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To bring an end to this part of the thread you can see some notes on the map above. On 01 Jan 03 we came across some guys on top of a small hill with a commanding view south over the desert. We had a discussion with them and it seemed that the land southward was owned by a sheikh somewhere and...

This prompted the thought towards diesel. It was a decision when rebuilding the Rover to keep the original petrol engine as I was familiar with it, had it, and also a vague thought about it being the engine that Land Rovers have. However the whole continent runs on diesel and if all else fails...

Now back on the track for a while. We learned a few more points about journeying through the desert and the region. When driving through sand you need a low gear and lots of revs. As soon as you try to change gear the resistance of the sand simply stops the Land Rover dead in its tracks. You...

I'm not sure what we did in Zagora, I simply don't remember however we stayed there 29/30/31 Dec 02. The next leg was to Tan Tan on the coast, and we turned off the road and back onto a track once more. We followed vague tracks through the region, through small villages that look large on the...

Getting close to Zagora we stopped for lunch.

On one occasion we happened across a Bedouin family on the move. A lasting memory and an indication of a different culture, The camels were at the front, followed by the men, followed by the boys, followed by the women and young children. Spread out over a mile. It was on the night of 28 Dec...

On the same trail having collected the hitch hiker. Still on the way to Zagora.

Having departed Merzouga on the 27th we followed a track on the map towards Zagora. That night was spent in a large awning type of tent that you associate with Bedouin encampments. Collected a hitch hiker somewhere along the line too. We were genuinely miles away from anywhere at this stage.

Near the camp at Merzouga. I think we did a local trip for the day and returned to the camp for the evening. Matt with some of the folks. And me. The Land Rover constantly drew admiring looks too.

Noted and thank you. I've yet to see how many more photo's I've got. As the trip progressed I took fewer of them sadly. However I'll post some more of these this evening or during the week.

Getting close to Merzouga just south of Erfoud. Below is an image of a deserted village about 10 miles off the Algerian border. The camp we stayed at was outside of Merzouga by a a couple of miles but I don't have any images of the ground around it. I do recall that it was well set up and...

Still heading south out of the Atlas and into the town of Erfoud. Here's Matt having a brew with some local people. Very hospitable and they take tea drinking to an almost ceremonial level. Drunk from small glass cups with huge amounts of sugar and no milk, poured from a pot from the greatest...

Left Fez and headed south. Journey took us through the Atlas mountains, our first view of real Morocco. The mountains are quite spectacular although I feel that we missed some of the best parts due to travelling in the dark and this was a mistake; we should have stayed up there as you get a...

One of many memories of about that time. We stopped in a conventional fuel station to get some more petrol. It was attendant service like the old days here at home. Having topped up the Landy I extracted a zippo lighter from my pocket and asked the attendant if he had any way of refueling...

Moving on to Fez for the 21st/22nd of December 2002. The medina is the second largest in the world, second only to the one in Istanbul. Very narrow streets and one of the few times I've ever employed a guide. Cars simply won't fit and it was very common to find a man with a donkey coming the...

Hassan's tower in Rabat. A 12th century site but wrecked by the Lisbon earthquake in 1755. The minaret remains along with 348 columns.

Here's back to the arrival in Africa. It's great that I annotated the map as I went along and then kept it. My pal Matt Anning and I crossed the Med and arrived in Spanish Ceuta on the 17th December 2002 and spent the first night in Asilah, a beautiful town on the coast of the Atlantic. From...

Here's some more stuff. Reiterating that this was still an age when 35mm film was the norm, taking a snap wasn't as easy as it is now and you had to get prints developed anywhere you could find. A smart phone and a Facebook page would have been a Godsend.

Fast forward. Have now left the UK in November 2002 having done Plymouth to Roscoff, down through France, over the Pyrenees and across the top of Spain. Gibraltar crossing to Ceuta on the north coast of Africa and now in Morocco. This is just one image I dug out last night but I'll find some...