While in Fez, we learned that there is a village named Bhalil lying about 40 kms south of Fez. It is known known for its cave houses. Here is a description of the history of these cave houses. “Cave dwellings dating back to the 4th century pockmark Bhalil’s mountainsides and have served as shepherds' huts for hundreds of years, yet some residents have gone one step further and even transformed caves into modern living rooms”(Lonely Planet) We decided to include it in our trip down to our next destination, the Ziz Valley. Bhahlil is located in the Middle Atlas Mountains.
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Our Sahara time has been a plan in the making for the past few years. It was amazing to us that this plan was actually becoming reality, and we both felt eager anticipation to meet Brahim, our guide, Mohamed, our driver, and M’barek, our cook. When we met, we immediately connected with everyone. We parked our rental car where it would be safe while we were away and headed out in a 4x4 toward the desert. Our first stop was just as we were leaving Zagora to see the marker for the iconic start of the old camel trade route between Zagora and Timbuktu.