It's been a great week, but it's time to move on

We really like this part of Morocco. Tons of hiking opportunities, and it helps that the weather has been absolutely perfect for that activity.

So we took advantage of our last day here and did a hike up into the mountains behind where we are staying.

What did it cost for our long weekend in Canary Islands?

After a record breaking high expense month like January was, it's refreshing to see our February expenses back to what we consider normal.

There were no surprises... well, except for a last minute long weekend to Canary Islands! We'll break down exactly how much that long weekend cost in the details below.

Traditional Berber house in rural Morocco

Monday morning, we walked about 3.5 kms (2.2 miles) over to the village of Oumesnat where there is a traditional Berber house that is now a tourist museum. 

Really interesting visit, and if you are in the area it's not to be missed!

If we ever settle down anywhere, it's going to be in a place that has palm trees!

We woke up at about 5:30am to an odd sound. At first, it sounded like a water drip, but upon closer inspection it was actually a clicking noise coming from our electrical converter under the seat.

As in Mexico, many of the campgrounds in Morocco don't have enough supply of electricity. So normally, the problem is low voltage. And I'm aware of the problem enough that I bought an electrical meter before coming here and I test the voltage when we arrive at a campground, and regularly throughout our stay.

We finally saw goats in trees!

We set out just after 10:00am and ended up doing 13 kms (8 miles) under beautiful sunny skies. Back just before 2:00pm, so we were gone about three and a half hours.

It's a really interesting landscape in this area. Lots of big boulders and odd shaped rocks. 

Max is quite happy here!

And so are we. 

We really enjoyed our time in Canary Islands, and ever since we came back from there, we kind of felt like we weren't enjoying Morocco so much. The southern coastline just felt so drab. 

But we had a beautiful day yesterday despite the fact that the morning was quite cloudy. It was just normal clouds though, not that depressing kind of haze that we had been experiencing last week.

Icelandic Road Conditions and Safety: What to Expect from Driving in Iceland

If you’re planning a road trip to Iceland, you may be wondering what to expect from the Icelandic roads. Driving in Iceland can be a great way to explore the country's breathtaking landscapes and remote areas, but it is important to be aware of the road conditions and safety measures that are necessary for a safe and successful journey. In this blog post, we will cover the basics of Icelandic road conditions and safety, so that you can prepare for a safe and enjoyable driving experience in Iceland.

Now this scenery is more our style!

We were fine at our wild camping spot except that it got quite windy overnight so we didn't sleep the best.

So we got up at first light and drove for a little while until we got a cell signal, then pulled over to have breakfast.

Finally, a night of wild camping!

We set off in the fog at just after 10:00am, headed inland towards the city of Guelmim (pop 187,000).

There's not really anything we wanted to see in Guelmim, but they have a big Marjane grocery store and we needed to stock up. 

Next winter, we are going somewhere guaranteed to be warm!

It was just a short drive yesterday as we made our way to the rock arch at Legzira Beach. Then another short drive to a "campground" near the town of Sidi Ifni.

There are still a few rock arches on this stretch of rough Atlantic coast, but one of them collapsed in 2016.

Change of plans... again!

Western Sahara is one of the world's disputed territories. Not really a country, but often counted as such along with the 15 or so other unrecognized countries of the world. Long time readers will remember when we got pulled over by the police in Transnistria during a visit to that unrecognized country.

Our original intention was to drive all the way into Western Sahara. 

Wandering around Mirleft, Morocco

In need of some exercise, we decided to hike up to the old fortress overlooking the town of Mirleft. A nice enough day, with a high of around 22C (72F), but still with that odd haze in the sky.

There's not a lot of information available online, but it turns out that the old fortress really isn't that old. 

Another ATM problem

On Saturday, we drove further south along the coast, from Tifnit to Mirleft, with a stop in the larger town of Tiznit along the way.

The sky was still really hazy. The sun was shining, but the sky wasn't blue... it was kind of a hazy grey. Very strange.

The rundown fishing village of Tifnit

The rain stopped by noon, so after lunch we finally got out for a decent walk. 

While the campground itself is nice, there's not much to see or do in the area. The only real option is to walk down to the beach and fishing village of Tifnit. It's about 14 kms (9 miles) round trip, so it's a bit of a hike.

Well, it's a good thing that Max is waterproof!

They were calling for heavy rain, and sure enough, that's what we got. A couple of times overnight, it rained so hard I thought we might float away. The locals had said they haven't had enough rain lately, but this might be a little too much all at one time.

Funny story. Last weekend when we were with Bob and Denise in the Canary Islands, I asked them if they knew of a magazine called "Zoomer". It's a popular Canadian magazine produced for the baby boom generation.