series , a zillion miles old but in good condition , would march at their pace , while one Land Cruiser would follow them at distance as a support vehicle .
It took a while to get out of the Marrakech traffic and take the road RN9 , running quick southwest . After Tamaguert it started climbing , wrapping around the mountain side with an endless succession of hairpin turns . Although we were forced by severe weather to avoid the off-road track , our two-wheeled time machines brought us through villages populated by men in djellaba ( the typical Berber hooded cape ) transporting everything on their donkey , and women workshops for the extraction of argan oil . Along the roadside , barbecues were starting for lunchtime while vendors in panoramic spots tried to sell bunches of amethyst and trilobite fossils . The road leading to Tizi ‘ n Tichka was a funny mix of straights and wide hairpin bends on which we swaggered with a breezy pace , enjoying the ride like on a merry-goround . Once we crossed the pass , it was immediately apparent why this mountain range takes its name from the Titan carrying on his shoulder the weight of the entire celestial vault . The red rock topped by snow peaks truly suggests the muscles of Atlas , strained in the effort to sustain that cobalt blue sky which , in turn , inflamed the colours of earth .
Riding along the Oued Dades , then along the M ’ Goun river , we entered again the Atlas Range , scattered with small , planted parcels breaking the rocks ’ bright ochre . Asphalt started to vanish from the twisty road , finally disappearing . The dense light rain enwrapped the landscape , surrounding it like a precious jewel , while gravel became a traitorous companion making wheels slip on bigger stones and sink in the mud . Someone falls , we helped each other and divided into two groups , getting back together later in a gorge excavated by a river which was a track of the old Paris Dakar . In the whole area , together with three Spaniards riding small bikes , the real heroes of the day , we only met some women washing clothes at the river , few curious children playing in the road and men on a donkey ; proud like a prince on his purebred , gentle but shy and strongly opposed to be photographed .
Many people in inner mountain range don ’ t speak French neither Arab ; they only speak Tamazigh , their native language . Berber are the main ethnic group in Morocco , which usually we consider an Arab Country . They were so defined by Arabs after their conquer in the 7th Century , forcing Islamisation of local people who never liked this term so much ; Berber is in fact an Arab word meaning barbarian , used in a scornful tone . They prefer to name themselves Imazighen , Free Men ,
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