Day 211
4 hrs, 5 kms

The clock is ticking . In a little over a month I will be leaving Morocco, off in search of a new "base camp" for my Global Parkbench Tour. This means that I really need to tie together my loose ends--I don't want to leave with any regions/Superhikes that have a big "UNFINISHED" sign on top. And one Superhike that really feels unfinished is the Tanger Superhike because, well, I haven't reached Tanger yet and the Northwesternmost Tip of Africa. Sure the Superhike has stretched a couple hundred kilometers from Chefchaouan to M'diq... but it's got to reach Tanger to be finished.

And now I've got three days to do just that.

A Bad Start

One problem with this hike is that, well the hinterlands of Tanger don't feel all that safe. And I really, really don't want to end my 5 year Morocco adventure with another mugging--that would cast a long shadow on whole experience, and I'd leave with a bitter taste in my mouth. I actually consider not taking my guitar or camera with me, and simply not adding any new towns, just count each stretch of the hike as an "in between" hike (I've already parkbenched all the major towns Tanger, Ksar Sghir, Fnideq and M'diq--I just need to walk the long stretches between them) . In the end, I decide that I'm going to take the risk--and I'm going to start at the Tanger end, to get the most dangerous part out of the way first.

And so, one last time I take the midnight bus from Casablanca to Tanger... arrive at around 4:30 AM... chill out in the cafe at the bus station a while until I figure it's time to start my adventure.

I barely walk a hundred yards into the pre-dawn darkness when a young fellow comes running towards me... uh-oh... past me... another fellow hard on his heels... Quick, think quick... is it a robber chasing a victim? a victim chasing a robber? There are a couple of collective taxi drivers nearby who don't seem to concerned. I decide to continue on, feeling just a little more edgy about this hike.

I head down towards the main boardwalk along the coast... Less than a kilometer later, a crazy drunk starts tailing me aggressively. I try to quicken my pace to where I see 2 respectable looking fellows who I assume will help me shake this guy off . But as I approach I realize... oh sh-t... these are crazy drunk guys too!

I'm really getting a bad feeling about this hike--and I haven't even left Tanger yet. I wistfully remember my hikes through the desert where I could go for days and days without ever feeling the slightest bit threatened by anybody. On the contrary, people would go out of their way to make sure I felt comfortable and welcomed.

I press on. As the sky turns red from the sunrise, I reach the remains of an ancient fortress. I'm struck by the fact that I've passed this spot a dozen times in a collective taxi and never even noticed these ruins. Yeah... that's why I've got to do this on foot.

Further on there are more modern development popping up all along the way--occasionally built around an ancient tower or relic of a bygone era. Makes you wonder how much more history is buried beneath these new apartment buildings in this strategic area at the mouth of the Mediteranean Sea.

Finally I reach the edge of the city--an immediately spot a building that kind of looks like a castle, although probably not too old. I decide to go ahead and have it be the backdrop for the videoclip for my next town, Talaa Craa (which I think means Bald Hill)