Exploring Morocco's Atlantic Coast

Morocco is the kind of surf trip that rearranges your priorities. The waves are world-class, but the country itself — the call to prayer drifting over the medina, the smell of grilled sardines on the dock, the mint tea poured from impossible heights — is what stays with you long after the boardshorts dry.

Taghazout, an hour north of Agadir, is the country's surf capital. Anchor Point — the long, powerful right-hander that put Morocco on the map in the 1970s — still delivers some of the longest, most makeable rides in the world when a winter north swell hits.

Just up the coast, Killer Point, Boilers, and Mysteries form a quiver of right-hand reef breaks within a few kilometres of each other. The season runs from October through April, when low-pressure systems in the North Atlantic send clean groundswell straight onto the African coast.

But Morocco rewards travellers who go beyond Taghazout. The wild Atlantic stretch around Imsouane is home to The Bay — a slow, peeling right-hander that can hold a 600-metre ride on the right day. Further south near Mirleft, you'll find empty beach breaks and a slower pace of life.

Surfing here is just one chapter. Spend a few days in Marrakech or trek into the Atlas Mountains and you'll understand why so many surfers end up returning every winter.