Part III - Morocco : Heading into remote areas of the Sahara Desert with the Berber Tribe & their Camels

Day 4 - Heading into the Wild Sahara

I met up with my group at a motel on the outskirts of Mhamid. I usually don’t like to travel in groups, but this time I had no choice since there was a minimum requirement of five people to organize the trip. Moreover, the guide would take us into remote areas of the desert that not many tourists venture into. These places were far away from civilisation. Basically a no man's land, so it was hard to say no. Luckily, I ended up with a group of American guys. They fit the description of the “Hangover” gang, and one of them, Mike, was a doppelgänger for Zach Galifianakis. He looked exactly like him. We quickly broke the ice and got along well immediately. Their sense of humor was on another level, and it took me a while to get used to it.

Start of our adventure into the desert

Our Camels feasting on the nearby shrubs

 After about an hour, we stopped for lunch at a small tent, which turned out to be the home of one of our camel herders. Since I’m a vegetarian, I was served cooked vegetables with some oranges, while the others had “Berber pizza,” a traditional Moroccan pie made with eggs, meat, and legumes. I genuinely felt like I was eating something healthy for the first time in a while. However, there were tons of houseflies around the food. That didn’t bother me too much, but I had never seen so many flies in one place—just part of the desert life.

Later, our guide, Brahim, gave us a quick briefing on the next three days and the “Do’s and Don’ts” in the desert. After the debrief, we explored the nearby sand dunes and got some rest before heading out again in the evening when the temperature was more tolerable

Drive from Mhamid to our pick up point

The first sand dune that we climbed

 We reached our next stop before sunset, and the desert here was absolutely stunning. The sand dunes were hypnotic, and I couldn’t take my eyes off them.The twilight colors of the sunset sky added another layer to the magic.

Magical dusk hours in the desert

Me and John riding the camels with the sun setting in the background

After absorbing all the allure, it was time for dinner. We saw the herders digging a hole in the sand and burning some wood nearby. It took a while to realize that it was part of the dinner prep. They were making "sand bread"—Berber style. The wheat dough is buried underneath the desert sand, and then burnt wood is added on top to cook the bread. The end result is freshly baked bread with a crunchy texture. This works only in desert sand. The same wouldn’t be possible with beach sand, as the grains are coarser.

Our guide, Brahim, being a skilled storyteller, we were all asking him for a story before going to bed—like kids asking their mother. When Brahim speaks, he takes you into his own world, provided you pay genuine attention and interest. That night, he narrated a famous local folklore about "The White Camel & the Old Tribesman." It was a long story, but the moral was that old people are important to society, and their opinions matter. Their life experience is invaluable.

Our campsite for the night

Our cook preparing the sand bread dough

Our cook covering the dough (buried in desert sand) with charcoal

Day 5

I woke up the next day before everyone else and commenced the morning routine. It struck me that there was no toilet, obviously. Going far beyond a few dunes was the only way to get privacy. I had to dig a hole in the sand and then bury my shit. It was a strange experience indeed. Additionally, there’s no such thing as "taking a shower" in the middle of the desert. Antibacterial wipes were the only practical way.

The Berbers prepared the camels, breakfast was done, and we were off again to our next destination, which was another set of dunes claimed to be more charming than the ones we had already seen.

Sunrise in the Sahara

Our tent for the afternoon halt

Waves of Dunes and dry shrubs of the desert

Mystical aura of the desert during sunrise

The landscape changed dramatically throughout our route. The dunes were replaced by flat, arid land with thorny vegetation. It was a tiring walk for all of us, including the camels. We camped under a tree for lunch before continuing the journey. We finally reached just before sunset, and my guide was right. These dunes had a different characteristic and were peculiar in appearance.

Walking in no man's land

Desert vegetation

The spot where we camped for lunch (under the tree)

As soon as we reached, we gulped some water and started climbing these dunes. We were running around in the sand like toddlers. The desert turned us all into kids again. It was a special feeling to be amidst one of the most inhospitable areas on planet Earth.

From the dunes, I could see one of the herders running towards something. I realized he was chasing one of our camels, which had wandered off far away, probably following the scent of a female. Even with its legs tied, it ran faster than the herder, who couldn’t manage to get a hold of it. It was quite hilarious to watch.

A Gerbil hole ( A kind of desert rodent)

Dune climbing

Our basecamp in the desert for the night

Gorgeous sunset giving reddish appearance to the dunes

We were picked up by an old, dodgy van and driven to the starting point where our guide and camels were waiting. As soon as I saw the camels, it truly hit me that we were heading into the Sahara.

The assistants packed all our luggage on the camels, and we were off. Riding a camel isn’t the most comfortable experience, but once you get used to it, it’s pure bliss. Not sure if it was the same for the camels since it was mating season. One camel in particular, who was supposed to be with the ladies, wasn’t thrilled about carrying random dudes on his back. The males have a gland on the side of their mouths that produces a weird sound to communicate with the females. This organ would come out of their mouth and looked like a small balloon. The poor guy kept producing loud mating calls. Also, their stench and constant drooling aren’t for everyone, but I was okay with it. That being said, one must remain cautious, as camels can give a nasty bite if they get irritated.