Rock climbing in Morocco
For guided or instructed climbing holidays in Morocco we recommend our friends at Rock & Sun.
Map of the main rock climbing areas in Morocco
Rock climbing in the Taghia Gorge
The Taghia Gorge is situated in the High Atlas Mountains, and provides the best big wall climbing in Morocco with routes up to 800m long. The small village of Taghia is at 1900m and is surrounded by overhanging red limestone walls and peaks up to 3000m high. However Taghia village is remote with no tarmac road for access and therefore it requires at least a 4x4 vehicle to gain access to the valley, a truly adventurous experience.
There are currently over 100 routes developed at Taghia Gorge with the grades generally starting at F6b and the vast majority over F6c. There is fixed protection though it is advisable to bring additional traditional gear such as cams and nuts. The best time to visit the Taghia Gorge is from early April to the end of October though it can get hot in the summer, with the closest airport being Marrakech.
Rock Climbing in the Todra Gorge
The Todra Gorge is situated in the High Atlas Mountains. The scenery is spectacular with high limestone cliffs that have attracted climbers from all over the World since the 1960’s. There is a great variety of climbing to be found in the Todra Gorge from single-pitch roadside sport routes to long multi-pitch adventures that combine trad and fixed gear. There are brilliant easy routes, epic long adventures, and hard overhanging routes.
Todra is one of Morocco’s largest and well developed climbing areas with over 450 routes across a wide range of grades that are easy to reach on foot. There are over 120 routes up to F5a, over 210 routes between F6a and F6c+, plus more than 120 routes at F7a and above. The quality and variety of the limestone rock is excellent, and the vast majority of the routes are bolted.
It is possible to climb throughout the year as there is climbing on both sides of the gorge so either the sun or shade can always be found, though it does get very hot in the summer. However the best time to visit both the Todra Gorge for climbing is in the spring and autumn with February to late May, and September to November being especially good. The closest airport is Marrakech.
The Todra Gorge rock climbing guidebook describes over 450 routes from F4 to F8, and is the most up to date guidebook currently available for the Todra Gorge. Buy the Todra Gorge rock climbing guidebook from our shop.
Rock Climbing at Tafraoute
Situated around 125km southeast of Agadir, Tafraoute is located in the Moroccan Anti-Atlas Mountains range. Around Tafraoute the Jebel el Kest massif provide some excellent adventurous, traditional rock climbing with miles of superb solid quartzite and granite rock to choose from. There is also a wide variety of climbing from bouldering, and single pitch roadside crags to long multi-pitch routes (up to 800m long) on big walls, high ridges and summits. However this beautiful and rugged mountain terrain is surprisingly quick and easy to access; with many of the crags within a twenty minute walk from the road.
The area is vast and there are still excellent opportunities for developing new routes and exploring. The climbing ethics is traditional, which requires the placing of cams and nuts for protection. There is a wide range of grades to choose from particularly in the lower to mid-grade range. Just outside of Tafraoute there are many granite boulders, providing an enormous amount of excellent bouldering, along with some sport climbing on the granite outcrops.
The photograph above shows Dan Donovan climbing Hammer Finger (E5 6a) in the Samazar Valley of the Jebel el Kest Massif.
Tafraoute rock climbing logistics and Beta
The best time to climb at Tafraoute is from late September through the winter to mid-April, though the best two months are October and March. November to December is the “wet” season and the summer is just too hot. Therefore Tafraoute provides an excellent alternative winter sun rock climbing holiday along with the enchanting Moroccan culture. With regards to flights, Agadir has many connections to all over Europe and then hire a car to Tafraoute.
There are a number of very comprehensive rock climbing guidebooks available for Tafraout and the Anti-Atlas area. The Climb Tafraout: Moroccan Anti-Atlas rock climbing guidebook is the most comprehensive guidebook describing more than 1,900 mainly trad routes ranging from single pitch roadside crags to long multi-pitch big wall routes, from moderate through to E6. Buy the Climb Tafraout: Moroccan Anti-Atlas rock climbing guidebook from our shop.
The Morocco Rock Guidebook – Anti-Atlas Mountains describes 1,700 trad routes ranging from single pitch roadside crags to long multi-pitch big wall routes. The guidebook covers over 100 crags with routes across a wide range of grades. Buy the Morocco Rock Guidebook – Anti-Atlas Mountains from our shop.
There are also a couple of selective climbing guidebooks for Tafraoute. Tafraout Granite describes 250 routes on the superb granite domes and crags within 7km of Tafraout. Climb Tafraout – 100 Classic Climbs Guidebook focuses on the longer, multi-pitch routes, aimed at climbers who seek a reliably good quality mountain day, with routes from Diff to E2. Buy these rock climbing guidebooks for Tafraoute from our shop.