Dune-boarding safari
It goes without saying that sand and snow are very different. But I'm just outside the Moroccan village of Hassi Labied, where the Ziz Valley comes down from the Atlas and dissolves into the arid moonscape of the Western Sahara, and as I launch myself off the largest sand dune in the area with a snowboard strapped to my feet, the difference seems academic. I am hurtling at considerable speed through the desert while around me sand dunes ripple over the horizon, changing colour, chameleon-like, in the setting sun. The scenery, as it rushes past, is intensely beautiful - a blur of browns, yellows and blues.
The differences do matter though. The sand is very fine, so I have to lean back to keep the tip of the board from burying itself in the side of the hill. It feels slightly unnatural because on snow, which I am used to, leaning forwards is the key to staying upright. And where snow eases the board on its way, sand seems to create some friction, which means having to hurl myself off the top of the dune to gather momentum. Luckily, the dune is not only the largest, but also the steepest in the area, so gathering speed is not a problem, despite the friction. It's even possible to put a few turns in, carving S shapes in the sand near the bottom.
It's exhilarating stuff, but over far too quickly; then begins the slow trudge back to the summit. It's at this point that I start dreaming of an Alpine-style chairlift to whisk me back to the top. Walking up a steep hill of sand involves taking three steps forward and slipping two steps back. It disappears beneath your feet, sinking and shifting. Combine this with a slight breeze that whips it into your face, and the intense heat (it has been over 40 degrees all day, and it's not much cooler now despite the sun beginning to set) and it adds to up to a properly extreme sport.
As the sun and the sand get everywhere, I'm very glad of the Berber headscarf - wrapped tightly round my ears and mouth - that I'm wearing at the insistence of my hosts, a congenial Berber family who run a hotel on the edge of the village. At least they call it a hotel, but it looks more like a fortress, fashioned from sand and mud, with an outer wall to provide protection from the winds, leading into a central courtyard with a swimming pool - a real luxury in the desert.
They were particularly pleased to see me as they were recovering from what they referred to obliquely as "la catastrophe": a freak rainstorm at the end of May, the first proper rain for over 60 years, which had caused several houses and hotels, also made of mud and sand, to collapse. When I arrived they were putting the finishing touches to an outside wall that had receded slightly in the storm. They assured me that the structure of the rest of the hotel was fine.
I was certainly thankful for the protection of the cool, dark rooms during the day, when it was too hot to venture outside, punctuating long bouts of lying around with frequent plunges into the swimming pool. It wasn't until after five o'clock, with two hours of daylight left, that the temperature had dropped enough to go into the village to find the only ski hire shop in the Western Sahara where, 100 dirhams (£6) later, I was given the use of a gold-coloured snowboard with "Rad Air" emblazoned across the tip.
I didn't get much air, but it was pretty radical. Practising an extreme sport in the extreme beauty of the desert was a sensory overload that left a lasting impression on me. As the sun sank behind the distant Atlas Mountains and the stars began to come out in the clearest night sky I have ever seen, I wandered back through the dusk in search of a cold drink to get rid of the taste of the sand that, despite the headscarf, was crunching between my teeth.
Way to go
Easyjet (easyjet.com) London Gatwick to Marrakech flights are prices at £239.98 rtn including taxes or Atlas Blue (atlas-blue.com) flies London Gatwick to Marrakech for €143.54 rtn (flight time: 4.5 hours), bus from Marrakech to Rissani Dh140 (£8.50) one way, grand taxi from Rissani to Hassi Labied Dh12.
Or if you're really adventurous: Easyjet (easyjet.com) London to Malaga £125.98 return (flight time: three hours), bus from Malaga to Algeciras €10 one way, ferry from Algeciras to Tangier €24 one way, train from Tangier to Fes Dh96 (£5.80), Bus from Fes to Rissani Dh100, grand taxi Rissani to Hassi Labied Dh12.
To do the whole journey overland, see seat61.com/Morocco
Where to stay
Albergue Atlas Du Sable, Hassi Labied (alielcojo.com) has doubles for Dh300 a night.
The hotel can arrange for snowboards and boot hire from the village, Dh100 for two hours
Further information
Moroccan National Tourist Office: visitmorocco.com
£1=€1.41 £1= Dh11.07