Friday 25th October

Today marks the first day of our second week on the road. Two weeks today we are scheduled to be in Bansang and there’s a hell of a long way to go yet ! Our second day of riding in Africa has gone really well, if a little slowly, but we have got to where we should be so that is a huge plus point. The team are working reasonably well together, whilst occasionally knocking the rough coners of each other if you get my drift… No dummies have been spit too far and all’s right with the world.

One of our Coffee Stops... Contrary to popular belief I do let them stop occasionally

Today has been a fairly low mileage day but with the route taking in the infamous road through Zoumi it has been anything but easy riding. A very special mention must go to Chris who lost his off road virginity with a long section of loose soft gravel where the road has just been regarded, and handled it magnificently. However the surface was a thousand times better than when we road it on the Scoots trip when it was nothing but a lattice work of tamac with huge potholes everywhere, give me the gravel anytime. At the moment I’m sitting outside Volubilis whilst the team do the sightseeing bit. As I’ve seen it several times before I volunteered to stay with the bikes so that they could leave there jackets and helmets on them with confidence that they will still be here when they return in an hour or so.

The camp site at Moulay Idriss is only about 5 miles away so we should be set up nicely before dark ready for another treat from Andy the Chef! As most of us had something of a disturbed night last night with a disco or something of that ilk going until 3am then the 4am call to prayer, a very noisy cockerel and some equally noise bikers starting the bike about ½ an hour before they actually left the camp, I don’t thing anybody will be staying up very late tonight. Tomorrow is something of a longer day mileagewise as we head down to Midelt and a camp I haven’t used before, so it also has something of the unknown about it as the only time I have run over the route I was on my good old airhead… but I finished up in Marrakesh that time. A trip that will take us at least two days…More pics to come once Ive recharged computer....