Imsouane: the longest wave on the coast, one hour north
Fifty-odd kilometres up the coast, a fishing village sits on a headland with a bay on one side and a reef on the other. On the right swell, the bay produces a right-hander that runs for several hundred metres, long enough to make your legs shake. People come from Lisbon for it. You can come for lunch.
- 55 kmnorth of Taghazout
- 1 hby car along the N1
- 300–900 mthe ride, depending on who is bragging
- Mid–highthe tide the Bay likes
The village
Imsouane is a working harbour first: blue boats hauled up the slipway, nets, a fish market at noon, cats. The village climbs the headland above it, and in the last fifteen years surf houses, a few cafés and a yoga shala have grown among the fishermen’s houses. It is smaller and rougher than Taghazout, and it has kept more of its silence. The drive from the villages is about an hour along the N1 north, with the ocean on your left most of the way, the Timlaline dunes, the banana stalls of Tamri and the lighthouse of Cap Ghir in passing.
The two waves
The Bay is the famous one. On a medium north-west swell with a mid to high tide, a right peels from the point at the top of the bay all the way to the harbour, a ride guides measure at anything from 300 to 900 metres depending on the day and who is bragging; on a good day it is one of the longest rides in Africa. It is also forgiving: slow, fat, easy to paddle for, with an inside section where beginners catch their first green waves while longboarders cruise past. The walk back along the beach is part of the ritual. Cathedral Point, on the other side of the headland, is a faster, hollower right over rock, for intermediates and up, best at mid tide.
People come from Lisbon for it. You can come for lunch.
When to go
The Bay needs swell, which means autumn to spring; in summer it is often flat or tiny, perfect for a first wave but not for the long ride. Check the forecast the evening before: a swell of 1.5 to 2.5 metres from the north-west, light easterly wind, and a tide rising toward high around midday is the dream. The line-up is crowded when it is good; go early, be polite, and let the locals have the set waves.
The day
Leave the house at eight with boards on the roof, coffee at Tamri, in the water by ten. Lunch is grilled sardines or a fish tagine at one of the cafés above the harbour, where the catch comes straight from the boats below. An afternoon session or a walk to the headland for the view, then the drive back with the sun going down over the ocean on your right. If you prefer not to drive, we arrange the day with a driver; if you would rather drive, our Coast Drive plan comes with a Renault Clio 5 for the whole stay, so you can go north the morning the swell is right.
The practical part
Before you go
- Getting there
- About 55 km north of Taghazout on the N1, 1 hour by car from Moonlight, 1 h 10 from Blue Whale. A hire car with roof straps from Hilal Luxury Cars, or a day with our driver. No bus of any use.
- When
- October to April for the Bay; mid to high tide; early morning for space in the water.
- Budget
- Fish lunch 60 to 100 MAD, board hire in the village 80 to 120 a day, parking a few dirhams to the attendant.
