Morocco Trip, advice needed!

[Tyddewi]

Planning to visit next year, K1300s, Hyabusa x2.

How far south into Morocco is it feasible/ safe to go on the above bikes? as they are not off road biased.(Dont want gravel roads)

Where, approx, do tarmacadam roads end in the South, will petrol be readily available.

Ferry cost Spain/Morocco return is, how much?

Any information much appreciated

regards

 

[Fanum]

Planning to visit next year, K1300s, Hyabusa x2.

How far south into Morocco is it feasible/ safe to go on the above bikes? as they are not off road biased.(Dont want gravel roads)

You could go all the way to the Western Sahara border with Mauritania down the west coast route if you wanted to, but it's flat, boring and not worth it unless you are heading further and want to actually cross the Sahara.

Otherwise, you can get as far south as M'Hamid, about 80 miles south of Zagora before the tarmac runs out, though again, I'd say it wasn't worth going past Zagora on that route.

Where, approx, do tarmacadam roads end in the South, will petrol be readily available.

Petrol is readily available, but you should fill up at every opportunity when you find Unleaded, as this can be unavailable in some fairly large towns.
You may have to risk running on a gallon or two of leaded to make it to the next available unleaded if you get it wrong.
Take a bottle of lead additive in case.

Ferry cost Spain/Morocco return is, how much?

Varies widely depending on time of year and the offer that the particular agent you're standing in front of has at the time.....but between £80 and £140 return.
Tarifa- Tangiers can be cheaper for bikes but shop around....don't bother with any of the hundreds of roadside ticket sellers in petrol stations and so on from Granada onwards....you'll always find a cheaper ticket in the port area...go from one to the next to the next with your ever-decreasing quote until three in a row can't match it

 

[Dave Ett]

You can ride down to Taouz where the tarmac really does stop in the middle of the village!

Petrol is everywhere now, but as Fanum says, fill up when you get below half a tank as sometimes places have run out, or as we found, there's a power cut affecting huge areas.

We saw loads of road only bikes there, so don't worry about not having knobbly tyres on. Maybe you could ride to Ouzazate and hire an off roader there for a day or two to complete the Moroccan riding experience!

As for Ferry tickets, we used the one suggested by Chris Scott:

http://www.viajesnormandie.net/situacion-agencia-viajes-algeciras.htm

Touts and shops by the terminal were asking 130 Euros for an open return from Spain to Ceuta where these guys charged 90.

 

[Tim Cullis]

So long as you're not wanting to play in the rough stuff, "any bike, any tyres, any luggage" is my answer to the three most common questions on Morocco.

My first trip in the 1970s was on a TriBSA cafe racer with clip-ons, rear sets and a RRT2 close ratio gearbox.

Morocco is a popular venue with Harley groups, Gold Wing convoys and the like. Generally speaking the roads are excellent (at least, compared to East Sussex). However with the bikes you are riding you'll need to be very careful with the throttle as there are many speed traps especially in the north.

The country phased out leaded petrol in April 2009 and unleaded is widely available.

Viajes Normandie is run by 'Carlos' who organises most of the winter motorhome traffic across the Straits of Gibraltar.

 

[Steptoe]

Fantastic roads for any bikes - The roads up the dades and todra gorges are even tarmac.
I prefer riding the roads in morocco to going off road.
All the offroad and piste is a load of romantic old bollox You can ride up to the dunes at Erg chebbi on road tyres.

Some roads in the deep south along the coast maybe seem boring, but with desert on one side and the atlantic on the other when your siting back in work you'll realise it wasn't.

 

[richdale7]

You can ride down to Taouz where the tarmac really does stop in the middle of the village!

 

[JackoUK]

Tribsa

So long as you're not wanting to play in the rough stuff, "any bike, any tyres, any luggage" is my answer to the three most common questions on Morocco.

My first trip in the 1970s was on a TriBSA cafe racer with clip-ons, rear sets and a RRT2 close ratio gearbox.

Morocco is a popular venue with Harley groups, Gold Wing convoys and the like. Generally speaking the roads are excellent (at least, compared to East Sussex). However with the bikes you are riding you'll need to be very careful with the throttle as there are many speed traps especially in the north.

The country phased out leaded petrol in April 2009 and unleaded is widely available.
Normandie is run by 'Carlos' who organises most of the winter motorhome traffic across the Straits of Gibraltar.

Just read this, and the mention of your Tribsa reminded me of mine, also early 70's As described, even to the RRT2 gearbox. Originally re- built by my brother, it was a cool machine for a young guy!
I was escorted by a fleet of police riders when in Morocco, and the captain on the lead bike was riding a Police Goldwing. He maintained THAT was the best bike for his country. Anything will do, just GO!

 

[Tim Cullis]

Some pics of the TriBSA in action at the end of this thread.

The most impressive group of bikes in Morocco is the Snowdrops, the group of a dozen white GoldWings that ride interference for the King's convoy.

 

[Fanum]

The most impressive group of bikes in Morocco is the Snowdrops, the group of a dozen white GoldWings that ride interference for the King's convoy.

'Impressive' is one word for it......Gun toting bullies is how I thought of them when we were driven off the road by them

The 'K' bikes came through first, then the 4x4s, the fire engine, half a dozen paramedic units, then the Goldwings, then a dozen blacked out limo 4x4s, then the mirror image of the ones in front but driving behind.......It wasn't even King Mo's group, it was some minister or other

Every other lamp post for ten miles in each direction of the towns, regardless of the routes, manned by alternate police and army guys.

 

[Steptoe]

'Impressive' is one word for it......Gun toting bullies is how I thought of them when we were driven off the road by them

The 'K' bikes came through first, then the 4x4s, the fire engine, half a dozen paramedic units, then the Goldwings, then a dozen blacked out limo 4x4s, then the mirror image of the ones in front but driving behind.......It wasn't even King Mo's group, it was some minister or other

Every other lamp post for ten miles in each direction of the towns, regardless of the routes, manned by alternate police and army guys.

So, no chance of an eco warrior poking his wife in the eye with a sharp stick through the car window............