Arriving at the agreed rendezvous point, we met the third hiker of our party, Mikka, and the taxi driver who would take us up to Imlil to meet our guides.
An hour or so up the road brought us to Imlil, where we met Matt and Helen, our guides during the trip. The snow had been particularly heavy, so our route had changed. We were going to spend the night in Imlil, having a 5 hour 'warm-up' walk instead, and then leave from Imlil the following day to hike up to the Toubkal refuge. We dumped packs and got ready to set forth. Helen checking that we had everything in the right place!
We'd hoped Mikka would be fit enough to complete the walk, but not so much that he would make us look like the middle-aged, unfit, office types we don't like to admit we have become.
Turns out he is about 6'4", 21 years old, from Finland, hikes alone for weeks in Lapland, recently completed the Finnish version of SAS training and is going back to the Army in September. He is on this walk because all his friends went to the Himalayas and Everest base camp and he had to skip that trip.
. . . . so we were nearly right!
Fortunately he is also extremely gracious, and made for good company throughout the trip!
An hour or so up the road brought us to Imlil, where we met Matt and Helen, our guides during the trip. The snow had been particularly heavy, so our route had changed. We were going to spend the night in Imlil, having a 5 hour 'warm-up' walk instead, and then leave from Imlil the following day to hike up to the Toubkal refuge. We dumped packs and got ready to set forth. Helen checking that we had everything in the right place!The route for the day changed quickly from road to dirt track . . .
to mountain path . . . 
and into deep snow. 
to mountain path . . . and into deep snow. One side of the valley is north facing, and in snow (our way up!) and the other is south facing and was clear of snow (the way down). 
We trekked up through deeper and deeper snow, 
first of all in warm sunny conditions
and later in snow showers, 
until we reached the col at the top of the valley.
After a quick lunch under a tree we headed back down the other side of the valley.
The route home took us through this Berber village: tiny winding paths in between the houses. 
Helen has become friends with most of the village, it seems, so we stop frequently to greet them. Shy children peep at us as we go past.
We trekked up through deeper and deeper snow, first of all in warm sunny conditionsand later in snow showers, until we reached the col at the top of the valley.After a quick lunch under a tree we headed back down the other side of the valley.The route home took us through this Berber village: tiny winding paths in between the houses. Helen has become friends with most of the village, it seems, so we stop frequently to greet them. Shy children peep at us as we go past.Dinner back in the hostel is very welcome. We wandered around the village in the evening, but night-life isn't really its forte, so we gave up and headed for our beds, hoping that a couple of blankets would keep us warm enough for the night chill. (They didn't - roll on the nights with the down sleeping bag!)
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