Such a contrast to reach the flats of Western Sahara.
We left Icht and headed towards Tan-Tan on the tar. Although we had originally planned to drive the pistes from Assa to Smara, local opinion was divided on whether the military would turn us back or not. 
In the end, we headed to the coast and started the long journey to the border.
Kilometre after kilometre without anything in particular to rest the eyes on. It seems such a desolate place with no real purpose – other than as a transit route between Morocco and the rest of southern Africa. There are lots of fishermen along the cliffs, and there seems to be some heavy industry in some of the major towns we passed along the way. Apart from that, there is just what feels like an endless stretch of road, only broken up occasionally by a river estuary or a lagoon, or more frequently by a string of what (to me) are pointless police checks where you have to hand over your life story. The most bizarre was the police dressed in grey standing 100m ahead of the police dressed in blue. Both asking for the same information… I have no clue what it is being used for.
We stayed a night in a Bedouin camp north of Laayoune, and experienced a very special sort of quiet. The following night we spent in a fully lit campsite in Boujdour – with many Senegalese driving heavily laden estate cars heading southwards.
After Boujdour, the scenery seemed to shake off its dourness – suddenly, tiny blue, red, pink and yellow flowers appeared along the roadside. The barren flatness gave way to small scale canyons. And eventually, on approaching the turnoff to Dakhla, the sand dunes and flats emerged.
And so we have a few days to relax from the relentless driving, celebrate Christmas with new friends and prepare for the next border crossing.
5 comments
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Ralph
December 23, 2012 at 23:16 (UTC 1) Link to this comment
Wonderful photos and the wonderful adventure continues.
African GirlChild
December 24, 2012 at 16:28 (UTC 1) Link to this comment
Thanks Ralph!
Moxtar
December 27, 2012 at 22:09 (UTC 1) Link to this comment
Blue uniforms are Police, grey uniforms are Gendarmes. Police have jurisdiction in urban areas, gendarmes elsewhere. In your case, the police are relived you’re getting out of their local hair safe and sound, the gendarmes will be adding you to the list of people to worry about until you emerge in another check point. I doesn’t need double the personnel, but no one ever accused us of efficiency
Tourists getting lost, abducted or coming to any harm like that French guy in north Nigeria dec 20th would be a catastrophe from the Moroccan state point of view.
African GirlChild
December 30, 2012 at 18:59 (UTC 1) Link to this comment
Moxtar – thanks for a very informative note to us all! It all makes sense now. I am glad they are looking out for us tourists
rgds
Mike and Sue Broadbent
December 31, 2012 at 20:43 (UTC 1) Link to this comment
We are really injoying your blog and all the information you are putting together. We plan on making the same journey in late 2013, so you info on border crossings and where to apply for visas will come in very handy.
Mike and Sue