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Spain + Morocco 1A • June 6-June 19, 2025

See Ya Later Spain (And Morocco)

June 19, 2025

Hello once again from Spain and Morocco!!

 

For the second country of our trip, everyone rallied for a very early morning flight to Marrakech, Morocco, where we had some big plans. From the airport, we headed to our first destination, a beautiful small mountain town the serves as the gateway to Mt. Toubkal National Park. From this town we could look up at our task for the next three days- the Toubkal massif, which at its tallest stands 4167m (13,671ft). The trek itself takes 3 days, for more than 8000 total vertical feet and 18 miles. The night before we started the trek everyone got to do some shopping, we had a lovely traditional Moroccan dinner in a room with a view, and we had moonup on the roof. William and Addie led us in a thoughtful Moonup that made us think about what we care about and what challenges us.

 

The next morning we rose early to begin our conquest of Mt Toubkal. Today we faced our hardest hiking day of the entire trek, hiking 5000 vertical feet over 7.5 miles. For most of the day we walked through sloping valleys carved by rivers in the beating sun. William, Rhys, and Chase passed the time by playing word games with our leaders. Our LODs were App and Mac and they did a great job of keeping the energy up. It was challenging for everyone but we all pulled through, and the miles always go faster when you’re having a good conversation. When we were feeling low energy Mac and App surprised everyone with lollipops to keep our spirits up and help us with the last push of the day. Big shoutout to the team of mules that carried our heavier bags up to the top for us. After many hours we arrived at our lodging for the night, the one of a handful of refuges at Toubkal Base Camp. This refuge could’ve been straight out of a movie set- guests from all over the world, a lively dining room, shared dormitories where you could hear the howling wind at night. We slept that night with anticipation for the next day.

 

Finally, the sun rose and summit day arrived, and the team tackled a grueling, steep hike towards the top of Mt. Toubkal. Through imprints of forgotten glaciers in a land that could’ve been at home in Lord of the Rings we climbed towards the top for most of the morning. In a low moment, Henry extemporaneously delivered a rousing speech to motivate the rest of the group. A group of our boys kept the energy up by singing led by Fritz. Together our team helped each other keep a positive mindset. Finally, with the wind howling we reached the end of our journey, revealing 360 degree views of the Atlas Mountains at the top of Toubkal. Feeling a sense of accomplishment and unity, the boys celebrated with a pee of the side of the mountain and the girls with a group nap. We recognized our accomplishment with some Snickers bars and took a ton of pictures before heading back to base camp for an extremely well deserved nap. We enjoyed Moroccan mint tea, played some uno, and call it a night, to be ready for our descent tomorrow.

Thankfully, our last day on Toubkal was all descent, so as a reward for all of our walking uphill the last few days we now got to go down. Despite the heavy rain we all reached the bottom, had a picnic lunch prepared on the spot by our guides, and then got in a van for the ultimate reward for our last few days: a stay at our outfitter Mohamed’s house, which is lovely, spacious, and best of all… includes a pool!!!!! We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing, which everyone appreciated very much.

 

The centerpiece of our final day in Morocco was one of the country’s most famous attractions: the markets of Marrakech. In two teams we explored the twisting, turning alleyways of the souks of Morocco, which sell almost anything you could want to buy (although maybe in knockoff form!). Chase and Addie proved particularly adept at bartering with the vendors. In the afternoon, we returned to Mohamed’s for more pool time and a cooking class. Big shoutout to Mac translating the chef’s French for the rest of us. Laura and Caroline used some of Mohamed’s lemon trees to make some homemade lemonade, which was delicious. Before we turned in for the night Molly and William led everyone in a very reflective moonup, where we all had to ponder, “what have we gained from this trip?”

 

On our final trip day we returned to Madrid, where we would all depart from the next day. However we had one more night all together and we resolved to carpe all of that diem in the beautiful Spanish capital. Upon landing from Marrakech we changed into our banquet gear and headed to a delicious pizza dinner. We continued the Italian theme with some gelato and then we walked to our spot for our final Moonup, in a park with a view of the city. Our final LODs, Claire and Fritz, did a great job of leading a touching final Moonup where we felt the bond that we had all developed over the last two weeks.

 

In the morning, we caught the Madrid metro- possibly underslept- to the airport where we said our goodbyes. Over the last two weeks we’ve seen two mountain ranges in two countries on two continents, and made a ton of friends along the way. This trip may be over but us leaders are sure the bond this group has developed will last a long time. We are so incredibly thankful to have spent the last two weeks with these kids. We saw each of your kids grow and flourish over the time we spent with them, and it was truly inspiring to watch. One last thank you for sharing your daughters and sons with us. Enjoy your reunion!

 

Much love from Matthew and Scarlet.

SPM 1A over and out!


Hello Again!

June 15, 2025

We cruised into the next section of our trip, which included canyoneering, surfing, and Via Ferrata! App and Molly were our LODs and kicked things off with some new adventures. We started the morning with canyoneering-slipping into our matching green and pink wetsuits and diving right in. We scrambled through the river, dodging rocks and jumping into clear pools, all with huge smiles on our faces. In the afternoon, we traded spring water for salty air. With surfboards in hand, we headed to the ocean to catch some tasty waves! 🤙 We had a few veteran surfers in the mix, but Addie, Fritz, Rhys, and William especially got the hang of it quickly. We all had a blast and couldn’t wait to get back out there the next day. That evening, we explored a picturesque coastal town in Asturias before having dinner at a local restaurant. Everyone picked up a fun souvenir to remember our time in Spain.

The next morning, Chase and Caroline took over as LODs and helped coordinate a delicious breakfast of eggs and bacon before we returned to the mountains for a Via Ferrata-an activity invented by the Italian army that combines climbing and ziplining. We stayed on theme with a stop at an Italian restaurant for lunch. In the afternoon, it was back to the waves, which were even better than the day before. A definite trip highlight for everyone. But the real highlight came that evening. Chase and Caroline really stepped up their game and led us in cooking dinner at our hotel. Chase and Caroline made guacamole, Henry and Mclean were on burger duty, Molly, App, Claire, and Laura set the table. Everyone contributed, and the result was a beautiful meal shared under a setting sun, with the mountains standing tall behind us. It was our last night in Spain before heading to Morocco, and it was filled with good food, good views, and great people.

After cleanup, we transitioned into Moonup. Our wonderful Spanish guides, who had been with us since day one, were leaving the next morning, so our LODs invited them to join. Sitting in a circle together made for a heartfelt and wholesome final Moonup. And of course, we had to end the night with a dance party to everyone’s favorite song, Unwritten! Starting tomorrow, we begin our hike up Mount Toubkal! We’ve got a few big days ahead, but we’re confident this group is absolutely ready to conquer the tallest mountain in North Africa.

Keep calm and climb on 🙂

Matthew + Scarlet

 

Shout outs!

William: Hey Mom, Dad, Charlie, and Howard, the trip has been really cool so far and I’m excited to share what we’ve seen. Love, William

Rhys: Hey mom and dad. Spain was really cool; we went hiking, surfing, zip lining, canyoneering. In Morocco now, say hi to the dogs for me and maybe Alice. Love you, Rhys

Caroline: Hi mom and dad!! I am having a great trip so far, Spain was really cool with surfing, hiking, zip lining and canyoneering. We are in Morocco now, I miss you guys so much! Say hi to Molly, Olivia, Tiger, and Quint for me!! I love you guys, Caroline.

Laura:hi mom and dad!! I am having so much fun! Spain is so pretty. We just got done surfing and hiking there and just got to Morocco!! I love and miss yall so much!!

Claire: Hey mom and dad miss you guys sooo much but I am having the best time exploring and learning about Spain and now Morocco. Thank you so much for this amazing, once in a lifetime opportunity. Love yall <3

Molly: Hey mom and dad!!! I am having so much fun and can’t wait to tell yall all about it. Thank you for this amazing opportunity! Love yall!!!

Fritz: Hello parents, I have just arrived in Morocco which is super cool and in about two days we’re hiking the tallest mountain in Northern Africa. Spain was awesome, thank you so much for this opportunity love and miss yall!

McLean: Hey mom and dad! We just left Spain and it was just as cool as I imagined! Morocco seems to be pretty cool also! Thank you so much for this amazing opportunity of a lifetime! Love and miss yall so much!

Henry: Hi guys, doing great. Thanks for everything love yall lots! See you soon!

App: Hey Yall, we just got to Morocco and I’ve been using my chapstick. It’s real hot here. Surfing was cool and I really haven’t taken many pictures but there are lots of pictures of me and my friends. Say Hi to everyone for me and I can’t wait to see you when I get back.

-Your hopefully favorite son, App

Addie: Hey mom and dad! I miss you and love y’all so much. We just got to Morocco and I am having the best time! I can’t wait to tell you all about it! Tell lily and the boys I said hi and take care of each other. I can’t wait to see you!

Chase: Holla madre y padre, everything has been lots of fun so far 🙂 The hikes have been really hard, but have had really crazy views, above the clouds and everything. We just landed in Marrakech and are on the way to climb mount Toubkal, we have to do 5000ft in a day to get to base camp, gonna be rough – wish me luck. Love yall, Chase


Greetings from across the Atlantic!!

June 10, 2025

We have all arrived in Spain and after overcoming some jetlag we are having a great time! After landing in Madrid we headed straight for the mountainous north of the country to the Picos de Europa, a small but spectacular mountain range that straddles three Spanish provinces. Our first full day we spent some time exploring the limestone cliffs of the Picos walking through the Cares Gorge, one of the most famous hikes in Spain. Making 11 new friends is a big task but everyone is doing great! Even though everyone was adjusting to a new continent, new time zone, and new food everyone jumped right in and we can tell this is going to be an awesome group.

We woke up ready for our first day of Trekking! A Big shoutout goes to Laura and Fritz, our first LODS (Leader of the day). They did an incredible job working together to come up with ideas to bring the group together. A highlight of the day was our lodging which was a mountain refuge with a great view where we got the chance to hang out all afternoon. Activities included lounging, a group game of Mafia captivatingly led by App, and a communal family style meal where we got to try some traditional Asturian dishes. New cuisines can be hard but Molly had a positive attitude about trying new foods! Laura and Fritz led us through our first student led Moonup which was fun, light hearted, and set the tone for future moonups ahead of us. We ended our moon-up with a wolf howl and just before we let out our howls the clouds parted so we could see the full moon.

On day 2 of trekking we tackled a peak with a great view. Leaving from our idyllic mountain refuge where we slept in triple-decker bunk beds, the group hiked thousands of feet up to a summit where we had 360 degree views of mountains around us. We passed through dense beech forests, open fields with the sound of cowbells all around, and even saw a sea of clouds beneath us off the the north and the Cantabrian Sea. Mac did a great job of motivating everyone to the top on an extremely hard hike for just our second day. Good practice for Mt. Toubkal! We returned to our refuge for a picnic lunch and some hackeysack where William got our group to practice their Spanish skills with each other and our guides! (Hopefully this helps them pass AP Spanish this upcoming school year!!)

After our hike we drove on some beautiful mountain roads to our hostel for the evening in the town visited by the King of Spain this past year for being an exemplary Spanish Pueblo. We played some group spikeball before going to a restaurant to try some local foods. Cachopo- cheese sandwiched between two meats, Fried- and potatoes with local blue cheese sauce. Shoutout to Addie for trying it and loving it! A nod to our LODs today, Henry and McLean, who kicked moonup up a notch tonight by having the group ponder some hard hitting questions. As we talked the sun set over the main massif of the Picos and we went to bed, ready for our final day of trekking in Spain!

Last day of trekking! We woke up well rested and ready to conquer the day. Claire and Rhys were our LODS for the day and did a great job managing the hottest day we have had yet. With only a little longer to the top of the pass but straight up hill, Rhys took charge and gave an impromptu motivational speech. After that everyone was pumped up and ready to rumble. Once again, we ate our lunch looking over a spectacular view. Laura and Caroline made some beautiful rock towers. Everyone took magical photos and admired the view. After our long hike, we had a relaxing afternoon. Slowly but Shirley we’re improving our hacky skills and this afternoon Fritz and App led the charge. The kids made their hype playlist and chill playlist to play on our drives. Chase has some good additions which included the one and only Bob Marley. Overall our trekking sections has been filled with bonding conversations, exciting foods, and breathtaking views!

Tomorrow we’re headed into our next activities which include surfing and canyoneering! We’re excited to continue to know these awesome kids!

Peace and love! And as the man likes to say, “Don’t worry about a thing”

– Scarlet & Matthew


The Journey Begins!

June 7, 2025

Hello Spain + Morocco Families!

We received word from our trip leaders that the group landed safely in Spain and made their way up north. They are excited to begin trekking tomorrow!

Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips, but we will be posting trip updates throughout the next week! This will allow you to follow along with the trip. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!

-Moondance HQ


Students

  • Fritz
  • Henry
  • William
  • McLean
  • Rhys
  • Chase
  • Claire
  • Laura
  • Molly
  • Caroline
  • Addie
  • App

Staff