We all loved coming to Morocco. A trip of a lifetime for sure.
I always find the intensity of these trips interesting. We are thrown together for a non stop period of riding/drinking/eating/talking. During this time nothing in the world exists outside of our own tiny little bubble, and all we have to worry about is riding the bike. Whilst you take care of everything else. Meet new people (what a great bunch they were; your Portugese friends are absolutely delightful) and then you leave the bubble, and maybe never meet again. Strange, but fantastic!
Next year we will come back to Portugal. I think May is a good month…
We will be in touch with you to make something happen again. We are all getting older, more aches and pains, more injuries to nurse, perhaps more risk averse, but nonetheless it is such a joy to ride a bike in freedom and with freedom with such a class host as you, ending the day with a beer, good food and good conversation.
Two of us from the UK just completed Horizon Adventures’ Magic Sahara Tour. It was everything an adventure tour should be but from experience often isn’t (I have done about 10 tours around Africa and Europe). Firstly Morocco is unbeatable for Offroad riding, then there’s the bikes: KTM 450s all well prepared. Then there’s the use of the best Garmin GPS devices with the tracks all entered so it’s hard to get lost if the group widens out due to having riders of varying experience. Then most importantly Pedro, co-owner of Horizon and our guide, was the best of hosts. A top rider able to show you how to ride better, a tireless worker on the bikes and the organisation of the tour, and an overall nice guy who is a pleasure to be with. Don’t underestimate how important this can be over a few hard days of riding as it often spoils an otherwise great tour.
Everything was made easy for us with transfers, hotels, meals, snacks, fuel, drinking water all included and only beer/drinks down to us to find.
We were lucky enough to have a good bunch of fellow riders too. Though of varying levels of experience everyone knuckled down without complaint and just got on with enjoying some of the best and most varied riding you can find anywhere in the world (mountain passes, dry river beds, canyons, rocky climbs and of course amazing sand dunes). The sense of achievement at the end and the improvement in our riding won’t be forgotten.
Possibly the best riding I’ve ever done and two days of it almost without rest. The road book navigation is great too but having to read and decipher symbols every few hundred metres whilst keeping a close eye on the distance trip meter and doing this whilst keeping up a fast pace over rocks and on the edge of mountainous drops is a whole new level of challenge. All in all quite an experience.
Just back from the Atlantic Odyssey. What a fantastic week! Extraordinary countryside with a mix of trails from fast gravel, moderately testing ascents and descents, a bit of sand and, amazing views. The fact that most of these trails can only be ridden because of Pedro’s excellent relationship with the land owners makes this even more special. The 450 bikes are well looked after each day and perfect for the job. Each of the hotel stops was a different style but of excellent quality and the food was top quality too. Pedro, our guide, struck just the right balance between support and advice and, leaving us to enjoy our ride. Carefully planned GPS routes meant we seldom lost our way for long. The team’s pride in their country ensures they went the extra mile to make sure we enjoyed the best of Portuguese hospitality. Well worth the money. There are plenty more trails to cover so, we will definitely be back.
Como disfrutamos el fim de semana! Esta zona de Portugal – Alentejo – és de una belleza única; cruzamos y visitamos pueblos remotos y autenticos, pasamos por caminos muy diversos, praderas, bosques y sierras. La ruta bien planeada y variada nos permitió gozar cada momento del paisagem y de la condución offroad en su plenitud, con los consejos de nuestro guía Sr. Pedro Abella siempre atento a la seguridad del grupo. Aparte de su simpatia, demonstró su profesionalidad ayudando y corrigiendo alguna que otra técnica para transpasar con seguridad los obstáculos.
Nota alta al Hotel elegido no solo por su situación, dentro de las muralhas de la cuidad con un entorno y vistas fantásticas, como al servicio, habitacionais y sobretodo al Chef de cocina que nos propuso degustar los sabores tan singulares de la gastronomia local. Enhorabuena, felicidades y gracias a Horizonadventures! Estamos seguros que volveremos.
Totally unexpected! A beautiful country, wonderful people, great food, marvelous accomodation ! It was the best 5 days biking I’ve ever had! Various tracks from technical and winding mountains to trails under trees, crossing rivers all closely monitored by the tour leader. It was my first experience on navigation !! Easy and safe! You ride at one own pace without losing yourself on the way. Congratulations to Horizon Adventures. I will return for sure.
It was a real pleasure to meet everyone and ride in such a fantastic location. I really enjoyed sharing cold beers and great food with you all. I just wanted to say many thanks for the organization, patience, support and camaraderie, which made my first trip to Portugal very memorable. One thing is for sure the memories will last a lot longer than the pain!
Thanks also for sharing the photos. It was great to see the famous “Yellow Submarine” and the guys carrying the Quad over the bridge!
Thanks everyone for the adventure and the patience with the foreign slow-pokes…
Special thanks to Joao for his outstanding organization and for figuring out some short-cuts for Jan and I to keep us from finishing in the dark every day. Also a big shout out to the outstanding support team for rescuing us when time, motorcycles, and fatigue conspired against us on Saturday night!
Given the complete lack of any opportunities to practice over here, the only way for me to get better (at either riding or Portuguese) is to come to Portugal more! Hope to see you on the next one!