to shed light on the road ahead of me. Despite the moonlight, the front flashlight was not enough for me to see the potholes. I now know I need to get a better one. The good thing was that the traffic was scant and whenever a car approached from behind I was already aware of it long before it was near and took the appropriate measures.
About 5 km before Ben Guerrir I hit a police block for, I suppose, cars. I stopped and talked to them and they did not seem to mind that I was riding a hardly illuminated bike. Everybody was curious to know where I come from and when I answered all their questions, they gave me info as to where to find the only hotel in town. I followed their instructions and ended spending the night in one of the worst dumps that I’ve ever slept in my career. But as they say, something is better than nothing!!!!
Good night.
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