Excursions. The best insight into the character of the people and their land is afforded by the interesting, but rather fatiguing walk or ride through the Djemâa Valley to Michelet (5–6 hrs.; mule 4–6 fr.; path unfit for riding at places). We leave the road a few hundred paces outside the S.E. gate of Fort-National, pass the large village of Taourirt-Amokran (2424 ft.), the capital of the Aït Ousammeur tribe, a place noted for its quaint old-fashioned pottery, and then descend abruptly to the S. to the (1 hr.) Djemâa Bridge (about 1300 ft.). On the left bank of the brook we ascend through the territory of the Beni Yenni, well known for their various art-industries, to the village of Aït-Larbâa (2166 ft.; mission-house of the White Fathers in the vicinity; p. [247]), and then to the S.E. to (9½ M.) Taourirt-Mimoun (2435 ft.), whose white school-house is conspicuous from a distance. The main track now leads to the S.E. on the crest of the Beni Yenni Mts. viâ Taourirt el-Hadjadj (2598 ft.) to Tassaft ou Guemoun (2545 ft.), and thence down steep zigzags to Souk el-Djemâa (1477 ft.), where we reach the steep road ascending to Menguellet (3350 ft.) and Hôpital Ste. Eugénie (p. [258]). Shorter, but often impassable after rain, is the mule-track from Taourirt-Mimoun to the (¾ hr.) Djemâa Ford (about 1395 ft.), and thence through a side-valley to (1¼ hr.) Menguellet.
To Boghni (8–9 hrs.; mule 8–10 fr.), a pleasant day’s excursion. From Fort-National we first follow, to the S.W., the fine open road to the village of Aït-Atelli (2648 ft.), and then descend viâ Aït-Frah (2126 ft.) to the Lowest Djemâa Ford (about 900 ft.). Thence we follow the right bank of the Oued Aïssi (p. [256]) and go through the side-valley of the Acif Djerra to Souk el-Haad (about 1300 ft.), the chief market of the Ouadhia. We then skirt the S. slope of Jebel Iril ou Moula, crowned with the village of that name, and reach Aïn-Sultan (1313 ft.), a copious spring shaded by huge nettle-trees (Celtis australis L.), 3¾ M. from Boghni (p. [254]).
Good climbers, properly equipped, may in the warmer season explore some of the fine passes among the *Jurjura or Djurdjura Mts., the Roman Mons Ferratus, and ascend some of the higher peaks. Provisions and guides necessary; night-quarters are obtainable at the school-houses. 1. To Souk el-Haad, see p. [257] and above; then viâ Aït-Krelifa (2230 ft.), along the W. spurs of the Chenacha Mts., and through the wild valley of the Beni Bou Addou to the Lac de Tizi-Koulmin, one of the few mountain-lakes in the Atlas. The lake lies at the foot of the pass (5813 ft.) of that name, which separates the Râs Tachgagalt or Pic Ficheur (p. [254]) from the Azerou-Ncennad or Pic de Galland (7002 ft.), the westmost peak of Jebel Akouker. From the pass we descend to the S.W. through remains of a fine cedar-forest to Bouïra (p. [250]).—2. From Fort-National viâ Taourirt-Amokran (p. [257]) to Aït-Lahssen (2851 ft.), the north-westmost village of the Beni Yenni (p. [257]); then viâ Souk el-Arba (1221 ft.), a market-village in the valley of the Acif el-Arba, to Aït-Touddeurt (2271 ft.) and Taguemoun (3852 ft.), on the S. slope of Jebel Kouriet (5027 ft.), one of the Chenacha Mts. (see above); thence across three passes, the Col de Taguemoun (3681 ft.), the Tizi Guessig, on the E. side of the Azerou es-Guessig, one of the Akouker group, and the Tizi Boulma (5532 ft.), between the Azerou-Ncennad (see above) and the Râs Timedouine (7563 ft.), the highest peak of Jebel Akouker; thence down to Bouïra.—3. Viâ Souk el-Arba (see above) to the village of Tiroual (2664 ft.), on the spurs of the Azerou ou Gougane (7080 ft.) and Azerou Thaltatt; next across the Tizi n-Assoual (5683 ft.) to Ansor el-Akhal or Ansor Lekhal (about 2950 ft.), and through the valley of the Oued Beurd to El-Adjiba (p. [251]).
The Road to Michelet (29½ M.; diligence, see p. [256]), starting from the S.E. gate of Fort-National, leads at first along the S.W. slope of the Massif de Fort-National, soon affording a superb *View of the Jurjura Mts., from Jebel Haïzer (p. [254]), on the W., and from Jebel Akouker (see above) to the Lalla Khedidja (p. [259]). To the right, in the valley, lies the village of Taourirt-Amokran (p. [257]); opposite us, beyond the deep ravine of the Oued Djemâa (see p. [257]), rise the Beni Yenni Mts. (p. [257]).
About 4½ M. beyond Fort-National a rough road diverges to the left to (20 min.) the small hill-village of Icherridêne (3494 ft.) and the Monument d’Icherridêne, erected by the French in memory of the decisive battles of 1857 and 1871. Near the pyramid we obtain a splendid distant *View. We may descend to the highroad on the other side.
For a short distance the road skirts the E. margin of the hills and overlooks the hill-country of the Aït Yahia. It then ascends in windings, passing near the villages of Azerou-Kellat and Taskenfout on the right, to a height where the road to (20 min.) Hôpital Ste. Eugénie and Menguellet (p. [257]) branches off to the right.
29½ M. Michelet (3543 ft.; Hôt. des Touristes or Calanchini, R. 3–3½, B. 1–1½, déj. 3, D. 3½ fr., clean and quite good; mule to the Tirourda Pass 4–5, to Tazmalt 6 fr.; pop. 200, chiefly French), the capital of the Canton du Djurdjura, one of the most thickly peopled districts in Algeria, is prettily situated, on the partly vine-clad S.W. slope of the hills, with fine views all around.
From (½ hr.) the crest of the hill (4042 ft.), to which a path ascends to the left from the Hôtel des Touristes, we have an extensive *Panorama of the neighbouring Jurjura Mts., among which the Lalla Khedidja (see below) stands forth grandly, of the Massif Kabyle, the depression of the Sebaou Valley, and the distant coast hills. The view is peculiarly impressive in the early morning, when the snow-capped Jurjura and the green lower hills with their countless Kabylian villages protrude like islands from the sea of mist in the valleys.
The *Lalla Khedidja (7572 ft.), the highest of the Jurjura Mts., may be ascended from Michelet by one of two different routes. One route is viâ Souk el-Djemâa (p. [257]), the hill-villages of Aït-Saada (3055 ft.) and Darna (3314 ft.; night-quarters), and the passes Tizi Tirkabin (4587 ft.) and Tizi n-Kouïlal (5178 ft.), near the sources of the Oued el-Hammam. The other route is viâ the Tirourda Pass (p. [260]), the village of Aït-Ouabane (about 3380 ft.), in the basin between the offshoots of the Azerou Tidjer (see below) and the Azerou Madène (6401 ft.), and across the Tizi n-Kouïlal, where the mules are left behind. The ascent is, however, easier and shorter from Maillot (p. [251]). A bridle-path leads thence to the (4½ hrs.) village of Tala Rana (4508 ft.; night-quarters). Then 1 hr. through cedar-forest (see p. [210]), and lastly an ascent on foot, over loose stones, in 2 hrs. more to the top, where three ruinous stone huts afford some shelter. The imposing view embraces the whole mountain region of Great Kabylia, the main ranges of Little Kabylia (p. [266]), the Sahel valley (p. [266]), the Chaîne des Biban (p. [270]), and the extensive Hauts-Plateaux (p. [169]). Early in the morning in clear weather we may descry, with the aid of a telescope, the white houses of Algiers, while the sea is visible in the direction of Bougie. In the height of summer, on seven Thursdays, hundreds of the neighbouring Kabyles make this ascent.
Beyond Michelet begins the finest part of the road, which now rapidly nears the Jurjura range. After ½ hr. it skirts for a short time the E. slope of the range, where a path to the left diverges to the village of Aït-Mellal; then, returning to the W. slope, it passes close below the villages of Tifferdout (3927 ft.) and Tazerout (3884 ft.). The *View is particularly grand at a bend near the 53rd kilomètre-stone (33 M.), whence we observe a road-mender’s house in the foreground, at the foot of the bare Azerou Tidjer (5745 ft.), which conceals the Lalla Khedidja. Opposite, on the hill beyond the head of the Oued Djemâa valley (p. [257]), lie the three large villages of the Beni Akbil.