Taoujdad – west face · Taghia · Morocco
Easy to bailBolting confidence: high
Five pitches on new, very rough red rock just right of Au nom de la Réforme. The first three are steep, fingery and continuous with one short crux each; the last two are much easier. The original grades are 7a+, 7a and 6c+, now widely thought generous, and the cruxes are bolted closely enough to pull through.
The route
A 2017 addition to the west face of the Taoujdad, right of the classics Au nom de la Réforme and À boire, ou j'tue l'chien. Three hard pitches on steep walls and corners are followed by a 5c and a 6a. The grading is disputed: the first ascensionists gave 7a+, 7a, 6c+, and the camptocamp page was changed in May 2026 to 6c+ for all three after several parties found them equivalent and soft. Whatever the number, the hard moves are short, close to a bolt and can be aided, and reports put the obligatory grade at 6b to 6b+ (the opening topo says 6c).
In pictures
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 6c+ | 50 m | A hard move at the second bolt and a harder one at the fourth, where you traverse quite low, then long, even climbing on positioning. Originally 7a+. Hard when cold. A 2024 party reports a loose block of about 50 kg to the right of the belay. |
| P2 | 6c+ | 40 m | An easy, fine corner, then a reachy move at two-thirds height and a steep section before the belay. Originally 7a. One bolt was found awkward to clip. |
| P3 | 6c+ | 35 m | A fingery crux soon after the start on a vertical wall of edges, then an easy corner that is a little run-out. |
| P4 | 5c | 35 m | A corner, then a slab with good holds. |
| P5 | 6a | 40 m | A slab of sculpted rock to the end of the route. |
Getting there
From Marrakech go via Azilal to Zaouiat Ahansal: about 250 km and 5 to 6 hours, on tarmac throughout. From Zaouiat you walk up to Taghia or, since 2023, the gîtes can drive you up a track by 4x4. The gîtes in Taghia (Saïd's and Mohamed Amil's are the ones named in reports) offer half board and can arrange the taxi from Marrakech.
About 1 hour. From Taghia follow the path on the right bank, then the left bank, of the stream past the springs to the gully between the Oujdad and the Taoujdad. Climb the gully and pass a huge jammed block, where logs have been placed to help. Some 80 to 150 m higher, where the gully steepens, take a comfortable cairned ledge on the left and follow ledges and easy steps leftwards to the ramps at the foot of the west face. Go to the ramp where À boire, ou j'tue l'chien starts. A few metres before its first bolt, a bolted line goes up the wall: that is Champion du Maroc. A newer route starts just to the right from an unlinked two-bolt belay; a 2024 party set off up it by mistake.
Loading map
The point is approximate: it marks the area, not the crag.
Coordinates · area: approximate
Point from camptocamp waypoint 43127
Contains the route point. Opens in most mapping apps and GPS watches.
Points are compiled from published sources, with the precision stated above. They were not surveyed on the ground: check them against a current topo.
Coordinates: 31.78014, -6.06288 (area)
Getting down
Abseil. The 2024 party describes five abseils: from R5 to R4 of À boire, ou j'tue l'chien, to R3 of the same route, then R2, R1 and the ground on Champion du Maroc; watch for the ropes jamming. Alternatively two easy, partly bolted pitches (grade 3 to 4 with a move of 5) lead to the summit and the normal descent of the Taoujdad with its single equipped abseil; that way needs judgement and is not part of the bolted route.
Retreat
Easy to bail
The route is abseiled as its normal descent and every belay is bolted. A May 2026 party climbed three pitches and abseiled off to do another route.
Safety
Sun and weather
West face of a 2600 m summit. In shade and often cold first thing, in the sun from late morning; a late-May party climbed comfortably at 24°C under cloud. It dries quickly after showers, but the approach gully is unpleasant when wet. Wind is common on the abseils.
Sun on the wall · W-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season
Estimated from the wall's aspect only. Ignores surrounding terrain, gullies and the wall's exact shape. Clock times are local to the wall (Moroccan time), for the 15th of each month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr (usual season) | May (usual season) | Jun (usual season) | Jul | Aug | Sep (usual season) | Oct (usual season) | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | 8 | 9 | 12 | 16 | 19 | 24 | 28 | 28 | 23 | 18 | 13 | 10 |
| Mean daily low °C | −4 | −3 | −0 | 3 | 6 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 10 | 6 | 1 | −2 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 5 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 5 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 1927 m. Area climate from Open-Meteo reanalysis. Temperatures are adjusted to the height of the crag; rain comes from a grid cell of about 10 to 25 km, and summer highs on sea cliffs can read a few degrees low. The wall and valley can differ. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
What to carry
12 quickdraws plus belay gear (first-ascent topo). Two ropes for the abseils: no source states a length, the first pitch is given as 50 m, and the neighbouring Réforme topo specifies 50 m abseils. Helmet.
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
Reader reports are not being collected yet. Until they are, check a current topo and the local club or guidebook publisher for recent changes to Champion du Maroc.
Worth knowing
Open questions
Provenance
Same area
Morocco · Taghia
The friendly way into Taghia, starting at the water's edge beside the springs. Seven varied pitches, well bolted by Taghia standards. Go left around the unstable rock below the second belay; fragile blocks are marked in red. In shade until midday.
6b7 pitches270 m
Committing
Morocco · Taghia
The easiest bolted line at Taghia: three steep 5c walls linked by two long, easy garden pitches. Goes into shade around midday in April.
5c5 pitches235 m
Read the cautions
Morocco · Taghia
The classic first route at Taghia: steep, water-sculpted red limestone on the west face of the Taoujdad, with a 6c third pitch that is 6b until a short crux below the belay. It is better bolted than most Taghia routes and correspondingly popular, so some pitches are polished.
6c7 pitches300 m
Morocco · Taghia
A less-travelled neighbour of Au nom de la Réforme: a sustained 6b crack pitch, an unusual 6c that climbs through a hole and out left with one bouldery move, then three long pitches of 6a to 6a+ up a pillar. Getting off cleanly means either the sparsely bolted summit pitches or a short traverse to the Réforme abseils.
6c6 pitches190 m
Read the cautions
Around 6c+ · about 5 pitches
Croatia · Paklenica
The line used for Paklenica's annual Big Wall Speed Climbing competition: steep, direct and on very rough rock that has stayed unpolished. A sustained 45 m 6c+ pitch on small holds is the crux, followed by sharp runnels, a big corner and three overhangs to finish. Fifteen minutes from the car.
6c+6 pitches200 m
France · Ariège Pyrenees
The hard classic of the Calamès pillars above Bédeilhac: technical slabs, a well-bolted roof and a sustained 6c wall, capped by a short 7a slab pitch after a walk across a garden. Compact rock and close bolts make it a good place to try harder grades on a multipitch. The middle pitch is vegetated.
7a5 pitches180 m
Spain · Costa Blanca (Cabeçó d'Or)
Five very long pitches of old-school wall climbing: edges, flakes and water pockets where footwork counts more than strength. The 40 m fourth pitch, a steep slab beside a corner, is the highlight and the crux. Remote feeling, in the shade until early afternoon.
6c5 pitches200 m
Read the cautions
Morocco · Akchour (Rif)
Five pitches through tufa columns, a leaning corner and a lichenous chimney on extraordinarily abrasive rock. The first pitch is a three-dimensional 6a+ on jugs between columns and the 7a fourth pitch is an athletic, well-bolted column climb. Two short passages on the easier pitches are run-out.
7a5 pitches160 m
Read the cautions
Compiled from published sources and last verified October 2026. Bolts, anchors and access change. Climbing is dangerous and you are responsible for your own decisions: check a current topo and read the disclaimer.
