Best 7 tips for Talassemtane National Park: Akchour – Ouad Kennar – Sommets…

Talassemtane National Park was created in October 2004. It covers the eastern end of the Rif limestone ridge. Covering an area of 58,950 ha, this very original territory stretches from Tetouan to Assifane.

🏞 Talassemtane national park

Talassemtane National Park was created in October 2004. It covers the eastern end of the Rif limestone ridge. Covering an area of 58,950 ha, this very original territory stretches from Tetouan to Assifane.

📍 Over an area of 58,950 ha, this very original territory extends from Tetouan to Assifane.

💫 Talassemtane National Park offers the most beautiful natural spectacles in the Kingdom, where stone and tree, rock and forest, waterfalls and deep gorges come together to create a landscape of rare quality. As also unique geographical forms of the limestone mountains.

Forest and flora of Talassemtane Park

🌲Talassemtane Park pine forest

💡 Did you know that the tree in Morocco only exists in Talassemtane National Park and surroundings?

💡 Did you know that in all of Africa, the fir tree only exists in northern Morocco and northern Algeria?

🌲 The fir trees are relatively homogeneous although more or less locally infiltrated by cedar, green oak or pines.

🌲 Moroccan endemic, the Moroccan fir (Abies marocana) is a majestic tree which constitutes very beautiful forest ecosystems which are at the origin of the creation of the Talassemtane National Park.

📍It is located in the Rif, between 1400 and 2000m, above Chefchaouen, in the wettest region of the country where annual rainfall can reach 1500mm on average

🌍 Elsewhere, fir trees are widely present in the temperate and cold forests of the northern hemisphere.

📣 The Chewihat fir forest is the best known with a picnic and barbecue area.

⚠️ The park contains the only Moroccan or even African fir trees, the last witnesses of a unique ecosystem on a global level and today in great danger. There are also more than 239 plant species, including a large number of endemics such as Atlas cedar and black pine.

🐒 Wildlife

The park is a refuge for more than 37 species of mammals, the best known of which is the magot monkey which shelters in the caves. More than 117 species of birds have been counted there, the most spectacular of which are the bearded vulture and the golden eagle.

💧Streams / Rivers of Talassemtane National Park

-Oued Ferda ( Akchour )

-Oued Kennar click to see the full article on this hike.

-Oued Kelaa

-Oued Laou

-Oued Talemboute

Villages and main points for crossing Talassemtane National Park

-Douar Zaouiya Habteene and visit of the marabout Abdelah Habte
- Plaza of Spain at the foot of Jbel Lakraa
-Taourarte village
-Azilane village
-Village Afaska and visit of the marabout Sidi Mftah

Summits of Talassemtane National Park

The mountains of Talassemtane National Park are composed of very rocky limestone layers. This means that their ascent can be difficult despite their altitude.

The highest peaks in Talassemtane National Park are:

-Jbel Lakraa (2159 m)

-Jbel Tissouka (2122 m)

-Jbel Safihat Talj (2038 m)

-Jbel Taloussisse à Ametrasse (2005 m)

-Jbel El Kelaa (1721m )

-Jbel Lbourj (1622m )

⛰ Jbel Tissouka

Chefchaouen in rifain means the 'two horns' because it is nestled at the foot of 2 mountains whose peaks form horns. These are the Jbel Lakraa and Jbel Tissouka which rises to more than 2000 meters.

⚠️ It's not the highest peak in the Rif but the hardest!

🕰 Duration of the hike to the Tissouka summit:

📍Departure from Chefchaouen (Rass El Ma 600m altitude): If you prefer difficult level hikes, 1 day is enough to climb the jbel (but mountain) of TISSOUKA, at almost 2000 M altitude, 3 hours of walking one way.

📍 Departure from Sapinière Chewihat (a picnic area 3 hours walk to get there from Ras El Ma): You can go there by landrover (from your hostel or rental) and you will have 3 hours of hiking there and back.

🥾 If you are more adventurous you can do two summits in one day: Tissouka and Safihat Talj or Lborj (I will tell you more about it in a future post)

🔍The circuit is extremely difficult but during the journey and arriving at the top of Mount Tissouka (alt 2122m) we forget all this fatigue thanks to the stunning landscapes of beauty

🌲 A remarkable biodiversity of the Sapinières, in particular the Atlas cedars, the black pine and in particular the Talassemtane fir.

⛰And at the top we have a global view of the whole rif, the Mediterranean and the blue pearl "Chefchaouen".

📞Guide : Abdeslam +212 620-577034

⛰Summit Jbel Safihat Talj

Jbel Safihat Talj culminates at 2038 m in the heart of the Chewihat fir forest.

It is also the twin of Jbel Tissouka in terms of proximity, altitude and complexity of the ascent.

🕰Durée de la randonnée vers le sommet Safihat Talj :

📍Departure from Chefchaouen (Rass El Ma 600m altitude): If you prefer difficult level hikes, 1 day is enough to climb the jbel (mountain) of Safihat Talj, at almost 2000 M altitude, 5 hours of round trip walking.

📍Départ de Sapinière Chewihat (une zone de pique-nique 3h de marche pour y arriver depuis Ras El Ma) : Vous pouvez y aller en landrover ( de chez votre auberge ou location ) et il vous restera 2h30 de randonnée aller-retour.

🥾 If you are more adventurous you can do two summits in one day: Safihat Talj and Tissouka.

🏕 For camping enthusiasts, we camped at the top. Yes at the top, we made the ascent in a backpack with all the necessary.

⚠️ It is absolutely necessary to check the weather forecast before climbing (let alone camp at the top) because there are a lot of dangerous winds sometimes.

📞Guide : Abdeslam +212 620-577034

⛰ Summit El Borj

Let me take you to a lesser known summit in Talassemtane Park and the easiest after Jbel El Kelaa: Jbel El Borj.

🔍It rises to 1622m above sea level, it is a little lower than Jbel El Kelaa but be careful the road is longer coming from Chefchaouen.

📣 I recommend for amateurs, the ascent is without too much danger. The road is long from Ras El Ma, Chefchaouen but mostly a flat track.

📞Guide : Abdeslam +212 620-577034

Village(Dchar) Azilane

📍Cottage Azilane

So I tested two accommodations in the middle of Talassemtane National Park.

🏡 The first was: Gite Azilane.

📍 It is of course in the Dchar (village) of Azilane, in the middle of nowhere literally!

☀️ It is the one with the best view, especially the terrace which represents the living space of the hostel.

🚙 Impossible to get there by normal car. You can leave your car in town in Chefchaouen. Then ask the hostel to take you back by LandRover.

⚠️ Ask for the price of transport before. It is not included.

💰 250dhs/person per night, breakfast included.

🥞Very consistent and tasty local Beldi breakfast🤤.
The rest of the meals were normal.

Village Afaska

📍Gite Afaska

🏡 The second was: Gite Afaska.

📍 It is of course in the Dchar (village) of Afaska, which is even further from that of Azilane!

☀️ This is the hostel where you eat the best and which is super clean too.

🚙 Impossible to get there by normal car. You can leave your car in town in Chefchaouen. Then ask the hostel to take you back by LandRover.

⚠️ Ask for the price of transport before. It is not included.

💰 300dhs/person per night, breakfast included.

🥞 The meals were delicious! All is well. The owner's daughter cooked very well and the meals were served neatly.

🍴 The restaurant is made of fully glazed wood with a panoramic view of the National Park of Talassemtane.

⚠️ The location of this hostel is wrong on Instagram. This hostel is literally in the middle of nowhere in Talassemtane National Park

🥾 Hiking in the park

Hike to Azilane/Afaska.

And here is an atypical hike that we chose to do in freestyle (without a guide, which I do not necessarily recommend ^^) starting from our Azilane hostel. The landscapes were breathtaking!

📍The itinerary is as follows:
Village Azilane => village Afaska => Sidi Meftah => village Amazzar => Pont Ferda => Oued Ferda => Ain Danou

🏡 All these villages are completely disconnected from city life. They are right in the middle of Talassemtane National Park (mountains, forest and rivers), and almost inaccessible by car!

👣 We did everything on foot. From time to time you will come across tracks that lead to a few villages.

📜 It was still an adventurous hike, we went through villages then we crossed the forest falling on a Sidi Meftah mausoleum with a beautiful architectural structure lost it looks like it comes out of a horror movie (I do not exaggerate) in the middle of the woods! 👻
⛰ Then we continued to descend the mountain passing through an Amazzar village, we continued towards the source of Oued Ferda (the same of Akchour)
The peaks around offer unforgettable moments of contemplation that make the kilometers traveled well worth the physical effort.
🌉 We crossed a first bridge, continued to climb then descend a mountain to finally arrive at Pont Ferda where the famous river of the same name is located.
🔎 Arriving here, you have either the choice to continue towards the Akchour waterfalls or in the opposite direction go towards the source of the Oued.

🏊‍♂️ For our part, we wanted to reach the main food source of Oued Farda, which is the entrance to the cave of the same name and then return to the cottage in the Afaska village.
A pleasant aquatic stroll awaits you along this river which descends from the heights of TALESSEMTANE to thread its way between narrow gorges until reaching the source which overlooks a large basin of Ain Danou of turquoise water where you can bathe.

Other Hikes:

-Ouad Kannar ( see below)

-Akchour( see below)

Ouad Kannar

🤩I'm taking you to the most ATYPICAL hike I've done in Morocco.

🏞 I have heard of the turquoise water, the narrow gorges and especially the natural pools of Ouad Kannar, this river that descends from the heights of TALESSEMTANE. But I never imagined how exotic it is!

⛰ Its pure and wild landscapes, in the heart of the RIF mountains and the flowing valleys are breathtaking!!
And what impressed me the most were the small douars in the middle of nowhere as well as their super nice and warm inhabitants despite the poverty of the region…

🚌How to get there?

So here I can tell you (as you can see in the photos) that the car journey is not at ALL easy. We did an hour's trail from 📍Stehat to Ouad Kannar.
For adventurers, a 6 hour hike awaits you from Stehat 🚶‍♀️. 📍Stehat is a coastal village 20min drive (18km) from Quaa Asserasse and 30min drive (27 km) from Oued Laou.

📣 Tips :

It's not a very touristy destination so be well equipped in terms of everything!

🍽Restaurant

There are 1 or 2 restaurants but I recommend bringing back sandwiches 🥪 so as not to break down there.

📣What to see in the region?

See the full article on what else to see around the Mediterranean Sea here.

See the full article on Chefchaouen here.

Akchour

A stay at Chefchaouen is certainly not complete without stopping by Akchour.
Akchour is a small village located 30km from Chefchaouen in the heart of the Rif mountains ⛰ and the Talassemtane national park. It is mainly known for its exceptional natural landscapes.

See full article on Chefchaouen here.

🚕Transport :

-For motorized, parking costs 10dhs 💰.
-Otherwise taxis are 25dhs 💰 from Chefchaouen.
🥘 Food:
There are small restaurants all along the river in the middle of nature. serve tea (10dh) 💰 and delicious tagines (70dhs) 💰.

📣Hiking tips:

Once at the village car park continue towards the dam and there the road splits in two directions. To hike to the Pont de Dieu you have to go to the right of the dam (45min), and to the left towards the waterfalls (2h).

-Wearing 👟 walking shoes is a necessity. You will cross the river several times.
-Bring your bathing suits 👙. For the adventurers you will have to swim to cross the river and continue the hike after the god's bridge.
-Hike light🎒. Without a bag would be better.
And finally be an environmentally sensitive hiker 😍

🏨 Accommodation:

If you want to spend the night there are apartments for rent on site (from 200dhs 💰 per night), and a Tyrolean campsite around 100dhs 💰 (to be confirmed) per night.
For my part I stayed at the hotel l'ermitage d'Akchour which I will talk about in more detail below.

Hotel l’ermitage d’Akchour

I am delighted to present to you a place I fell in love with: The Akchour hermitage.
Located at the start of the Akchour waterfalls trail. The hermitage of Akchour, as its name suggests, is an ecolodge lost in the middle of luxurious nature ⛰. An assortment of magnificent small and large chalets on the edge of the private river and the hotel's natural swimming pools.

📣 Tips:
No network or internet here !! Wifi is only available in the restaurant area.
You enter into full communion with nature, a real place of rest that allows you to recharge your batteries and take the time to savor the present moment.

🥘 Food:
-There is also a restaurant at the Ermitage d'Akchour where you eat well, a bit expensive 💰 but the menu is interesting. Otherwise you can eat tajines in the restaurant mentioned in the previous post and which is 2 min walk from the hotel.
-Breakfast is included.

💰 Price: One night at the Hermitage is not the cheapest night in Akchour and the region.
Count a minimum of 1200dhs per night for a chalet for 4 people with breakfast. Prices vary according to season and availability. You will find everything in detail on their official website.

🤸‍♂️Activities:
In addition to hiking in the surrounding forests, the establishment offers holistic retreats, treatments and therapies, yoga courses 🧘‍♀️, massages 💆‍♀️ and meditation ...

Auberge Rueda :

Still in the Talassemtane National Park, I have concocted a hostel for you near Akchour with a magnificent view for a not very expensive price: Auberge Rueda.

🌈 All colored in harmony with the surrounding landscape, the Rueda hostel offers a panoramic view of the ocher mountains of Akchour in the western Rif.

💰 The price is from 500dhs per double room (2 people)

🥞Breakfast is included. It is plentiful and consistent.

🅿️ They have spacious and free parking available.

🛏 The rooms are spacious but not super well maintained.

🚿 The bathroom lacks small attentions..

📣 But basically I recommend. If you have any comments, please let them know.

🌞 I really enjoyed the living space, the different terraces and the garden! All with breathtaking views.

🧗 They offer to climb in a spot not far away at a reasonable price.

🥾 The start of the hike for the Akchour waterfalls is very far on foot (1h30 walk)

📞 0666865417