Tabarka to Ain Draham Road Climb

Profil altimétrique

27-724 M / TUILES DE TERRAIN ÉCHANTILLONNÉES LE LONG DU TRACÉ

Photographies

Photos : Eyakaddour (CC BY-SA 4.0), Citizen59 (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Point de départ

Voiture

About 175 km west of Tunis via Beja and Nefza to Tabarka (about 3 h), then 7.5 km south on the Ain Draham road.

Louage

Louage from Tunis Bab Saadoun station to Tabarka (verify locally), then ride to the foot of the climb.

Bus / train

Train Tunis-Jendouba, then louage Jendouba-Tabarka; SNTRI buses also run Tunis-Tabarka.

À proximité

• Hotel Les MimosasHôtel7,0km
• Tabarka Trail el Machina 3.0Événement7,4km
• Hotel Les AiguillesHôtel7,5km
• Tabarka BeachPlage7,8km
• Ain ChelmSource8,0km
• Tabarka IslandÎle8,4km

La randonnée

A long paved road climb from the coastal plain south of Tabarka up through the cork-oak forest to the hill town of Ain Draham.

This is the classic road climb of the Tunisian north-west. The segment starts where the Tabarka-Ain Draham national road leaves the plain a few kilometres south of Tabarka and winds up the Kroumirie hills, gaining about 800 m in 22.9 km before rolling into Ain Draham, which sits at around 700 m. The surface is mostly well paved and the gradient is steady rather than steep, but the length makes it a hard ride that needs good fitness. The road climbs through some of the densest cork-oak and zeen-oak forest in the country, and the air cools noticeably on the way up. Riders usually start from Tabarka, which adds about 7.5 km of flat road to the foot of the climb, and return the same way for a long descent to the sea.

• About 800 m of climbing in 22.9 km
• Cork-oak and zeen-oak forest of Kroumirie
• Cool hill town of Ain Draham at the top
• Long descent back toward the sea at Tabarka

Météo et saison

SAISON

Apr-Jun and Sep-Nov; rain and fog are common in winter

Normales mensuelles 2011-2020 au point de départ, par Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0). Les mois teintés sont la saison annoncée pour cette randonnée.

Pratique

Eau

Carry 1.5-2 L; cafes and shops in Tabarka and Ain Draham, little in between.

Guide

not needed

Dangers

Shared road with cars and trucks on bends; fog and wet roads in the cooler months; fast descent on the way back.

Tracé

Ligne approximative le long des chemins cartographiés, entre des points vérifiés. Suivez un guide ou une trace GPS sur le terrain.

Partir avec un guide

Ces opérateurs et clubs organisent des randonnées guidées en Tunisie :

• WildyNessTunisian booking platform for guided hikes with local guides (Cap Blanc, Mides, Selja, Dahar, El Haouaria), several with GPS downloads.
• Association Tunisienne des RandonneursHiking association in Tunis that runs and writes up group hikes across the country.
• Mosaic North AfricaTour operator offering custom hiking trips, including the Chebika, Tamerza and Mides oases.
• Destination DaharPublishes the official topoguide (12 stages, 194 km) of the Grande Traversee du Dahar.
• Grand Sahara AventuresDjerba-based operator running Berber village and desert treks in the south.
• Destination TunisTunis-based guide publishing and leading day hikes around Tunis and Cap Bon.

Sources

• komoot: Scenic Climb to Ain Draham (22.9 km, 800 m)
• Wikipedia: Ain Draham