Life on the road: Weronika Szalas

Words and photos by Weronika Szalas.

Weronika Szalas has spent much of the past five years living life on her bike. Touring (and only occasionally racing) she spends real time travelling through the countries she visits, beautifully documenting the people and the places she visits. Ahead of the Atlas Mountain Race in early February, we heard from Weronika on what it was like to spend a couple of weeks riding through Morocco.

Realising that it’s been almost a year since I was bikepacking through Morocco made me want to reflect on the trip.

On the 8th February 2024, after spending a month working remotely from Sierra Nevada, Spain, I finished my last day of work, left my laptop with a friend, packed the rest of things I had with me on my bike and four hours later I departed on a direct ferry to Morocco. I had two weeks until a bike guiding job in the Canary Islands, so I decided to spend them exploring the country.

During the first week I crossed the Atlas and Anti-Atlas Mountains from north to south. I used a mix of trains, buses and taxi to get me closer to the mountains.

Week two was getting to Essaouira to hang out and cheer on friends riding AMR. It was great to see some familiar faces there. I met with my friend Adelaide and we waited at the finish line for Sophie. I met both of these beautiful souls at the Komoot rally a couple years earlier. We then set off with Adelaide to cross the Atlas Mountains again, this time from south back to Marrakech.

This trip was full of contrasts. The scenery changes on every step, the hustle of the big city against the chilled vibe of the seaside town in Essaouira. Also riding solo, hanging out with friends and sharing the rest of the trip with Adelaide were all very different experiences from each other, although I really appreciated each for their own reasons.

It was my first time cycling in Africa (outside of the Canary Islands). I started the trip feeling slightly intimidated as a woman cycling alone there. But this feeling grew into confidence over the course of the trip, impacted by the kind gestures of people I met along the way. The few days with Adelaide were special and we both felt empowered to live this experience together.

It was early in the trip that I realised I had very little time for what I wanted to see, so I treated those two weeks as a taster of places I would like to come back to for longer… Both the silence of the mountains and the cacophony of sounds in the city where, what I initially thought was chaos, came out to be a free flowing organism where everything has its own place. It will stick with me for a long time. Until next time, Morocco.

And good luck to all the rides at Atlas Mountain Race!