Look out Canada I'm on my way!

I love it when a plan comes together! After a fairly busy day yesterday with all the last minute bits and pieces done, I finally sat down in front of TV and nodded off. Before I knew it Paul my lift to Carmarthen was knocking at the door; it was 12.30am! Time for a quick cuppa and away we went for a traffic free and uneventful 25 mile run. There was only one other passenger waiting at the bus stop when I arrived a young Chinese girl, whom I unfortunately managed to completely confuse by asking if she was waiting for the Heathrow bus!!! How was I to know that she hardly spoke any English? I must admit I got a bit worried when she made a hurried phone call and passed the phone over to me, half expecting to hear some voice of some authority asking me why I was even talking to her! I gingerly took the phone. Another Chinese voice but with a much better command of English explained that the girl was worried about getting on the wrong bus, she was going to London Victoria, and asked me to check the bus for her when it arrived. Phew! that will teach me to speak to strange young girls at bus stops !!! Anyway alls well that ends well, we got onto the same bus, with me alighting at Cardiff Central Bus Station to await my connection to Heathrow, whilst she stayed aboard for the run down to Victoria. Check in was uneventful, security equally so. A quick  browse around the so closed duty free at yet more tech which I couldn't afford and if I'm hones,t don't need, and time to find a corner for a snooze. Although I don't actually feel too bad as I slept most of the way from Cardiff on the bus albeit rather uncomfortably. In another three and a half hours I'll be winging my way across "the pond" for an emotional reunion. Yes, hopefully my baby will be waiting at the docks for me!!!

I had a great flight which passed really quickly in spite of being 30 minutes late taking off from Heathrow! I sat next to a South African from Jo’burgh named Scott, a corrosion engineer, who was on his way out to the Oil Fields off the Nova Scotia coast.  We spent a good portion of the flight putting the world to rights and discussing as wide a range of subject matter and trivia as you could imagine. Although he was only half my age we seemed to be on pretty much the same wavelength ! 

During the later part of the flight my right foot had started to hurt a bit. As we landed and I tried to put my boots back on I realised that it was actually really painful to the point where I could put any weight on it without excruciating pain shooting through it! So after arriving on board like a two year old about to have his first adventure, I shambled off as though I was ready for the knackers yard ! Immigration as always was to say the least very slow and by the time I shuffled  out of the exit to meet David I was in absolute agony. I can only think that when I nodded off on the plane I had my foot twisted in some way and just hoped that it would soon pass. David was an absolute hero in helping me with my bags and running out to my Motel which is far further out of town than I had realised… that’s what happens sometimes when you try to save a few quid!  I was in no fit state to take in the sites of Halifax so by a little after 6pm I was safely tucked up in my huge and very comfortable bed with a couple of pain killers and not a bear in sight….

My first Night's Accommodation...
 Unfortunately the 4x4 didn't come with it!

Waking early this morning, strangely at around my usual waking time of 5am, I am relieved to find that whilst my foot is still a little sore I can now stand on it and even manage to walk, so things are looking up.  The first thing I did was to check my emails to see when I could collect “the Beast” and was somewhat disappointed to find that it looks as though the ship doesn't  dock until the 15^th… So I may be stuck in this rather expensive (by my scale of things) hotel for another couple of nights ! Ah well, I'm not going to stress about it, I’ll just have to see how things unfold once I speak to the shippers and David later this morning. And so to my first Canadian Breakfast.

Not at all a bad view to wake up to and no snow !!!

I see no Bears !

All the hard work, the planning, the logistics, the packing, are done! My bike should be approaching the Canadian coast by now and I’m just sat waiting for my good friend Paul to collect me for the first part of my journey; the 25 mile run down to Carmarthen to pick up the 1.55am National Express coach to Cardiff and thence on to London Heathrow for my Lufthansa flight to Halifax, Nova Scotia.

It’s a relatively short flight of just 5 hours to the East coast of Canada. I discovered on my first visit to Canada last year, when I flew into Calgary, that Canada is one hell of a big place. In fact it took as long to get from the coast to Calgary as it did to get from UK to the Canadian coast. If all goes to plan I will be met by David George, a fellow biker, who works at Halifax airport who has offered to show me around Halifax and take me to my hotel. Yet another small illustration of the kindness of strangers. As well as being a biker, David is a fellow Facebooker and traveller to whom I was introduced by that world famous traveller, Tiffany Coates. It seems David makes something of a habit of welcoming incoming British Bikers to Halifax.

I can’t quite believe the amount of kit I’m taking out with me, bearing in mind that all my camping and cooking kit is securely stashed in my panniers on “the Beast”. To be fair, it does include all my bike kit, clothes, maps and paperwork, to say nothing of my “tech”… Like I said, we’ll say nothing of my tech, except that there is too much of it… far too much!!! Although it will, hopefully, make it easier to stay in touch with friends and family occasionally.

Today has had an interesting little twist as I answered an SOS from a biker friend in Carmarthen, about 25 miles away. He suffers with MS and had managed to drop his bike, a beautiful Triumph Tiger, whilst pushing it out of the garage and simply didn't have the strength in his legs to pick it up. Always happy to help a friend it also served as another practice session just in case I drop my best on the trail.

The house is clean and tidy, the grass it cut, I’m fed and watered! All that remains is to turn off the last few electrical bits, turn off the water, lock the shed and the front door, and close the gates as I leave. In less than 24 hours I will be in Halifax and the start of my next ADVENTURE!

The picture below was emailed to me by my Canadian "friends" ! It had the caption...

"Canadian Meals on Wheels"

Decisions, decisions !!!

No matter how much you study and read up on places you intend to visit, someone always seems to jump up at the last minute with a route or place suggestion that that you have never heard of.. Thanks Graham Merrick! This particular route or rather series of routes form the TCAT or Trans Canada Adventure Trail. Hmm, that's put the proverbial cat amongst the pigeons. My problem on this trip has always been that Canada (not to mention the US and Alaska) is one damn big country. Overall I'm looking at covering something around 15-18,000 miles. And in spite of not wanting to run to a strict timetable, realistically there is a fairly narrow time frame in which to get up to Prudhoe Bay if I don't want to be slushing around in snow and ice (which I don't.....).

My GPS is starting to groan under the weight of routes, waypoints and maps that I keep downloading to it. I just hope it doesn't follow the lead of my previous unit.  That one decided that it didn't want to play any more within 10 miles of setting off for a three month trip across Europe ! Additionally I seem to be accumulating paper maps and guides at an alarming rate... and I haven't even left home yet. It is one of the advantages as well as a  disadvantage of not having a definitive route plan. On the one hand I have the freedom to "go with the flow" and change routes on a whim: on the other hand there is the danger that I might faff around to such a degree that I never get anywhere. The reality is that that won’t happen as I have arranged to arrive in Creston to meet up with friends Taz, Joel and Jim by sometime around the end of June. So if I want to also run Route 66, unfortunately most of the TCAT will have to wait; either until I'm on my way back down country if time permits or for the next visit across the pond.  Of course I still have the option of leaving “the Beast” in Canada but that would mean a long, long break and I'm not sure I could bear that! There is no way I could get back until 2017 as next year is already spoken for with trips out to Afghanistan and Gambia in the pipeline… I guess “go with the flow” is likely to become my mantra on this journey.

Bye, bye baby, baby goodbye!

Job done! "The Beast" is now sat snugly in the corner of a multi-story car park at Southampton docks. I still can't quite believe how easy it all was. In spite of a long list of do's and don'ts from the Travel Agents, the shippers were really laid back about the whole procedure; but then again they are doing it all day every day so I guess they should be. Nobody even looked in the boxes or checked how much fuel was in the tank. No disconnecting of the battery as they apparently ride the bike onto the ship. Just keeping my fingers crossed that I don't get a phone call asking me to collect my kit from the bike before it gets shipped as I was told by the agents that the boxes should be empty! However asking around it seems that most people have left their kit on the bikes without issue. I hope that part works out OK as the rest of my kit just about fills my airline luggage allowance. Sorry Dave (Lomax) but I've never really done the ultra-light travelling bit and I guess I'm too old to start now. At the ripe old age of 66 I need my creature comforts....

So all that's left is to put the last few items in my flight luggage, sit back and relax !!! Well actually, no. I have a myriad of things to sort out before I set off. Family and friends far and near to visit; vehicles to sorn, move to various places and the house and garden to leave in a suitable state for my return in several months time...and a little over a week to get it all done! I think the next week is going to simply fly by.  Unusually for me, I have made lists of everything I have packed and where I have packed it so at least when I suddenly get in a panic wondering if I have forgotten to pack something I can check and see.

Thanks to various friends and forums I now have 3 potential contacts in Canada and the northern US. To say nothing of various other friends about to embark on trips of their own in various parts of North America and of course I also have some good friends and relatives living in Canada. So in essence all is good to go; what could possibly go wrong ? I just can't wait to get moving, throw away my watch and live by the sun. no timetable, no schedule, no stress.Just need to watch out for those pesky bears.  Bring it on !!!

It's time to hit the Road again !

In my mind there is one very big difference between those who travel and those who don’t. Travellers can always come up with a million reasons why they should go; non-travellers can always find another million why they shouldn't. It doesn't matter where the destination is; to a traveller it’s always just around the corner because they think only of the next day’s journey, whereas to a non-traveller the destination is always, oh so far away. I've always liked the motto of my local motorbike club (in fact it’s about the only thing I like about it!) “There are no such things as strangers, only friends we have yet to meet” and that really is true when you are on the road

Almost exactly a year later than originally planned, I'm finally off to Canada. It's planned to be my longest trip by far (so far!) covering something around 15,000 miles over the next 5 months or so. If all goes to plan, after landing in Halifax Nova Scotia I will head firstly north to the St Lawrence Seaway, then south-west along the Canadian-US border to Niagara Falls. Crossing to the other side of the border I'll be  heading for the windy city; Chicago and the start of the Mother Road, Route 66 following in the tracks of Peter Fonda, Denis Hopper and Billy Connelly to name but a few. In the words of the song "It winds from Chicago to LA, more than 2000 miles all the way", well, hopefully I too will get my kicks on Route 66. 

I have a few detours in mind on the way South, both scenic and cultural, but you'll have to ride with me to discover the secrets of my little journey !

My 20 year old BMW R100GSPD "The Beast" after countless hours of minor fettling and fiddling is all loaded on it's little trailer attached to the back of my 25 year old motorhome ready to trundle down to the docks at Southampton tomorrow and will leave for Halifax on the 4th May. Since it's last little excursion across Europe I have totally rebuilt the bike and it now also sports a nice new paint job designed in memory of my late son Sam, so spiritually he will be travelling with me! I'm hoping that my mechanical work proves to be as good as the bike now looks. My bags are virtually packed with just a few last minute odds and sods to cram in and I'll soon be "Leaving on a Jet Plane".

As anyone who knows me might well expect I've acquired one or two more bits of tech over the winter months including a nice new Garmin Virb Elite Helmet camera which will probably end up being mounted everywhere except on my helmet. I simply don't keep my head in one place long enough to get any decent footage. I find it works out far better attached to the front or rear of the bike, so will be trying out a few ideas along the way. I also have a little MyFi gizmo that will hopefully enable me to stay in contact when there is no WiFi available, although I'm not sure how expensive that will work out so will have to wait and see. 

Lots more to tell you but dinner is calling and the temperature here in Wales is dropping sharply so the fire needs to be lit ! I'll try to do an update once the bike has been dropped.... no, make that off-loaded, at Southampton Docks. 

Two wheels too Many

Steve and I commenced our homeward run today, albeit a little later than  anticipated. It was close to 11 o'clock before having breakfasted with Anita, Cath and Richard, paid the teams bill and said all our goodbyes that we rolled out of the gates of Luigis Complex for the run up to Soma for the Farafenni ferry. After much discussion and debate we had decided to go with Julies advice and spurn the joys of the Barra ferry in favour of the allegedly easier crossing nearly 100 miles up river. It still took a couple of hours to get across to the north bank  but it was indeed stress free and 190 Dalasis a bargain. As was the border crossing from Gambia back into Senegal, although that we did get charged a "sunday suppliment" of 5000 cfa rather than the correct amount of 2500 cfa, however I can live with that one!

And so we headed north towards Nioro du Rip as the sun started its final descent into twilight. It had been a good day and as far as I am concerned, the most relaxed day of the trip. With the drama queen now safely back with his carer, Steve and I have already formed a great team of two...  Dinner, cooked by me from the left over stores was small deep fried potatoes with meat balls, carrots and green beans... with not a chilli in sight. It was going to be followed up with pancakes and butterscotch sauce but I'd forgotten to get the eggs so that treat awaits us a little further on.

As I sit here in the morning twilight it has just started to rain very gently, nothing to get excited about as doubt it will even lay the dust on this rough section of road by which we are camped. We are about halfway between the border at Keur Ayip and Nioro du Rip, so with a little luck we should be at the Zebrabar tonight ready for the crossing to Mauritania in the morning.... or the next day, depending on how we feel.

Tonight (Monday) we are back at theZebrabar. An earlyish start and a trouble free run across Senegal saw us arriving here just before 5pm to enjoy a cold beer and a hot shower, and yes in that order. Both of us are enjoying the relaxed and hassle free nature of the return trip. We've far managed to put the world to rights, solve world debt, poverty and put an end to wars... and that's only day two!!!!  We have again spurned the luxury of cabins in favour of our cosy little tents and about to enjoy the local fresh caught fish for dinner. Our plan is to pay the bill tonight to allow us an early start for the border in the morning... but we'll have to wait and see what time we awake,after all one of the biggest joys of this trip is the lack of schedule.....

I love it when a plan comes together, ok, maybe we were a little later than planned leaving the Zebrabar but only about half an hour. So having not managed to catch Martin last night I worked out our bill and left the money in an envelope attached to the honesty  book. By 8.30 we were tackling our first hurdle...the Senegalese customs at Diama. Wwas I surprised when he found an "irregularity" in our paperwork????????  No,not for a second. However I was very surprised when the guy from the police intervened on my behalf and the customs man phoned through to Farafenni to confirm that we had taken the C90s out of Senegal. All in all, an hour and a half is probably something of a record through this border.

Steve took over the driving as we left the border and as he had never driven off-road in a 4x4 before he was looking forward to the challenge. It was great from my point of view to be able to enjoy watching the vast variety of wildlife as we ran along the piste through the reserve. I've never seen so many different species of birds in one place before; Egrets, pelicans, storks and a plethora of others which I could never identify but loved watching! A whole family of 5 warthogs plus of course the usual cattle, goats, sheep and the odd camel. The drive itself was thankfully uneventful and taken at a sensible pace a joyful and relaxed experience compared to the outward journey where we kept having to stop to wait for a couple of really slow riders to catch up. As one of the front runners was always Chris who had never ridden off-road before it wasn't that the pace was fast....

Approaching a police check at the end on the new tarmac road we spotted a long line of vehicles stopped on the opposite side of the road. On closer inspection it turned out to be competitors on the Amsterdam to Banjul banger rally complete with military escorts!!! This was something we had been offered for the Scoots but I declined it as firstly I still feel that the threat to us is negligible and secondly that it would cause us problems with the low speed that we run at. Something that would have been even more of an issue this year as it is by far the slowest run I have ever done.

Lunch was the ubiquitous cheese triangles with half a banana each; boy do we know how to live !!!! Nightfall saw us neatly back at the same wild camp we had used on the way down, meaning that in spite of only running at around 45 to 50 mph we have covered exactly the same distance as had taken us 2 days on the  way down. We dined well on Spam fritters, saute potatoes, carrots and sweetcorn, which Steve declared to be the best meal of the trip so far ! A nice cold beer or even a glass of red wine would have gone down nice with it but this is Mauritania, dry country!!!!

Hopefully today will see us across the minefield and into Western Sahara where another night of wild camping awaits us. We have a little over 200 miles to the border so as long as we have no problems along the way it shouldn't be too much to ask to get through the border before dark. The trip is turning into a bit of a Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance type trip with Steve and I discussing and exploring a whole variety of issues and topics which makes the time simply fly by!

Hmm, i guess it was the 'no problems' that did it!!! We'd had a really good run, arriving at the Mauritanian border at around 1.30. We simple flew through the formalities and headed off into the mine field. We had swapped drivers a bit before the border as it is easier for me to jump in and out of the truck at the various border control points,so Steve took us carefully across no-mans land to the Moroccan side. First couple bits, police and immigration were no trouble then it all sort of stalled... Initially I was sent back and forth between offices and then we were directed to the huge vehicle scanner. Having got into the queue,we were then told to reverse back as lorries were going through in both directions ???? So we sat and waited ..... and waited.... and waited... Well TIA we kept saying ! But it soon became apparent that everyone else was also waiting... and waiting... and waiting... we watched as the little red light on the scanner went on off, an on and off....well you get the picture! Yes, the bloody thing had broken down. Every time they switched it on it tripped its generator! For 4 hours we watched as time and time again the same men went back and forth trying the same thing each time like some stupid comedy, until eventually they actually realised that it wasnt going to run so sent us on our way... although not without a couple of last minute visits back to the customs offices. Four and a half hours after our nice early arrival we finally left the border, fortunately, still in daylight. So now we are camped about 20 miles north of the border next to he ruins of a small building on a rather rocky bit of land. Dinner was once again managed sans chilli and our digestive systems and taste buds are slowly beginning to recover !!! An early night a cold biting wind is whistling around our tents, will hopefully mean an early start as we head north through the disputed territory of Western Sahara tomorrow.

Yesterday we broke the back of our homeward journey. Accompanied by the sounds of The Eagles, Van Morrison, Simon & Garfunkle, et al we ran virtually the entire length of Western Sahara, over 500 miles in our 12 hours on the road. How much easier it is to get 2 people packed and moving than 9! I'm still the first up with kettle on and often first cup of tea drunk by the time Steve stirs, but I love sitting and watching the eastern skies slowly explode into a myriad of fabulous colours as dawn breaks once more. As we are generally snuggled into our tents quite early even getting up at 6am is not a chore. We are now at the Le Roi Bedouin campsite once more, just above Layouune where we dinned on lemon  chicken tagine last night with a nice bottle of red wine. I slept very soundly !!!

Today we plan a fairly leisurely start to our morning before heading on to Tan Tan where will try briefly to obtain a couple of parts we need for the lighting on the truck and trailer. To be honest I'm not too concerned as I'm sure we will get them in Algeciras before our run up through Spain. Once through Tan Tan it's on to Guilmim before turning east and the southern desert area of Morocco. It's an area neither of us have ever been to before and it will be good to get away from our outward route for a while. We are hoping to make a big loop around and tackle the Rif mountains from the East as we run back to the port at Tangier Med.

At the moment it's looking as though we may make the Santander crossing in time for our booked crossing on the 30th November but we'll have to see what the next few days hold in store. With us both now feeling a lot fitter than a when we left The Gambia we are really looking forward to doing a bit of exploring both on and off road. With my asthma now subsiding at long last I'm sleeping much better and Steve's stomach also seems to be getting over his chilli poisening so he is eating better.

The nights are much colder now than on our outward journey so my sleeping bag is being zipped up fully for the first time on since leaving home but the days are still very hot although sometime with a stiff cool breeze

As it sit here typing this the sky has just exploded into a huge red fireball lighting up the underside of the morning clouds in an almost florescent orange as the sun awaits it's moment to burst upon us in it's display of dawn splendour. A magnificent sight to behold!

We had another good days run today, marred only by Steve picking up a 70 euro fine for jumping a hidden stop sign in Tan Tan. He had slowed right down at the junction but to be fair the wheels probably didnt stop and low and behold a gendarme just happened to be lurking behind a rather large tree just around the corner. I tried the indignant Brit abroad routine but to no avail so we paid up meekly and drove away very slowly....

We ran up to Guelmim and then started looking for a camp site. Steve found a few in the guide book that sounded a bit dire and then spotted one that sounded better but in the wrong direction. By now it was about 4 pm so we decided to take a look even though it was some 9km down a piste. Wow! after a fantastic drive through  some small hills we finally found Fort Bou Jerif campsite and hotel and what a find! In a spectacular location sat the best hotel and restaurant of the trip so far complete with swimming pool and best of all lovely hot showers....

Before dinner, whilst Steve sat and read, I wandered off for a walk and found the actual Fort from which the place takes its a name. A huge complex which i assume to be from the French Foriegn Legion, not very well preserved but interesting never the less if only for its sheer scale. Dinner did not dissappoint, home made soup followed by beef brochettes served with a lovely fresh tomato salad and finished off with a slab of rich chocolate cake..mmmm!

 This morning when I awoke it was to the first rain we have seen in over a month... very light and gentle, but still very wet! We are quite near to the coast so the hope is that we will lose it as we run inland this morning towards Zagora. Tonight it will be back to wild camping, hopefully somewhere on the piste a bit before Zagora but we'll have to wait and see what transpires on our run across. First we have to pack away our soggy tents and do breakfast which if it follows the form of last nights dinner won't disappoint...

Back on the road once more our first port of call was the fort itself. I had walked down to it alone yesterday evening but was happy to pay a return visit to enable Steve to have a wander around the majestic ruins. It was back along the 9km to the road before picking up our route across the base of Morocco, or at least what would have been the base before they annexed Western Sahara which has almost doubled the size of what was already an enormous country. Our plan was to cross to Zagora and then Erfoud by the lowest practicable roads, be they surfaced or piste, stopping wherever we happened to find ourselves just before sunset each evening. Then to head north to the eastern end of theRif mountains if time allowed before crossing to Spain on Thursday morning. We reckoned that should give us just enough time to cross Spain in time for our Ferry on Saturday afternoon from Santander. Which is why we are now camped just outside Foum Zguid !

Oh well, WiFi just doesn't want to play ball on this trip. Coming out of Zagora this afternoon I was thumbing through the campsite directory and spotted a site which boasted WiFi, only toget here to discover that the internet througout the entire area id down...Ho Hum!!

Another spectacular drive through and over the mountains today, most of it on piste rather than tarmac. The driving wasn't difficult as none of it was at all technical, although it would be very different after heavy rain as we crossed and re-crossed a river numerous times and some of the climbs would also be very slippery. But it was great fun, even thiugh we were both wishing we were on two wheels rather than four. Arriving in Zagora we spotted a small cafe restaurant as sat down to salad and tagines. We  were soon joined by another couple of toubabs in the form of an Australian couple who were on a four month world tour after recently retiring from work.

From Zagora we ran up the Draa valley which is supposed to be one of the "must see" sights of the area, but I must confess to have been a little disappointed as it simply didn't stand comparison with what we had driven through earlier in the day.... However tour buses are not exactly known for their offroad capabilities so to your average package tourist i guess it is a bit special! Tonight we opted for the soft option of a camp site with the promise WiFi, cold beers and hot showers.... Hmm, that'll teach us! Not even 1 out of 3 was to be had...

Sorry about lack of photos (again !) will post later

Tonight back at Midelt campsite with temperature about 25c lower than when we were here on the way out.... Think it might be thermals in bed tonight but trying a nice bottle of red anti-freeze with dinner which may help to keep out the cold.....

Apologies!

Leaving Eddies Place in Faraffeni

And so another Scooters in the Sahara trip draws to a close as we head out to the coast and a little bit of luxury before the team fly home and Steve and I prepare for the long journey back overland to the UK. We will probably be spending 3 nights at Banjul relaxing and meeting up with Sulyman as well as having a last mealand debrief with Anita and Co as they arrive on Saturday afternoon. One problem we face is that with the temporary closure of the Barra ferry for repairs, we have to drive all the way back to at least Soma and maybe even Janjangburreh to cross the Gambia river river before heading north for the Zebrabar

Our reception committee as we arrive at Bansang on the ferry

Its been a hectic few days for those of us that stayed at Bansang, but I think all who stayed at the hospital have thoroughly  enjoyed it and all would have liked to have just a little more time here but such is the schedule on a scoots trip, it just can’t be done. The work done by the guys has been magnificent with most of the mosquito screens put up and a completely new systems of wires setup in the newly refurbished male ward to carry privacy screens which can be pulled around any bed, replacing the old broken portable screens. The system wouldn’t look out of place in an NHS ward !

For a variety of reasons communications have been a little difficult this time around with WiFi being very hard to find and incredibly slow when it was found. Even mobile phone didn’t want to work once south on Morocco in areas where we have never previously experienced difficulties. Hence the lack of blog and website updates for which I can only apologise. It also hasn’t helped matters with me suffering with the worst and most sustained asthma attack of my life which has been leaving me feeling pretty exhausted at the end of each day. Couple that with the stress of having to deal with a whinging willy every moment of every day….. well I’m sure you get the picture.  However the other guys (and lady) have been great in the support that they have given, which is probably the only reason that there isn’t a body buried somewhere deep in the Sahara Desert….

A little bit of luxury - Luigis Complex, Banjul

If you want to catch up on the real flavour of the trip our youngest (and newest) rider this year Chris Smith has been avidly typing into his smartphone at every available moment as only the young can! Chris has give his blessing for me to copy it over to my blog, or I thought better still you can read it in its entirety at http://critsmit.tumblr.com/ It is very well written and certainly gives a flavour of the trip from a different perspective.

Today (Saturday) Steve and I will be trying to sort the trailer out to make our lives a littler easier on the road back. We will also be popping up to the local supermarket for some food, as whilst we still have a huge amount on board I think if either of us has to face another 5 bean chilli or curry we may well scream… in fact I don’t think I will ever be able to look a chilli in the eye again!!!!

Hopefully the truck will be OK after it’s interface with a rather large goat at some considerable velocity on the way down! It’s made a bit of a mess of the front panel and aircon radiator, but as the aircon wasn’t working anyway it should be too much of a problem. I think both Steve and I will be running somewhat slower than Sutay’s pace when we set off, not least we are both looking forward to being able to just stop whenever we wish for photos of anything else.

I may get a chance to upload another short update before we leave otherwise expect silence at least until we arrive in Morocco.