MOROCCO: ON LOCATION: A high road well travelled; Crossing the Moroccan Sahara is exhilarating - the Atlas mountains tinged mauve and amber. And the kasbahs rock, says AMAR GROVER.(Features) From: The Independent (London, England) | Date: May 10, 2003| Author: | COPYRIGHT 2003 Independent Newspapers (UK) Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

We swerved round the umpteenth bend and into the path of a young lad brandishing fossils. "Monsieur arretez!" he yelled as we sped past yet another tray of minerals, tinted quartz and ammonites. Instead of buying half a mountain we were keen to get across one.

The Tizi `n Tichka, or Tichka Pass, is one of several notching the High Atlas Mountains south of Marrakesh. In a land blessed with splendid scenery, this lofty route into the Moroccan Sahara is as exhilarating as they come. We paused among "Boutiques de Mineraux" to admire the tortuous road wriggling through dun hills ...