Paradise Valley: palm gorges and natural pools an hour inland

Paradise Valley is the gorge of the Tamraght river, upstream of the village, in the foothills of the High Atlas where the Ida Outanane tribe lives. The gorge begins about ten kilometres east of Aourir; the walking trail that leads down to the best pools starts some 28 km up the road, and twenty kilometres of winding mountain road further on sits Immouzer, a small market town with a Thursday souk and a famous honey. The whole valley is a rare thing on this dry coast: running water, deep shade, palms, oleander and fig trees, and rock that goes from pink to gold as the day moves.

The pools are the reason most people come. The river cuts into the limestone and stops in basins, some knee-deep and warm, some deep enough to jump into from the rocks. When they are full, in late winter and spring after the rains, they are as beautiful as anywhere in Morocco. In a dry autumn they shrink, and some years the famous waterfall at Immouzer is reduced to a trickle by drought and the irrigation channels above it, so we tell you honestly what the valley looks like the week you are here.

• 9:00 Pick-up at the house. The road leaves the coast at Aourir, climbs through banana plantations and argan forest, and passes several argan cooperatives where women crack the nuts by hand. Stopping at one on the way back is worth it.
• 10:00 The upper car park and the start of the path. The walk down is about 2.7 km, stony but easy, forty minutes at a wander. Water shoes or sandals with a strap are useful for the pools.
• 11:00 The pools. Swim, jump if the guide says the water is deep enough, read, nap in the shade. The water is cold in spring and perfect in June.
• 13:00 Lunch at one of the small cafés in the valley: tagine, salad, mint tea, with your feet near the river.
• 15:00 Walk back up, a stop at a cooperative or at a viewpoint on the gorge, and back on the coast for the sunset.

Good to know

Never camp or linger in the river bed after heavy rain in the mountains: the valley is prone to flash floods. Bring sun cream, a hat, two litres of water, cash for lunch, and a bag for your rubbish; the valley is cleaner than it was and we want to keep it that way. If you have a car from Hilal Luxury Cars, the same drive on your own takes about 45 minutes from Tamraght; a high car such as the Kardian is more comfortable on the last stretch.

Switch on the Paradise Valley trip in the builder: 280 MAD per person with the transport from your house and a guide who knows which pools are full this week. Lunch is paid on the spot, around 80 to 120 MAD. The trip is part of our Yoga Flow, Work & Waves and Dunes & Valleys plans.