The walls of Todra Gorge are in some places a thousand feet high. It’s, er, well… gorgeous.

We arrived in the evening and spent the night in a small hotel called Dar Ayour, located in a small settlement at the beginning of the gorge, right on the edge of the Todra River. It is an extremely modest establishment of some charm. However, although they had confirmed a particular room for us, by the time we arrived they had given that room to someone else. The two rooms that remained for us to choose between were poor and poorer. This was without doubt our worst night in Morocco (or maybe anywhere), and though our guide Hicham and also Youssef from Morocco Expert Tours tried to intervene, and although the people at the hotel were very apologetic, nothing could be done at that point. Alas.

On the other hand, oddly enough, the dinner at this hotel was delicious!

Early in the morning, we were up and out. Hicham drove us to a narrow spot in the gorge, where we could enjoy a half-hour’s walk. There was one lodging picturesquely located right in the canyon; we yearned to have stayed there, but we were told that it is a hostel with no private bathrooms. Ah, to be young!

Dan and I were walking so early that the souvenir vendors were just setting up. The place was peaceful, serene, cool. I can imagine that the experience of this gorge might be quite otherwise once the tour buses start arriving.