Africa all the way round!

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I met up with Manfred and Gaby, a German couple from Munich, on a campsite some 30 km. from Laayoune. I had first met them in Agdz during my two-month shakedown trip in Morocco. They have travelled extensively and are experienced desert rats. Since they had plans to return this January and do some pistes out of Gandini's guide in the Western Sahara, we would try to match our plans so that we could do a part of it together.

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Sounds like it's going well Gee.

We are currently in the infancy of planning our trip down the east coast for autumn 2015.

Facebook, Twitter and website all up and running (although haven't paid for a domain name yet)

Hopefully you might still be travelling and we can meet up!


Buzz
 
Buzzmf87 said:
Sounds like it's going well Gee.

We are currently in the infancy of planning our trip down the east coast for autumn 2015.

Facebook, Twitter and website all up and running (although haven't paid for a domain name yet)

Hopefully you might still be travelling and we can meet up!


Buzz
Click to expand...

Hi Buzz,

Who knows. Have a great time preparing for the trip, it's half the fun!

Cheers from Senegal!

Gee
 
There are so many checkpoints, I forget how many. Most of them very friendly. After the usual and mutual courtesies, I give them a homemade, preprinted fiche with all my personal and vehicle information and we wish each other a Bon Journée. Some ask for a petit cadeau. I can't help but laugh at these requests, perhaps I'm missing something. Here you are, a grown up man in a somewhat loose fitting uniform, perhaps a father of five or six children, and you ask for a pettit cadeau! When I laugh they usually laugh with me and that's it.
I had one gendarme who asked for a beer, another asked for some medicine (when I asked what kind he said any kind would do), and a third one wanted my North Face jacket. All requests were kindly but resolutely turned down.
Monty Python in Africa
There are so many checkpoints, I forget how many. Most of them very friendly. After the usual and mutual courtesies, I give them a homemade, preprinted fiche with all my personal and vehicle information and we wish each other a Bon Journée. Some ask for a petit cadeau. I can't help but laugh at these
requests, perhaps I'm missing something. Here you are, a grown up man in a somewhat loose fitting uniform, perhaps a father of five or six children, and you ask for a pettit cadeau! When I laugh they usually laugh with me and that's it.
I had one gendarme who asked for a beer, another asked for some medicine (when I asked what kind he said any kind would do), and a third one wanted my North Face jacket. All requests were kindly but resolutely turned down.

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Tendaba Camp

On the South Bank of the Gambian River, some 45 km. from Farafenni, is Tendaba Camp. A hunting camp in the 1970s it is now a regular tourist feature on the upriver schedules of boat and bus tours from the coast. Lonely Planet recommends taking one of the VIP rooms because of the view of the river. Well, I've got my own mobile VIP room, park the car almost in the river near a picture-postcard Baobab tree, and pay 8 euros (including breakfast). Oh, I just love these days!

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One checkpoint gets really nasty, however. The "red-eyed team": you never know how they will react when they're on drugs!. It's five of them, and it's as if they're ticking the boxes: what can we find wrong? Have I got a fire extinguisher (I show them), Do my lights work (they do), what's in that box? (my toothbrush, shampoo, etc). "I want your shampoo", says one. I point at my crew cut and explain that I need that myself (not very convincing, but it works). A triangle. Ouch, that's in the alu box on top of the roof rack, but I'm more than happy to climb on it, open the box and show it to them. "You need two triangles!", another one says. I put my triangle back in the alu box, pull it out again, and say: "And here's the second one!". I get a thumbs up. They are really impressed; everything is there and works. We say goodbye in a cheerful way, and I'm glad to be past this one!
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Hi ,
Sounds fantastic,gonna being something similar in a years time with my wife , just getting some ideas on how to fit my 110 out.
As you did will be doing a test run in Morocco in September.
Are you wild camping much on route ? Are you expecting days on the road between towns? Do you feel vulnerable?
Would love to ask loads more question will keep in touch
 
Hi,

Did some bush camping, but accommodation is very cheap, and you get to meet people.
Never felt vulnerable. Just spent 4 days in Freetown, and it felt really comfortable even in the slums!

Cheers,

Gee
 
After all the carnival festivities, which culminated in the big parade yesterday, the city is very quiet early in the morning at 7.30. I'm heading for the Fouta Djalon mountains, together with my German friends Max, Martin and Philipp in their beautiful Mitsubishi 4x4 campervan. The first part towards Guda is pretty easy. Some checkpoints, but without exception very friendly. Some of them not even wanting to see any papers, just a chat. The border crossing between Guinea Bissau and Guinea Conakry is also hassle free and relaxed. For the first time the douane officer wants to see Thimba's documents. When he studies Thimba's passport he wants to know why it hasn't been stamped when entering Guinea Bissau in Sao Domingo. I say they weren't really interested. He remains a bit suspicious, but after some hesitation hands me back the documents and advises me to "present" the dog for inspection at all borders! So a bit further down the road, at the Conakry douane, I "present" Thimba to the officer by pointing at her (she's lying next to the car in the shade), asking whether he wants to check her papers. He looks through the window, then at me as if I have just made him an indecent proposal, and says: "C'est pas nécessaire!".

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sunset at Robertsport, Liberia

“Your driver’s license has expired!”
Driving into Monrovia the next day to pick up my Ghana visa, I am stopped by a traffic policeman who wants to check my driver’s license. No problem.
“Expired!”, he says.
”Impossible”, I answer. Wrong answer. At least that’s how it must have sounded to him. Perhaps it is my tone when I explain the difference between date of issue and expiry date. After having checked my fire extinguisher and triangle he wants to see the documents for the car. It is then that I’m starting to lose my temper (never, ever lose your temper with a policeman: you’ll only make things worse!). He has never seen a Carnet before and doesn’t accept it. I show him it was stamped and signed when I entered Liberia on the 16th of March.
“How many days!”, he barks.
“For as long I want, it’s valid for a year!”, I try.

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