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Mark Moxon's Travel Writing

Morocco: The Sahara by Camel

The dunes of Merzouga
The dunes of Merzouga are magical

Climbing dunes is one way to explore the Sahara, but by far the best is to book your passage on one of the ships of the desert – the camel. As you drive into Merzouga over the rattling hammada, herds of camels loiter round the edges of the desert, looking dour and almost surprised to be there, and there's no shortage of offers of camel treks from hopeful locals once you roll into town. We booked a two-day trip on our arrival, and settled in to wait for our ships to disembark.

Mark, Hamid and a camel
On the trail with Hamid and his camels
Mark wearing a desert turban
Wrapping your face in a turban is the only way to keep the sand out of your eyes, ears, mouth and nose
A desert camp
Our desert camp at dawn