About six kilometres east of the falls, through olive groves that shade the path and keep it cool even in summer, lies the source spring of the Ouzoud River — a cold artesian spring that bubbles straight out of the ground. The walk takes about an hour and a half each way and is best done in the morning before the day gets hot.
The groves along the route are ancient and dense. You will pass a traditional olive press — a heavy millstone turned by a donkey or mule — that is still operational during the October harvest. Local families often sell bottles of cold-pressed olive oil from their farmhouses along the path. The spring itself is a modest but surprising thing: clear cold water emerging from bare rock in the middle of the plateau. Bring lunch and eat at the source, which is one of the more peaceful spots in this part of Morocco.