Ouirgane Valley

Ouirgane sits at about a thousand metres on the road from Marrakech towards the Tizi n'Test, in a broad valley of red earth, olive groves, juniper and scattered Berber villages, with the High Atlas rising behind it - and its usefulness is that it is low, green and gentle, so it can be walked comfortably in months when Imlil and Toubkal are snowbound or baking. It is a lodge and guesthouse valley rather than a trekking one, with a salt-working village, a lake formed by a dam completed in the 2000s that flooded part of the old valley floor and moved a village, and easy walking on tracks between the hamlets. The earthquake of September 2023 was centred close to here and caused severe damage and loss of life in this district; rebuilding has been under way since and visitors should expect construction and should ask locally rather than assume what is open.

The landscape

• A low green valley - olive, juniper and red earth at about a thousand metres.
• Easy walking - tracks between hamlets rather than mountain routes.
• The reservoir - a dam from the 2000s that flooded part of the old valley floor.
• Rebuilding - visible reconstruction across the district since the 2023 earthquake.

When to go

March to May is best, but the valley works in most months. Two days.

Good to know

The 2023 earthquake hit this district hard and reconstruction is ongoing - some accommodation and roads have changed, so check before arriving. It is a walking and staying valley, not a sightseeing one. Facilities are spread out. Summer is hot at midday even here.

Nearby

Asni and Imlil are east; the Tizi n'Test road continues south.