Rock engravings
Daggers, halberds and shields in stone.
Pala — Public domain · Abdelhak-fekirrin — CC BY-SA 4.0 · MED.BENALLA — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Photograph by Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net). — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jacobsresearch — CC BY-SA 4.0
Oukaïmeden, a high plateau in the High Atlas about 77 km by road south of Marrakech, is Morocco's best-known ski area. Its village stands at about 2,600 m, and a chairlift rises to about 3,260 m above some 10 km of runs; the resort is often billed as Africa's highest. Its natural snow varies greatly, usually lying from January to mid-March. Long before skiing, the plateau was an agdal, a collective summer pasture of the Ourika and Rheraya tribes, and custom still closes it from 15 March to 10 August so the grass can seed. Prehistoric herders pecked engravings into its red sandstone: a 2014 study counted 1,068 figures, mostly Neolithic to Bronze Age, including daggers, halberds and shields. The Club Alpin Français built a refuge in 1936, and in February 1942 the plateau first hosted the Moroccan ski championships. The lifts have seldom run in recent winters, though families still drive up after heavy snow. Spring fills the meadows with wildflowers, and in summer the plateau stays far cooler than Marrakech; flocks arrive when the pasture opens in August, sheltering with their herders in dry-stone huts. Engraved slabs lie around the village, and some 1,000 documented boulders draw climbers. The road follows the Ourika valley from Marrakech, then climbs from Aghbalou on provincial road P2030, a drive of 1.5 to 2 hours. Avoid snowy weekends, when the road jams, and watch for fallen rocks after rain. Setti Fatma, up the Ourika valley, lies about 18 km east as the crow flies, and Jbel Toubkal's summit about 16 km south-south-west.
Daggers, halberds and shields in stone.
Flocks return each August.
White slopes in good winters.
Oukaïmeden plateau, provincial road P2030 above the Ourika valley, Al Haouz Province
Only after good snowfalls, and lately without lifts: in winter 2026 skiers walked up the slopes while mules carried their skis, with gear hire and guides available locally. A renovation with new lifts is planned, so check locally whether they run before you go.
They are scattered on slabs across the plateau, some among the chalets near the village; Jean Malhomme, a teacher in Marrakech, began recording them in 1949. A local guide can show the best panels; never touch, chalk or walk on them.