Jbel Toubkal is the highest mountain in the Haut Atlas (High Atlas) and N Africa til Ras Dashen in Ethiopia. Throughout the story of exploration by Europeans it must be remembered that some of the main summits of the Atlas, including Toubkal, were almost certainly reached by Berber tribesmen in the course of hunting trips long before recorded ascents began.
Two Frenchmen, the Marquis de Segonzac and Louis Gentil, the second a noted geologist, commenced thorough explorations in wich de Segonzac climbed Ari n’Ayachi in 1901 and Gentil came within an ace of reaching the top of Siroua in 1908. Both men continued their work into the 1920s wich resulted in the mineral wealth of Morocco being exposed and developed on a large scale.
The Moroccan section of the Alpine Club was founded in 1922 and in that year de Segonzac climbed the Iferouane believing it to be the highest point in the range, only to observe the mountain now called Toubkal was distinctly loftier. An attempt on Toubkal in April the following year was rebuffed by fresh snow but de Segonzac and his party returned in June and got to the top.
The height of Toubkal was determined in 1924 and a trigonometrical signal was raised on the summit in 1931. After the conquest of Toubkal in 1923 new ascents in the region followed rapidly as French expatriate enthusiasm mounted. Trekkers usually approach the mountain from the road-end village of Imlil. Qualified local guides can be hired, as well as mules and porters, to carry equipment and food supplies higher into the mountains. For experienced mountaineers, guides are not required for the normal route, as it is an easy hike and orientation is not a problem.The normal route starts with an easy walk to the village of Aroumd. Past Aroumd a floodplain is crossed and the route follows the left slope of the valley southwards. The valley bends to the east to the tiny settlement of Sidi Chamharouch, which has grown around a Muslim shrine. At Sidi Chamharouch, the path leads over the stream and runs steeply uphill to the right side of the Isougouane valley, which leads to two stone-built refuges (old Neltner Refuge and new Refuge du Toubkal) that are often used as base camp at 3,207 m (10,522 ft).
It is possible to buy good meals in the Refuge du Toubkal. Tents can be pitched near the refuges for a small charge. The Kasbah du Toubkal is an extraordinary venture, the product of an imaginative Berber and European partnership. There is a shared belief that the beauty of the Toubkal National Park should be accessible to all who respect it. To this end the Kasbah has been transformed using traditional methods, from the home of a Feudal Caid into an unprecedented haven; one that provides a variety of accommodation and event possibilities to meet differing requirements.