John Lisker/Mike Darzi
Morocco Trek and Sights
SUMMARY OF TRIP INFORMATION
Morocco Trek and Sights
Leader John Lisker
Morocco
12-28 February 2017
Backpacking
Title of trip
Leadership
Location(s)
Dates
Type of trip
check all that apply
Primary type of trip
Number of participants
(excluding leaders)
Advertised cost
Airfare range if not included
When should the trip notice be
published in AMC Outdoors?
Do you wish to have your trip
listed online before it is
published in AMC Outdoors?
Smaller trips and leader
subsidization
Co-leader Mike Darzi
Total # of days 17
Bicycling-Mountain
Bicycling-Road
Camping
Cultural
Family
Hiking
Paddling-Canoeing
Paddling-Sea-Kayaking
Skiing-CrossSkiing-Downhill
Snorkeling
Country (Nordic)
(Alpine)
Trekking (e.g., hutWalking
Other – please describe supported
camping, not huts
to-hut)
Trekking (e.g., hut-to-hut)
Select one of those checked above.
Minimum 10
Maximum 10
$ 2200
Does it include airfare? Yes
No
$
Will leaders assist participants with flights? Yes
No
First Appearance: Month July
Year 2016
Last Appearance: Month January
Year 2017
Note: AMC Outdoors is only published in Jan., March, May, July, Sept., Nov.
Yes
No If yes, please list the approximate month and year when it should
be posted on line. 1 July 2017
Is this proposal for a small group trip – i.e., less than 14 participants and 2
leaders or 7 participants and 1 leader? Yes
No
If yes, why is a small group proposed? The trip is to a country with a significantly
different culture; it's much easier for 12 people to keep track of each other than for 16
to do the same. The trek route is remote from medical care, and the first aid training of
the Moroccan outfitter personnel is uncertain.
If a participant fee increase of more than 15% is proposed, please explain why?
same; this is a bargain trip even with each participant paying for 20% of one leader's
costs.
LEADER AND CO-LEADER INFORMATION
Leader name
Leader address
Leader email
Leader phone
Wilderness first aid
training
CPR training
Prior leading experience
Form Revised September 2015
John Lisker
2390 Commonwealth Avenue, Auburndale, MA 02466
john.lisker@juno.com
Home 617-244-1636
Work
WFA
AWFA
WFR
Expiration: May 2017
Cell
CPR
BLS
Expiration: May 2017
If this is your first Adventure Travel trip as a Leader you must be present at the AMCATC meeting at which the trip proposal is considered.
Please list the last three longer (5+ day) trips you have led for the AMC including
destination, type of trip, dates and number of participants. Feel free to list additional
trips you have led, particularly if they demonstrate experience related to the trip you are
proposing.
Adventure Travel Trip Proposal Form, page 1 of 5
John Lisker/Mike Darzi
Morocco Trek and Sights
Trip one
Trip two
Trip three
Other related trip
experience
New Zealand, February 2016, 13 participants
Tour of the Jungfrau Region, July 2015, 10 participants
Tour de la Vanoise, July-August 2014, 10 participants
Morocco Trekking and Sights, February 2009, 10 participants
Co-leader name
Co-leader address
Co-leader email
Co-leader phone
Wilderness first aid training
CPR training*
Prior leading experience
Trip one
Trip two
Trip three
Other related trip experience
Scouting
Have either of you led this trip
before or traveled to this area?
Languages
Does either the co-leader or
leader speak the local language?
Couples
Do the leader and co-leader
have a significant personal
relationship?
Private trips Do either of you
lead trips that are private - not
sponsored by the AMC?
Mike Darzi
PO Box 2308, Rockville, MD 20847
michael.darzi@SAIC.com
Home
Work
Cell 301-580-9387
WFA
AWFA
WFR
Expiration: will take
CPR
BLS
Expiration: will renew
If you are a new co-leader you must submit an application to be an Adventure Travel
leader or co-leader prior to submitting this application. Also, it is strongly
recommended that you be present at the AMC-ATC meeting at which the trip proposal
is considered.
Please list the last three longer (5+ day) trips you have led for the AMC including
destination, type of trip, dates and number of participants. Please indicate if you were
the leader or co-leader.
White Mountains, June 2015, 6 days, 15 participants
Acadia NP, May 2014, 8 days, 15 participants
Berkshires, Oct 2013, 8 days, 15 participants
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below:
John led a very similar trip in 2009 after doing it as a participant in 2004 with Martin
Hunt (an English friend of Kathy Didier), who used the same Moroccan outfitter,
Slimane Baadoud, and returns with Slimane to the same area in Morocco annually.
Co-leader: Yes
No
Leader: Yes
No
Not applicable:
Yes
No
If yes, please list who has agreed to be your back-up in case one or
both of you need to drop out. This is required for approval!
Yes
No
If yes, please note that you cannot advertise AMC and private
trips together unless there is a clear distinction between the two in any materials
you send out.
LOGISTICAL DETAILS OF TRIP
Summary
Please provide a description
of the trip and the activities
planned. If available, please
include or attach an itinerary.
Accommodations
Please describe your plans for
accommodation(s)
Meals: Please describe your
plans for providing meals. If
the budget includes any funds
for leader meals not shared
with the group please justify.
Local Transportation
Form Revised September 2015
Trek across the Anti-Atlas Mountains covering 90 miles in eight hiking days, and enjoy
1.5 days exploring Marrakech at the beginning and another 1.5 days in Essaouira on the
coast at the end. The trek is fully supported, with mules, muleteers, guide, cook, and
most equipment provided. We carry day packs; the mules carry the rest. The trails are
good by White Mountain standards, and climbing is modest.
Hotel Ali in Marrakech, 2-person tents while trekking, and Hotel Riad Nakhla in
Essaouira. All camping supplies are provided except participants must bring a sleeping
bag, and a supplemental camping mat is also recommended.
All meals while on the trek are included. Breakfasts in Marrakech and Essaouira, and
dinners in Marrakech are included. Participants will need to buy lunches in Marrakech
and Essaouira, and dinners in Essaouira.
Adventure Travel Trip Proposal Form, page 2 of 5
John Lisker/Mike Darzi
Morocco Trek and Sights
Please describe your plans for
local transportation
Will leaders or participants be
drivers of motor vehicles?
Permits or permissions
Does the trip require special
permits or permissions?
(required on many U.S.
federal lands and national
parks)
Special equipment
Does the trip require special
equipment?
Special experience
Does the trip require special
skills on the part of the
participant?
Will leaders be drivers?
Will volunteer participants be drivers?
If so, MVR checks will be needed. See Appendix S1.
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below what you will need to do to obtain them:
If no, please describe the process you went through to find out that they were not
required:
Tour operator says his trip is all inclusive. Martin Hunt and leader's own experience
agree.
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below what type of equipment and how you
will ensure that people know how to use it:
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below what type of experience? Also describe
how you will ensure that the participant has this experience?
A careful screening process will ensure all participants are physically fit, can hike for 5-7
hours a day over rough ground, and can handle being away from civilization for 10 days
in a row.
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below what you will do:
Uncertain. Possible social gathering at leader and coleader homes (MA and MD).
Possible hike(s). Possible meal at Moroccan restaurants.
Pre-trip activities
Do you plan to get your group
together before the trip for an
activity or social event?
Conservation, education and
recreation
How will this AMC-AT trip meet the
mission of the AMC?
www.outdoors.org/about/mission.cfm
We will learn about the Berber culture, eat various Moroccan foods, and explore
the cities of Marrakech and Essaouira. While trekking, the guide will talk about
about local geology, minerals, birds, plants and trees (wild and cultivated).
TOUR OPERATOR AND GUIDE SERVICE INFORMATION
This section should be completed if the trip will be using a tour operator, outfitter, guide service, travel agency or
other such company or person(s) for a significant part of the trip or for the entire trip. Any person(s) or companies
that are handling a significant portion of trip funds or arrangements need to be vetted. If there is more than one
tour operator please provide this information about each such entity.
Will this trip require a tour
Yes
No
operator or guide service
Please describe their services. If you are using a tour operator for the entire trip,
during part of or for the
please describe why you will be using them rather than doing this trip on your own:
See Executive Summary above. The coleader's French is good, but otherwise the leaders
entire trip?
don't speak the local languages (Berber and Arabic), or know the local customs well
enough to be comfortable doing the trek alone.
Name of tour operator/guide Slimane Baadoud
service
www.maroctrekking.com
Tour operator website
Slimane says his outfit has had no problems. More significantly, previous AMC groups
Safety record
Please provide information
had no problems, and Martin Hunt keeps going back. Slimane has thought about
about their safety record.
procedures for medical emergencies. On one occasion, a participant suffered a heart
attack and had to be evacuated to Marrakech for treatment. On another, a participant
unable to do the walking was evacuated to Ourazazate to wait for the group's return.
Insurance
Liability? Yes
No
Maximum amt: $
Do they have liability
Are they willing to list AMC as an
Yes
No
insurance?
additional insured?
The route is never more than 4 hours by mule from a 4x4 track. The crew knows the
Emergency response
Please describe the outfitters’
area well, carries cell phones, knows where to find a cell phone signal and how to
response plan in the case of an arrange to meet a vehicle. Of course they have donkeys which can transport an injured
Form Revised September 2015
Adventure Travel Trip Proposal Form, page 3 of 5
John Lisker/Mike Darzi
Morocco Trek and Sights
emergency.
person to meet a vehicle. Slimane says helicopter evacuation can be arranged.
RISK ASSESSMENT
Please assess the risks and hazards of your trip. Carefully consider each area of risk and how it may affect your trip.
Devise a plan to prevent each hazard and to respond to it if it becomes necessary. Please be very specific for each section
if applicable.
Trail conditions, river crossings, weather, wildlife (bears, snakes, etc.)
Climate/terrain
Potential hazards
Trails are in generally good condition. Though rarely seen, snakes, scorpions and palm
rats live in the mountains.
Response
Participants will be encouraged to look where they are stepping.
Political concerns, crime, language translation, terrorism
Foreign Country
Potential hazards
With recent incidents in Paris and Brussels, we must recognize that terrorism is always
possible. Emergency and specialized medical care is below U.S. standards, especially
outside the major cities, and in backcountry will not be immediately available at all.
Panhandling and pick-pocketing are only minor concerns, and only in urban areas.
Response
Among Muslim countries with substantial Arab populations, Morocco is notably stable
and tolerant. We will be away from what seem to be attractive terrorist targets. Leaders
have AWFA training, and will carry a medical kit. They and the guide will have
Moroccan cell phones for emergencies. Participants will be in the big city only briefly
(Marrakech for less than 2 days; Money Magazine says it's among the safest tourist
destination cities), and will be encouraged to be careful.
Road conditions, drivers, insurance
Transportation
Potential hazards
Traffic accidents are a hazard in Morocco.
Response
We will be driven by local professional drivers. We will not rent or drive any vehicles.
Level of fitness, screening concerns, experience with equipment or activity
Participants
Potential hazards
Skill level, health, group dynamics.
Response
The leaders will screen for these factors. Participants should practice good fitness and be
prepared for multiple consecutive 10-mile hiking days.
Conditions unique to this type of trip
Other
Potential hazards
Women walking alone may be vulnerable to harassment from men.
Response
The group will stay together most of the time. Women will be advised to dress modestly,
not to travel alone, and to ignore any harassment.
EMERGENCY ACTION PLAN
Please describe your plans for dealing with emergencies. Give as much detail as possible and list any special
communications equipment you may need to ensure the safety of your participants. DO NOT LEAVE THIS BLANK
Leaders will carry a Moroccan cell phone and possibly a satellite phone (from the AMC
Emergency communication
Phone contacts, language,
if it is available); tour operator has normal cell phones. The police emergency services
documentation, distance from
phone number is 190. On the trek, our multilingual guide will assist with translation as
emergency services
necessary.
If an AMC satellite phone is available, we will carry it.
Emergency equipment
What sort of emergency first
aid or communication
equipment (satellite phone,
two-way radios) do you plan
to use, if any?
The route is never more than 4 hours by mule from a 4x4 track. The crew knows the
Evacuation
Please describe your plan for
area well, carries cell phones, knows where to find a cell phone signal and how to
evacuation from the
arrange to meet a vehicle. Of course they have donkeys which can transport an injured
backcountry location if
person to meet a vehicle. Slimane says helicopter evacuation can be arranged.
applicable?
Emergency and specialized medical care is below U.S. standards, especially outside the
Medical care
Please describe the medical
major cities, and in the backcountry will not be immediately available at all. Marrakech
care available in the area(s)
probably has decent medical care available; Casablanca certainly does. (One participant
Form Revised September 2015
Adventure Travel Trip Proposal Form, page 4 of 5
John Lisker/Mike Darzi
Morocco Trek and Sights
where you will be traveling
and list names and telephone
numbers for these facilities.
on John's 2009 trip had good experience in Casablanca.) The populations of Essaouira
and Ourazazate are both under 100,000. It's impossible know in advance where someone
evacuated from the backcountry would be taken for treatment.
COST AND BUDGET DETAILS
The current exchange rate is 9.7 dirhams/$. The budget assumes 8.5.
Foreign currencies
For int’l trips list each foreign currency, the
The prospectus will address the unlikely event that we need more
current $US dollar exchange rate and what
money to handle a major drop in the relative value of the US dollar. All
contingencies you have if that rate changes. If
expenses will be paid either by credit card or with dirham cash from
a tour operator or agent is being used, what
Moroccan ATMs.
currency is the agent to be paid in?
Payment of flight deposits and costs will be determined by the airline chosen and its
Group Trip Deposits
What deposits will be required
deadlines. At this time we are looking most seriously at Air France, which requires
from you by airlines, hotels, tour refundable seat deposits which the leader will front. The tour operator does not have a
operators, etc., and when?
deposit deadline but we plan to send a deposit approx. 60 days before we arrive.
The airline will refund the deposits on unticketed seats until 91 days before departure.
Group Trip Refunds
What is the latest date you can
Nobody else requires a deposit.
cancel and still receive a full
refund of any deposits?
Initial deposit of $500 is due with application. Second payment of $700 is due two
Participant deposits
What are the initial deposit and
weeks after acceptance, and is large enough to cover participant air fare and share of
your schedule of payments by
leader airfare. Final balance is due November 1, 2016.
participants to you?
Nobody's cancellation will be allowed to raise costs for others. Published minimum
Cancellation policy
What will be your cancellation
penalty schedule: zero before 1 Aug 16, $200 from 1 Aug 16 to 30 Sep 16, $400 after
policy for the participants?
30 Sept 16. If actual costs are higher, they will be assessed instead.
Minimum numbers
Yes
No
If yes, please describe conditions:
Will you still run the trip if you
This is irrelevant, because the trip is highly likely to fill, and quickly.
do not get the minimum number?
Reference web links:
AMC-ATC Home Page:
Forms:
Deadlines:
E-Mail Addresses:
Club House:
AMC-ATC Chair:
Form Revised September 2015
http://snebulos.mit.edu/orgs/amc/
http://snebulos.mit.edu/orgs/amc/application/
http://snebulos.mit.edu/orgs/amc/committee/proposals/
nholland@outdoors.org
scohen1234@gmail.com
Adventure Travel Trip Proposal Form, page 5 of 5