AMAZING MOTORCYCLE RIDE THROUGH THE TUNISIAN SAHARA DESERT
Tunisia is famous for its beautiful golden sandy beaches, but for motorcyclists, first of all, it is an enchanting country featuring a remarkable variety of landscapes that change drastically passing from the windy and lush coasts of the Mediterranean to the vast and arid expanses of sand in the Sahara. This tour will take you through these impressive landscapes starting out from Tunis, the capital of Tunisia, whose port is connected by several ferries with Europe.
From Tunis let's head south, reaching after about 380 km the city Gafsa located on the edge of the Sahara desert. After this long riding your motorbike, you can do the same thing the ancient Romans did when they got back to this city: they first went and had a bath in the Roman Swimming Pools. These ancient pools 5 meters deep of freshwaters are perfectly preserved still today despite the millennia.
Leaving Gafsa you will have to follow some gravel roads. The first one is the famous "Pista Rommel", named after the German general.
He was nicknamed the "Desert Fox" because on this track in the desert he managed to hide their tanks so well that nobody was able to find and destroy them!
Left behind the exciting Pista Rommel, keep on riding to Tamerza fall, Cascade de la palmeraie. Take your time to relax and cool off in this enchanting place!
After taking a rest in this beautiful oasis with a waterfall hidden among the palm trees, you will ride on some gravel road sections to "Camel Neck", a huge rock similar to a camel's head sculpted by the wind. It is a natural monument, the destination for many tourists and motorcyclists.
Now it is time to head your bike to the amazing and rocky "Canyon of Star Wars". Many movie scenes of the famous Hollywood saga were shot in these areas of Tunisia similar to the wasteland of Mars.
Then, you will reach "Chott el Djerid", famous for deceiving travelers with mysterious mirages.
The next section of the route will follow one of the most famous tracks in the Tunisian Sahara, the road through the dunes that crosses the "Jebel National Park". It is a challenging track, but facing it at low speed you will have lots of fun riding your motorcycle!
The furrows left by the 4x4 are annoying and in some parts, where the sand is more compact, it is better to leave the track and follow its alongside. On one hand, this can cause some inconvenience in riding but on the other hand, this also means there are others besides you on this track, so, you are not alone in the desert!
Then, among the dunes, you will reach the "Campement Zmela Labrissa" where you can experience the life, eating and sleeping, in the tents of a Berber camp.
Keeping on riding your motorbike on the route you will have to face some more difficult gravel stretches but near Tataouine the road becomes paved again and will take you back to Tunis.
Tataouine was also a Star Wars set and George Lucas called Luke Skywalker's home planet by the name "Tatooine" in honor of this city.
On the road back to Tunis you can stop and visit some interesting places, such as the majestic "Bourguiba Mosque" (Monastir) or the "El Jem Amphitheater", the ancient Roman theater with 35,000 seats, second in size only to the Colosseum in Rome.
Also, you can stop at the beautiful "Chaffer beach" and swim in the warm Med sea. At last, if you are an archeologic lover do not miss the interesting archaeological site of Young.
