Morocco Luxury tours

Geography of Morocco

Morocco is a country in northwestern Africa. Its long coastline overlooking the Atlantic Ocean ends beyond the Strait of Gibraltar on the Mediterranean Sea.
In the south of Morocco lies the disputed territory Western Sahara, claimed and controlled largely by Morocco. In the east and south-east, Morocco is bordering Algeria. At some distance from the Atlantic coast are the Canary Islands and Madeira. North of the Strait of Gibraltar is Spain.
The administrative capital is Rabat. Among the great cities are Casablanca, Agadir, Fez, Marrakech, Meknes, Tangier, Oujda, Nador.

Physical geography

Mountains

The mountains occupy more than two thirds of the Moroccan territory and reach considerable heights. Several peaks cross the 4,000m mark. Jebel Toubkal, the highest peak in the country, rises to 4,167 m. Morocco has four main mountain ranges, and it is the only country in the Maghreb to have a huge chain of mountains Atlas.
First in the north of the country, the mountains or Jebel of Rif border the Mediterranean Sea. The highest peak of the Rif reaches 2,456 m and its name is Jebel Tidirhine. The Rif offers varied surfaces according to the altitudes of its regions. In fact, in the west, we find mostly thorny vegetation (fir trees, pines and cedars). On the other side, it grows arid steppes and maquis and further east, there is hemp, which is not harvested. Further from the Mediterranean shores and more inland, are three other immense chains: the Middle Atlas, the High Atlas and the Anti-Atlas, where we find again a diversity of landscapes.
The Middle Atlas, which is the "water tower" of Morocco is separated from the Rif by the arid plains of the east and fertile of the west. The two chains are separated by the famous gap of Taza. The Middle Atlas consists of two parts with very different landscapes. To the east, there are the rugged mountains with peaks over 3,100 m like Jebel Bou Naceur or Bouiblane. These peaks are experiencing significant snowfall. Towards the west, the chain softens to make room for more affordable reliefs and giving way to a few small trays. The chain of the Middle Atlas is bordered on the south by the High Atlas
It is in the High Atlas, a chain that surrounds the country from east to west that Toubkal culminates at nearly 4,167 m.

Land borders

• with Algeria: 1 559 km
• with Western Sahara: 443 km (contested territory controlled 75% by Morocco)
• with Spain: 16 km (enclave of Ceuta: 6 km and enclave of Melilla: 10 km)

Hydrography

Morocco has many streams (rivers and wadis) such as:

• Bouregreg
• Moulouya
• Ouargha
• Oum Errabiaa
• Ourika
• Sebou
• Souss
• Tensift
• Draa
• Ziz
• Rheris
• Guir

The great rivers such as Bouregreg, Oum Errabiaa, Moulouya, and Sebou, have very variable flows between seasons, and also from year to year.
Many smaller rivers (the "wadis") can even be dry part of the year (or even several years in the pre-desert areas).
The lack of water, but also the great variability of flows, represent a big problem for Morocco, especially for agriculture (irrigated or not) ... To guarantee a reliable supply of water, King Hassan 2a launched a major water policy with the construction of hundreds of large dams in the country Thanks to this policy, Morocco has 139 large dams (2015) with a surface water mobilization capacity equal to 17.6 billion cubic meters. This policy is still ongoing with, on average, putting into operation 2 to 3 new dams every year.

Flora

Morocco has a rich flora because of its strategic position, in fact it has two maritime facades totaling more than 3,500 km of which 500 in the Mediterranean Sea it receives the currents loaded with rain from the ocean that accumulate against the mountainous barrier of the Atlas which allows heavy rainfall in Rabat, Casablanca, Fez and snow formation in Ifrane and Azrou and in the high peaks of the atlas, while the south and the east remain arid. More than 4500 species configure Moroccan flora. The variations of the climate and the relief are fundamental elements to explain such a floral richness. The botanical interest of Morocco is intense and we will only mention the 2 500 000 hectares of forest which contain:

• cedars
• palms
• Thuja
• date palms
• almond trees
• fig trees
• olive trees
• acacias
• fruit trees
• green oaks
• cork oaks
• Pines
• eucalyptus
• strawberry trees
• alfa and argan, a species that is listed as UNESCO World Heritage. The forest accounts for about 15% of the total area.

About Morocco

​This dramatic and varied country is the nearest bit of authentic (and on the whole safe) Third World to most of western Europe – if you get beyond the tourist traps, that is. It is truly a land of contrasts: you can surf the Atlantic; explore superb (and nearly empty) Roman ruins; nose into the nooks and crannies of old cities like Fez and Marrakech ; trek in the high, remote, rugged Atlas, where the traditional Berber way of life is very much the evidence in the surprisingly green valleys; check out canyons; and, of course, get out into the huge, empty Sahara. All in one holiday.

​The plains

​These plains often have very large expanses, stretching from the Rif mountains to the Middle Atlas, the Sebou basin (36 000 km2) consists of low plateaus, streams, some hills and fertile plains that allow the cultivation of several foods.

In the Gharb plain, there are fields of sugar beet, rice, sugar cane and tobacco. This plain is distinguished from the others by the presence of the Maâmora forest where cork oaks and eucalyptus are grown.

Extensive plains appear as soon as one goes beyond the country of Zair and the plateau of phosphates. We find the Chaouia, Doukkala and more to the east at the foot of the Middle Atlas Tadla. Further south, we find the plain of Haouz in the region of Marrakech and that of Souss which is the triangle between ocean, High Atlas and Anti-Atlas.

There are other plains and fertile valleys of smaller sizes, especially in the north (Lukos, Nekkor, Trifa, Oued Ouergha Valley, Baht, Inaouen ...).

The desert

​In the south of the country, the Erg Chebbi and Erg Chegaga near the Algerian border, is the largest expanse of stones and sand inside Morocco. Some sand dunes can reach 200 m in height.
Set how transparent the background color is.

climate

​The Moroccan climate is both Mediterranean and Atlantic, with a dry and hot season coupled with a cold and wet season, the end of the warm period being marked by the October rains.
The presence of the sea attenuates temperature differences, tempers the seasons and increases the humidity of the air (400 to 1000 mm of rains on the coast). In the interior, the climate varies according to the altitude. Summers are hot and dry, especially when blowing the hot sirocco or the chergui, summer wind coming from the Sahara. At this season, average temperatures are 22 ° C to 24 ° C. Winters are cold and rainy with frost and snow. The average temperature then changes from - 2 ° C to 14 ° C and can go down to - 26 ° C. In the mountainous regions, precipitation is very important (more than 2000 mm of rainfall at the Rif or 1,800 mm in the Middle Atlas). Pre-Saharan and Saharan Morocco has a dry desert climate.

wildlife

The diversity of wildlife is in principle a treasure, but it is absolutely damaged by all kinds of destruction. Some exceptional species include:

• chameleon
• the waders
• the little egret
• the flamingo
• Egyptian Vulture
• the Barbary falcon
• the Royal Eagle
• the Barbary squirrel
• the camel
• the Algerian hedgehog and the desert hedgehog
• the golden jackal threatened; it has disappeared from entire regions ... In Morocco, it is confused with the wolf.
• the striped hyena, fast disappearing
• the fennec, rare.
• Rüppell's fox, very rare
• the red fox
• the Lynx caracal, threatened with extinction.
• the serval, threatened with extinction.
• the Panther. An individual was killed three years ago [When?] In the High Atlas by a poacher. It is threatened with immediate extinction in total indifference.
• the dorcas gazelle and the Cuvier gazelle in rarefaction
• the money, threatened by the slow death of the cedar and the catches by the traffickers.
• the dolphin
• the subspecies of the Egyptian cobra, Naja haje legionis or cobra from North Africa has become considerably rarefied and has disappeared from entire regions, victim of the performances inherited from the barbaric times still prevailing in some hotels of Agadir and elsewhere, and on the Djemaa-El-Fna square in Marrakech to the so-called profit of tourists.
• Many snakes and some vipers. In Morocco, unlike local prejudices, the majority of snakes are harmless (17 out of 25 species) and the few species of venomous snakes exist never attack.
• a kind of tiny burrowing boa, Eryx jaculus
• the Sharks
• around thirty species of scorpions (new species are almost every year identified in Morocco), only one or two of which are potentially dangerous for humans (eg Androctonus mauritanicus), especially for small children. However, a scorpion hardly ever attacks.

The lion of the Atlas has disappeared (exterminated) in the wild, the last in 1943. There are, however, although mixed with other subspecies about fifty in different zoos of the world including twenty at the zoo Temara . Recently discovered engravings in caves near Ouarzazate indicate that crocodiles, leopards and elephants lived in these places before their natural extinction or extermination by humans. Similar engravings also exist throughout the Sahara. On the other hand, birds are still relatively present with a great diversity of species, although the Red-necked Ostrich, for example, has been exterminated, thus in the Sahara as the Houbara Bustard. A fairly large number of snake species (25 of which 17 are non-dangerous species, the remaining 8 remain unattacked and are less widespread!), And lizards are present in Morocco, including a significant percentage of endemic species. However, there are many endangered species. They are victims of ignorance, cruelty and irresponsibility in the field of ecology.