KSAR ES SEGHIR , halfway to Ceuta, makes a pleasant stop. The picturesque little fishing port attracts a fair number of Moroccan beach campers in summer, but few Europeans. There are a few ruined walls which date from Portuguese times, and legend has it that Tarik Ibn Ziyad invaded Spain from here in 711. The Café-Restaurant Diamant Bleu (tel 03/994 6832, fax 994 6831; 200-400dh) has rooms overlooking the sea, and you can eat here or at the Restaurant Luna Mar by the petrol station.

 

From Ksar es Seghir the road to Fnideq climbs around the windy Djebel Moussa - the mountain which, with Gibraltar, forms the so-called Pillars of Hercules, gateway to the Classical world. Mythologies aside, the twin pillars effect remarkable thermal currents, speeding passage for migratory birds at this, the shortest crossing between Africa and Europe. A spring or autumn visit should ensure sightings, as up to 200 species make their way across the Straits, as well as providing sightings of a new addition to the landscape of Djebel Moussa, a line of 35m-high wind machines producing electricity for the area.