Erg Chebbi in Merzouga

At the desert hotel/tent site in Erg Chebbi, Merzouga desert, tourists are offered a sunrise camel ride for 200 dirhams which seemed like a great way to spend a morning in the desert.

At 7:30am, the dromedary camel and its keep were ready and waiting. It was cold, about 4C, so holding on to the metal rod on top of the camel's saddle seemed hard, especially since I was not wearing any gloves.

Soon I was comfortable enough to ride the camel without holding on to anything and it made for an easier carefree riding experience. The dawn light was visible over the horizon.

The various dunes were visible and the golden light was spreading.

The hotel area in the distance looked enchanting.

A larger group of camels and tourists crossed our path.

The undulating dunes with the colorful sky made the area look surreal.

Very soon, the sun was peaking from behind one of the dunes.

The dark contours of the dunes with the yellow and blue sky were mesmerizing.

My camel herder decided to have the camel walk right on the crest of a dune.

Everywhere I looked, there were countless dunes.

The Bedouin village in the distance could now be seen as I was high up on a dune.

The bright light cast long shadows of the high dune.

I could see shadows of a couple of camels and a herder far away.

One dune's silhouette looked like it was in the shape of a heart.

As I walked around, the camel was waiting patiently.

It seemed like the prior day a dune buggy or a 4x4 had driven on this dune leaving behind the tracks.

From a different vantage point, I could see dunes, the village and the Atlas mountains beyond.

As I walked around, I decided to make a note of the various footprints in the sand. I could catalog about nine of them.

As I was returning, I could see a much bigger procession of the working camels and their owners.