Cathedral of Imsfrane

The Ahansal river runs south from the Bin el-Ouidane lake through a valley of red conglomerate and limestone, and at Imsfrane a wall of that rock stands more or less vertically above the road for several hundred metres of height and about a kilometre of length, with buttresses and a flat top - the French name it acquired, La Cathedrale, describes the shape well enough that it has stuck in local use too. It is a serious rock face and climbers have put routes on it, though it is far less developed than Taghia further up the valley. The road along the foot is a piste that improves and deteriorates by year, and driving it is part of the experience: the valley below is farmed in narrow terraces, with villages of packed earth, walnut and fig, and almost no traffic. Zaouia Ahansal, with its fortified granaries and old religious lodge, is further up.

What you actually see

• A vertical red wall - several hundred metres high and about a kilometre long.
• A climbers' face - routes put up here, though far less developed than Taghia.
• Terraced valley farming - narrow fields, walnut and fig below the wall.
• A piste approach - a rough valley road with almost no traffic on it.

When to go

Spring and autumn. Half a day, as part of the Ahansal valley drive.

Honest expectations

The piste is rough and its condition varies year to year - high clearance is advisable. There are no facilities along it. Flash flooding closes river crossings. The nearest accommodation is at Zaouia Ahansal or back at the lake.

Nearby

Taghia gorge is up the valley; Bin el-Ouidane lake is north.