Agdz to Tazenakht

After my rest in Agdz, I left my hotel at 6h00. Ahead lay Tazenakht. Just as you leave the town the road is good with a slight incline and for the very first time I get the wind. Its a cross wind, gentle at first and and then strong. It is very difficult to keep my bicycle upright. For the very first time I'm struggling against the wind. My average speed is reduced to 11km/h. Ahead I have the first of two passes. To get over the pass at 1395m high is a bit of a tough climb as the wind compounds the situation. After the first pass I have 45km to Tazenakht. The road is a real shocker. At first it looks like a service road made up a bit of tar and gravel. This is a really isolated section of the R108, not popular with tourists as it used to be a piste(trail or track) before. The mining town of Bou-azzer appears and the main vehicular activity is trucks. I continue and before long the dreaded second pass appears. One can see it in the far distance as it worms it way up the mountain. The road has improved but is still narrow and I'm competing for space with trucks. As the second pass takes its grip, the average temp is around 37 deg and I'm sweating bullets . The Tizi Taguergoust is 1640m high and the wind is still gusting in places. Once over the pass I have 10km to go to the town of Tazenakht.