Working East past Agouti and then North towards La Cathedrale provided a complete departure from the Morocco I had already experienced. The comparison with Nepal is fair. The scenery changes quite drastically from deep gorges cut by rivers to rocky roads and high alpine views. At times the road took me up to the snow line. It was everything that I had hoped for. The valleys are green, well cultivated, carefully irrigated and planned. Spring flowers were in abundance everywhere. I felt lucky to have the opportunity to travel through an area that had seen such little change for centuries. It felt like travelling back in time. Once cut off by snow for much of the year the area is now readily accessible by road. Pylons follow its course powering schools, businesses and satellite TVs. The outside world is moving in, building second homes and bringing change..

Continuing along the R302 to its most Southern point I then had to head a little North and climb towards the junction that led to Azilal. Following the twisting loops I set up camp with a panoramic view of the snow capped massif.