In 2009 Dad and I completed 'Touareg Trail, The Hardcore Edition' and were crowned 'Most Hardcore Team at the finish! Check out ore 2009 blog: http://www.norfolk2benin.blogspot.com/


This year we will return!!!

The routes are mainly off road and in 2 parts...

Part 1: The Dakar Challenge: Starts in France and meanders across the Atlas Mountains of Morocco and the deserts of Mauritania to the legendary capital of Senegal: Dakar.

Part 2: Raid Afrique: From Senegal we travel via savanna and jungle routes of Mali, on to Burkina Faso and Togo to the white sandy beaches of the tropics in Benin. Twenty 2cvs are due to participate with only the minimum of support.

"Amazingly behind the steering wheels of these cars are not professional rally drivers, not Paris-Dakar drivers nor racing fanatics but ordinary people with one thing in common, an absolute passion for adventure in its purest form."

You can read more about the adventure(s) on the organisations official website: www.touareg-trail.be


Last time we raised £1,500 for the charity Unicef, this time we want to do it again but for Parkinsons UK. So we need your support, please dig deep and sponsor us to help this fantastic charity. Simply visit or webpage: http://www.justgiving.com/2cvAfrica

Wednesday 7 November 2012

Lac Rose – Baobab Camp (Bivouac) 64km

Friday 2nd
Mileage 69750
I hate goodbyes so this today was hard. Our fellow adventurers left at 1pm to catch their plane home :(
The group now feels very small, we lazed around the pool until 4.30pm when we set off to our camp which was under the biggest tree I have ever seen! Its a baobab tree which was so beautiful I was in awe of it! On the way to camp we stopped with some other teams (Edwin & Peter, Fitz and Stan, Erik & Francine, Sacha & Frits and Robin & Jari) at a hotel to eat, the owner was a French man who spent a long time in England and has lived in Senegal for 12 years. He arranged for his chef to make us a buffet of chicken, pork, fish, chips, rice, and crepes and fruit for dessert which was all really yummy!
At camp we were joined by 2 new teams (driving in 2 of the cars from participants who have gone home) an Israeli and a Flemish Team and a few of the organisation were replaced by new faces for part 2 of our adventure. We had a lovely big camp fire and a few drinks and I tired to adjust to how small the group feels. (there are now 10 cars for part 2)

Koba Camp – Lac Rose (Hotel) 187km

Thursday 1st
Mileage 69638
The final drive......for some. Its our last day with the Dakar Challengers, the Vespa and Motor bikers
tomorrow a big part of the group go home :(
We drove off road and were told to reach Lac Rose by 1pm which we were able to do trouble free. Lac Rose is named so as it is a lake and the water from a certain angle looks red from the amount of shrimps in there. It's a beautiful setting for the end (for some)
We arrived first (after the organiser) Dad & I, Erik & Dave, Fitz and Stan the other teams were not far behind us and we each lined our cars up, as did the Vespa and Motor bike riders, and began to celebrate and congratulate one another on our successes, whether that be finishing their adventure or reaching half way! :)
The atmosphere was superb, everyone happy, some emotional, some tired, but all happy!
After a celebratory drink in the baking sun we all drove in convoy to the hotel which is a famous finishing point for adventurers. Its a really nice hotel with a nice restaurant and swimming pool, we ate pizza and relaxed until 10pm when there was a photo presentation, we gathered around and recalled how far we had come as the beautiful photos and music played before us
Here are some pictures of those special adventurers who will leave us tomorrow...

St Louis – Koba Camp (Camping) 190km

Wednesday 31st
Mileage 69506
Happy Halloween! Needless to say there is nothing halloween orientated in Africa!
Its was really fun today, Gert (the organiser) only created our route last night and when we drove it we were often following the GPS and travelling where no other cars had been, there were no tracks and the grass in places was taller than the cars, I think we even drove through an allotment at one point! Fitz and Stan were on the ball though and stopped to pick up a melon, it was of a strange variety we later discovered when we ate it, it tasted more like cucumber!
Erik had a brake oil leak from the master cylinder about 70kms before camp and unfortunately the mechanics had not done as they should but had gone ahead and we needed a seal to fix the leak! Dad and I raced off in Laura to try and catch the mechanics, we reached a garage and found one of the mechanic teams but not the one who carries spare parts, he was so far ahead he was not able to be reached on the radios they carry, so Dad and I went back and decided to work with Erik and fix it the african way, a bolt and some PTFE tape and he was bodged enough to carry onto camp....It was Laura to the rescue :)
This camping place had wooden huts to sleep in with mosquito nets and a little private 'bathroom' under the stars, with a real toilet which flushed (with a bucket) and a warm shower. To shower under the stars was really nice.
This camp also had permanent residents, not crabs this time but desert frogs! They were really cute and well disguised in the sand.

St Louis – St Louis (Camping) 110km

Tuesday 30th
Mileage 69424
The no food and drink was worth it as I'm feeling much better today! Wooo hoooooo
Today is a rest day so not much to report, we took a trip back into St Louis to see it in daylight, we had a lovely meal, Chicken & chips for me and Dad had a swordfish pasta dish. Mmmmmm....the first food after 24hours! It was soooooo yummy!
I moved my tent this evening, from under the trees to the waterside, more crabs hiding under out tent here (much bigger sand coloured crabs) but the view in the morning was really special and to watch the fishing boast pass by, I almost didn't want to leave, but there are some fun tracks waiting out there.....

Campement de Keur Massene – St Louis (Camping) 110km

Monday 29th
Mileage 69424
Not much happened today in the way of driving after about 20kms off road and 60kms of African style tarmac we reached the border to Senegal!
More than 35 degrees and lots of waiting around for paperwork and passports to be signed and stamped for almost 100 people (incl bikers, vespa riders, 2cvers and organisation. We left the border at about 1pm and were pretty pleased with the 3 hour wait (often it takes much longer) While we waited we saw some interesting creatures in a small river too so it was a nice stop really.
Our camp is 'Zebra Bar' its a camping place with a bar and restaurant it was lovely, camping between the trees, a large lake flowing behind us, a tower (pretty old judging by how corroded the metal structure was!) looking out over the area, I was amazed when I looked out from there, it was breathtaking, as far as the eye could see was palm trees and sections water all around us. On a nice exploration mission I saw awesome purple and orange crabs which, when I stepped on the sane near them they ran away as fast as they could sideways and disappeared into there holes. There were also lots of nice fishing birds here and later we even got to spot some pelicans! We were told there are crocodiles in the water but didn’t witness this!
In the evening we went into the city of St Louis. Unfortunately I had been experiencing short cramps in my tummy for a couple of days, I discovered one of the participants, (Spanish team Daniel & Jose) Daniel, is a Doctor so after a short consultation which him and a translator (Marco – Vespa Rider) he gave me some tablets and very strict instructions not to eat or drink anything, only water for 24 hours! I was sooooo hungry and no matter how much I tried my bestest smile he insisted NO BEER :(
So the evening in St Louis was not as fun as it could have been but it was nice to go there and see it and I had a lot of support though this difficult time as someone 'fasted' with me (in a bar, no drinking = Rubbish) lol
But I was able to learn that St Louis is an island, the French used to fly the African post into a place here (La Poste) and there is one main connecting bridge designed by Mr Eiffel (Eiffel Tower designer) once I heard this you could see familiar features.
It was really different walking around here, in Marrakesh its crazy and everyone wants to sell you something but here we walked free, there were no other tourists in sight and we weaved the shops without being pestered.

Nouakchott – Campement de Keur Massene (Camping) 294km

Sunday 28th
Mileage 69254
This morning we made a short visit to the sea shore and saw the African fishing boats, I loved to see them, they are all painted bright colours and patterns and a lovely sight to see. We continued on through crazy busy Nouakchott (here it does not matter if nothing works on your car as long as you have a good horn!) We have a long track of tarmac then a little under 100km of off road to our next camp which we are told there will be something special there for us.
Once we reached the off road it was a fun day of driving, weaving to avoid big (well hidden) holes, I 2 cars bent arms on this track today it was pretty tough at times, the scenery was nice, we are beginning to see a bit more greenery now and we were even lucky enough to spot the wild boar which we were warned about. They are known to be aggressive and the advice we received was to stay inside the car if you see them so my photo is not great (also because the african dust has stopped the 'zoom' working on my camera) but its evidence! :)
There is a team who I have nicknames the 'Rasta Dudes' (their car is red yellow and green and the number plate lends itself well to the name – of course they are dudes also!) :)
We came across them (Robin & Jari) on the track helping the 2 cars with bent arms, we stopped also but when the Rasta dudes set off again after a couple of metres they discovered their gearbox was stuck in 3rd gear, we assisted until the mechanics arrived one of which (David) then drove the car (in 3rd gear) though the rest of the rough track, back to camp which was about 20-30kms!
Later in camp Dad, Erik and I took the gearbox apart there were parts which had come loose but no lasting damage so we wound up and secured everything back in is rightful place and they were back on the road again the following morning! That's team work!
The surprise of the evening was a huge pork shank thing with vegetables which was delicious

The Rasta Dudes have a website which they are recording their adventure on too, take a look: www.2cvtrail.com

Cap Tafarit – Nouakchott (Hotel/Camping) 337km

Saturday 27th
Mileage 68881
After some fun off road tracks we hit the tarmac, everyone is low on fuel (2cv's and Vespa riders) and when we reached the petrol station (228k before camp) we discover they are out of fuel! A couple of people were feeling a little worried and everyone working out how much fuel they have in their tanks and jerry cans and trying to find out how far it is to the next station and whether they have fuel! After half and hour or so we and 3 other cars decided to take on the challenge and were determined to find a way! So we set off, the 2 cars with the least fuel (Erik and Edwin) slip streaming ourselves and Fitz and Stans car. We hear there is a petrol station in 120km and they have 200litres of petrol. One car ran out of fuel so Fitz shared a few litres of his and we continued. We celebrated our efforts when we reached the station (ignoring the strange looks from the locals) and we filled up (10litres) just what we needed to get to the next station so there was still some left for the equally adventurous teams behind. After the final stretch it was again a celebration when we arrived at the hotel first. It was a 'Mauritanian hotel' so no real luxury but the shower was appreciated and we found a nice pizza place to eat while enjoying the sight of a locals Acadiane which was in great condition. A lovely evening.

Cap Tafarit (Bivouac) - Cap Tafarit (Bivouac) 0km

Friday 26th
Just another day in paradise.....
Its really beautiful here. Its just crazy to think that we are only a few km's from the desert where some people, especially Vespa riders were struggling to finish the track. So the rest is a much needed one, and although its lush here I have had been swimming in the sea, eaten, enjoyed a few beers, slept and am very ready to get back on some fun tracks!!

Nouadhibou – Cap Tafarit (Bivouac) 257km

Thursday 25th
Mileage 68881
Today we ride the desert! Woooo hooooo!
For approx 120km we were in the middle of nowhere, well the middle of the Sahara, Every direction you look is identical.... nothingness! There is 'Camel Grass' (humps of sand with a hay like plant growing through, these are not good for the cars, they are really hard! So you may imagine being able to drive through the desert in one straight line, but no, we must slalom to look after our suspension.
We found a small tree and all 6 of us huddled under the shade of it for a spot of (tuna and bread) lunch and the realisation of where we were was really clear. If you had no GPS and spun around a few times you would have no idea where you came from or where to go! There were mirages everywhere as we travelled and they looked very real until we got closer....its a crazy place out there!
About 15 -20km before our beach camp we drove over a small dune of soft sand, keeping our momentum so we didn't get stuck, as we came over the crest there was a lone vespa in the middle of the track, Dad swerved to avoid hitting it and then at the same time bad luck struck and our tie-rod broke, our springs are open and not in cans so we had to walk back to pick us the pieces of Laura left behind! We moved the vespa off the track to where there were 2 more vespas with there riders beside them, We asked if they were of, one of them (the Father of the other) had fallen and hurt his ribs so they were resting, I saw a vespa rider laying under a tarpaullin a little further back so went to check on him, his eyes were closed and he was almost asleep, I talked complete rubbish to him for a while then get him some of our water which I poured over him and made him drink slowley then continued to blablabla to stop him falling asleep, 5-10 mins later Edwin passed by in his Mehari and helped look after Mark while I went and helped Dad who was fixing Lauras suspension. Mark was put into a fellow teams 2cv replacing the 2cv driver who then squeezed himself into the back of Erik's 2cv (Houdini would be proud) we then helped secure the vespa onto the back of the Mehari. After all of this in 48 degree blazing sun Dad was sick, a few times so I took over the driving, once we began moving and the air began coming into the car dad was feeling better. Laura then stuck to the back of that Mehari like glue to ensure the rest of the journey to camp was trouble free, It was 2 hardcore TT cars and 4 hardcore TT team members saving the day as a team! :)
Camp was paradise! Right on the beach front with some nice african tents for shade and here we will stay for the rest of today and tomorrow,.Rest time, swimming, relaxing oh and working...re-mounting Lauras suspension to make her open cans a little more horizontal and better.

Dakhla - Nouadhibou Camping 381km

Wednesday 24th
Mileage 68650
We continue on the loooong western Sahara road today and leave camp at 5.45am as we must make good progress, Crossing the border from Marocco to Mauritania can take some time, We must first dross the Moroccan border, then we drive through the approx 4km of 'No Mans Land' there is a track we must stick to as there are land mines either side and exploded car wrecks left there to warn of the danger....to be continued....
some pics to follow soon too :)

So we arrived at the Moroccan side of the border at 10am and wait...... Finally we receive our passports back, drive the 4km of no mans land (strictly sticking to the track) at 12.30. We then wait.......and leave the border to enter Mauritania at 3pm. Although we spend a very long time in the heat at a boring border it was not so bad. Everyone was in high spirits and we were all talking and getting to know each other better :)
Anyway, by the 'African Way' I don't think 5 hours to cross the border is too bad! Haha
85km later and we arrive at 'Camp Abba' no dancing queens here though, this is Mauritania, Commonly described as a s**thole! It's noticeable as soon as the border is crossed, its smelly and there is rubbish everywhere, lots of plastic, bags and bottles, but, the people have bigger smiles and this time no different to my previous experience of Nouadhibou, They are all very friendly and interested on us and Laura and make us feel very welcome.
We set up our tents, changed our Moroccan 'Dirhams' into Mauritanian 'Ouguiya' and then went for a drive, we were told we will not be passing anywhere to buy lunch for 2 days so we must shop. We had fun buying fruit, bread, tuna, water, biscuits etc then just drove around a little, One small side street had about 10 hairdressers and because Dad did not have time before he left he decided to visit one! There were 4 guys inside this really tine room and I think it must have been about 70 degrees in there I therefore stood in the doorway (there was no room for me anyway!) Turns out the men were from Ghana and love England so we had a really good laugh with them. Dad wanted a trim so we were both a little nervous when the barber stood ready and armed with a shaver! But he did a great job (even though it took forever! ….but nothing needs to be done fast in Africa!

Ksar Tafnidilt / Tarfaya - Dakhla 840km

Tuesday 23rd
Mileage 68129
Today is a loooong day but necessary to get from Morocco to Mauritania and we do have a treat at the end to look forward to! So we set off from camp before sunrise and followed the tarmac coast road south through the Western Sahara. Laura preformed brilliantly all day, she didn't miss a beat, its a really tough day on the car as we stop only every 1-2 hours to refuel or visit the desert bathroom then we are pedal to the metal again to make progress, we want to try and reach camp before sunset for our treat!
We drove all day with the roof open and only a Matts Soft Tops Sun Mesh over our heads, we were really pleased we has this as we were cooler without shutting the sun out completely, Thanks Matt!
It was again 30 degree c today and the rather boring road / drive was only broken up by police checks, we must hand in a document with lots of info on it (la Fische) smile sweetly and hope the officer will let us pass smoothly! Needless to say we had no problems :)
It was hard going on us today too, driving that road can be really tiring anyway but we seem to have could a cold! Dads is worse than mine, he is sneezing every 5 minutes I just have a really sore throat.
A highlight of the day was when a (heard?) of Camels decided to cross the road as the 2cv's approached but the best bit was when we arrived at the bivouac the organisation had arranged for freshly prepared Oysters! It was Oyster Camp, we have been here before and they were the freshest thing I've ever tasted and really yummy, so much so I had to tell myself to stop after about 8 as I don't want an upset belly tomorrow!

Marrakech – Tree Camp (Tiznit) (Bivouac) 322km

Sunday 21st
Mileage 67730
You know its gonna be a good day when it starts with Eggs & Bacon! Breakfast is usually bread (often a little dry) with ham, cheese or jam or chocolate spread, and there is only cream, no milk so Tea is off the morning menu :( So I was really chuffed with Eggs this morning!
It was our final day in the mountains, the summits were eventful today, at one Dad found a skull which he has kept as a souvenir... and at another when we stopped our Dutch friend Edwin dropped his sunglasses, the slope was pretty steep but he was determined to get them back, so off came a tow rope from one of the 2cv's and around his waist it went, we then lowered him down, slowly so as not to cause a rock slide, well most of us took pictures! But it was successful, glasses retrieved!
Camp this evening is a red sandy one in the middle of nowhere surrounded by cactus fields, really lovely, but caution must be taken when the 'bathroom' It was about 10k of really fun track to get to the bivouac so a pleasant end to a pleasant day
Saturday 20th
Ait Ben Hadou – Marrakech (Camping) 180km
Mileage 67426
We start today with a 60km drive along the 'Telouet Track' then onto one of Africas' deadliest roads with descents on narrow roads on steep cliffs for approx 100km!
The day was a success and we drove with 6 cars at times which was really nice to see, snaking up and down mountains. :)




The place where we camped was very nice, with a pool and showers, but no time for that, (although we did was a few clothes) we ate, helped a team mate with his car then took a taxi into Marrakech. I believe the guys ordered a 6 seater, well that means 2 in the front (not including the driver) and 4 in the back of a beat up Mercedes! So even the taxi ride was an adventure!
I loved Marrakech, yes, its more touristic than any of the places I have seen in Africa and I like less tourism but it was cool to see it, there is a big square and you must watch where you step as there are snakes being charmed on the ground, there are different 'fun fair' games like fish the hoop onto the top of a bottle of coke etc, there are people playing drums and dancing, the atmosphere was lovely. I didn't take many pics as they all want to charge you for pictures!
We walked up and down the Souks (long tall streets full of shops selling all sorts, shoes, bags, food, clothes, jewellery and so much more, I also loved the atmosphere down these little streets, ok so every shop keeper tries to see you his goods but they are friendly about it and I didn't find them too push if you say no. We moved on to the food area, now these guys are pushy! As soon as we walked into the food stall section they were like bees to honey, eat at my stall, no, I am cheaper, etc etc, In the end there was a nice lad with a great English accent and lots of knowledge about Little Britain, Delia Smith....and the list goes on! So we ate there, I had a 'meat' tajine (I really love that dish) and dad had lamb chops. Then, to avoid spending too many Dirhams we went back to the camp site for an early night.

Saturday 3 November 2012

Saturday 27th
Cap Tafarit – Nouakchott (Hotel/Camping) 337km
Mileage 68881
After some fun off road tracks we hit the tarmac, everyone is low on fuel (2cv's and Vespa riders) and when we reached the petrol station (228k before camp) we discover they are out of fuel! A couple of people were feeling a little worried and everyone working out how much fuel they have in their tanks and jerry cans and trying to find out how far it is to the next station and whether they have fuel! After half and hour or so we and 3 other cars decided to take on the challenge and were determined to find a way! So we set off, the 2 cars with the least fuel (Erik and Edwin) slip streaming ourselves and Fitz and Stans car. We hear there is a petrol station in 120km and they have 200litres of petrol. One car ran out of fuel so Fitz shared a few litres of his and we continued. We celebrated our efforts when we reached the station (ignoring the strange looks from the locals) and we filled up (10litres) just what we needed to get to the next station so there was still some left for the equally adventurous teams behind. After the final stretch it was again a celebration when we arrived at the hotel first. It was a 'Mauritanian hotel' so no real luxury but the shower was appreciated and we found a nice pizza place to eat while enjoying the sight of a locals Acadiane which was in great condition. A very pleasant evening.

Cap Tafarit (Bivouac) - Cap Tafarit (Bivouac) 0km

Friday 26th
Just another day in paridise.....
Its really beautiful here. Its just crazy to think that we are only a few km's from the desert where some people, especially Vespa riders were struggling to finish the track. So the rest is a much needed one, and although its lush here I have had been swimming in the sea, eaten, enjoyed a few beers, slept and am very ready to get back on some fun tracks!!

Nouadhibou – Cap Tafarit (Bivouac) 257km

Thursday 25th
Mileage 68881
Today we ride the desert! Woooo hooooo!
For approx 120km we were in the middle of nowhere, well the middle of the Sahara, Every direction you look is identical.... nothingness! There is 'Camel Grass' (humps of sand with a hay like plant growing through, these are not good for the cars, they are really hard! So you may imagine being able to drive through the desert in one straight line, but no, we must slalom to look after our suspension.
We found a small tree and all 6 of us huddled under the shade of it for a spot of (tuna and bread) lunch and the realisation of where we were was really clear. If you had no GPS and spun around a few times you would have no idea where you came from or where to go! There were mirages everywhere as we travelled and they looked very real until we got closer....its a crazy place out there!
About 15 -20km before our beach camp we drove over a small dune of soft sand, keeping our momentum so we didn't get stuck, as we came over the crest there was a lone vespa in the middle of the track, Dad swerved to avoid hitting it and then at the same time bad luck struck and our tie-rod broke, our springs are open and not in cans so we had to walk back to pick us the pieces of Laura left behind! We moved the vespa off the track to where there were 2 more vespas with there riders beside them, We asked if they were of, one of them (the Father of the other) had fallen and hurt his ribs so they were resting, I saw a vespa rider laying under a tarpaullin a little further back so went to check on him, his eyes were closed and he was almost asleep, I talked complete rubbish to him for a while then get him some of our water which I poured over him and made him drink slowley then continued to blablabla to stop him falling asleep, 5-10 mins later Edwin passed by in his Mehari and helped look after Mark while I went and helped Dad who was fixing Lauras suspension. Mark was put into a fellow teams 2cv replacing the 2cv driver who then squeezed himself into the back of Erik's 2cv (Houdini would be proud) we then helped secure the vespa onto the back of the Mehari. After all of this in 48 degree blazing sun Dad was sick, a few times so I took over the driving, once we began moving and the air began coming into the car dad was feeling better. Laura then stuck to the back of that Mehari like glue to ensure the rest of the journey to camp was trouble free, It was 2 hardcore TT cars and 4 hardcore TT team members saving the day as a team! :)
Camp was paradise! Right on the beach front with some nice african tents for shade and here we will stay for the rest of today and tomorrow,.Rest time, swimming, relaxing oh and working...re-mounting Lauras suspension to make her open cans a little more horizontal and better.

Saturday 27 October 2012

Dakhla - Nouadhibou 381km

Wednesday 24th
Mileage 68650
We continue on the loooong western Sahara road today and leave camp at 5.45am as we must make good progress, Crossing the border from Marocco to Mauritania can take some time, We must first dross the Moroccan border, then we drive through the approx 4km of 'No Mans Land' there is a track we must stick to as there are land mines either side and exploded car wrecks left there to warn of the danger....to be continued....
some pics to follow soon too :)

Ksar Tafnidilt / Tarfaya - Dakhla 840km

Tuesday 23rd
Mileage 68129
Today is a loooong day but necessary to get from Morocco to Mauritania and we do have a treat at the end to look forward to! So we set off from camp before sunrise and followed the tarmac coast road south through the Western Sahara. Laura preformed brilliantly all day, she didn't miss a beat, its a really tough day on the car as we stop only every 1-2 hours to refuel or visit the desert bathroom then we are pedal to the metal again to make progress, we want to try and reach camp before sunset for our treat!
We drove all day with the roof open and only a Matts Soft Tops Sun Mesh over our heads, we were really pleased we has this as we were cooler without shutting the sun out completely, Thanks Matt!
It was again 30 degree c today and the rather boring road / drive was only broken up by police checks, we must hand in a document with lots of info on it (la Fische) smile sweetly and hope the officer will let us pass smoothly! Needless to say we had no problems :)
It was hard going on us today too, driving that road can be really tiring anyway but we seem to have could a cold! Dads is worse than mine, he is sneezing every 5 minutes I just have a really sore throat.
A highlight of the day was when a (heard?) of Camels decided to cross the road as the 2cv's approached but the best bit was when we arrived at the bivouac the organisation had arranged for freshly prepared Oysters! It was Oyster Camp, we have been here before and they were the freshest thing I've ever tasted and really yummy, so much so I had to tell myself to stop after about 8 as I don't want an upset belly tomorrow!

Tree Camp – Ksar Tafnidilt / Tarfaya (Camping) 511km

Monday 22nd
Mileage 67931
Wow, today was awesome! I won the steering wheel again and we drove (after about 10km of off road) on tarmac again and it was a bit of a race to get to the beach were we would then drive 30km along, we mus meet together and drive at the same time (pretty much)
Those of you who have heard or stories or read my 2009 blog will know we had problems last time, we have to go through some water before the hard sand of the beach and last time we got water into our electronic ignition, Well this time it was different, 1. I was driving and 2. we got water into our standard point ignition, Laura pulled herself out of the water on her starter motor and after about 10-15min work I was flying down that beach like there was no tomorrow!
After the 30km of pure beach fun I 'let' Dad drive as I wanted some roof time! I could see everything really well from up there and it was cooler and FUN!
We had it all soft sand, rocks, water and all while we were driving through a beautiful Canyon, still the Salty African sea smell in the air, mmm lush.
Dad thought he would cool me off a few times when driving through the water but it was actually rather appreciated (the first time!)
We lost sight of one of the teams we were driving with (Fitz and Stan) so Dad and I went back and sound them under their car replacing a broken tye rod end, They had put a greese nipple into it which actually made it weak, but, luckily, we carry a spare.... no problem
The rest of the track continued to be just as fun and all the cars were close by which was really nice. The campsite was in the grounds of a lush hotel and is one Dad and I stayed at in 2009 so it was nice to revisit, We must leave at 5am tomorrow so another early night beckons!

Marrakech – Tree Camp (Tiznit) (Bivouac) 322km

Sunday 21st
Mileage 67730
You know its gonna be a good day when it starts with Eggs & Bacon! Breakfast is usually bread (often a little dry) with ham, cheese or jam or chocolate spread, and there is only cream, no milk so Tea is off the morning menu :( So I was really chuffed with Eggs this morning!
It was our final day in the mountains, the summits were eventful today, at one Dad found a skull which he has kept as a souvenir... and at another when we stopped our Dutch friend Edwin dropped his sunglasses, the slope was pretty steep but he was determined to get them back, so off came a tow rope from one of the 2cv's and around his waist it went, we then lowered him down, slowly so as not to cause a rock slide, well most of us took pictures! But it was successful, glasses retrieved!
Camp this evening is a red sandy one in the middle of nowhere surrounded by cactus fields, really lovely, but caution must be taken when the 'bathroom' It was about 10k of really fun track to get to the bivouac so a pleasant end to a pleasant day


Ait Ben Hadou – Marrakech (Camping) 180km

Saturday 20th
Mileage 67426
We start today with a 60km drive along the 'Telouet Track' then onto one of Africas' deadliest roads with descents on narrow roads on steep cliffs for approx 100km!
The day was a success and we drove with 6 cars at times which was really nice to see, snaking up and down mountains. :)




The place where we camped was very nice, with a pool and showers, but no time for that, (although we did was a few clothes) we ate, helped a team mate with his car then took a taxi into Marrakech. I believe the guys ordered a 6 seater, well that means 2 in the front (not including the driver) and 4 in the back of a beat up Mercedes! So even the taxi ride was an adventure!
I loved Marrakech, yes, its more touristic than any of the places I have seen in Africa and I like less tourism but it was cool to see it, there is a big square and you must watch where you step as there are snakes being charmed on the ground, there are different 'fun fair' games like fish the hoop onto the top of a bottle of coke etc, there are people playing drums and dancing, the atmosphere was lovely. I didn't take many pics as they all want to charge you for pictures!
We walked up and down the Souks (long tall streets full of shops selling all sorts, shoes, bags, food, clothes, jewellery and so much more, I also loved the atmosphere down these little streets, ok so every shop keeper tries to see you his goods but they are friendly about it and I didn't find them too push if you say no. We moved on to the food area, now these guys are pushy! As soon as we walked into the food stall section they were like bees to honey, eat at my stall, no, I am cheaper, etc etc, In the end there was a nice lad with a great English accent and lots of knowledge about Little Britain, Delia Smith....and the list goes on! So we ate there, I had a 'meat' tajine (I really love that dish) and dad had lamb chops. Then, to avoid spending too many Dirhams we went back to the camp site for an early night.

Algeria – Zagora – Ait-Ben-Hadou (Hotel) 309km

Friday 19th
Mileage 67426
Punctures 1
Today its much cooler, there are lots of clouds in the sky keeping the sun off us (hmm, could have used that in the middle of the desert yesterday!) The Vespa riders took a different route to us yesterday so we left a small camp of 2cvs behind when we left at 7.30am. We drove off road for about 70km, I beat Dad to the driving seat again today and thoroughly enjoyed the slaloming rocky track which lead us to more mountainous scenes of the Atlas. Yesterday we drove through a huge gorge and reached approx 3000m elevation today we were half that, I was writing the blog and made myself really dizzy due to the altitude and about 1000 corners every 10 miles! So I was pleased we were not so high today! And it was worth it to see the layered rock and muti colours making up such amazingly grand views, I don't think and camera can do it justice.
Today was a pretty easy day and the last part was tarmac, we dove as a 3 car convoy none of which had problems! (these cars are awesome!)
I got to drive another team car for a while, up and down the mountain which was fun and a little adrenaline fuelled as the steering wheel was on the wrong side of the car and African drivers give way to no-one! Haha – TAB (That's Africa Baby!)
We stopped a little before camp at Ouarzazate (North Africas Movie Capital) where films such as Sahara, Gladiaror, Lawrence of Arabia.....and others were filmed. I actually stayed here with another team and Dad continued the remaining 15km to the Hotel. I bought myself some souvenirs then made my way back too. When I arrived Dad had a big smile and proceeded to tell me how he got bored and took Laura up a mountain, stopped at the top, took some pics, then spotted our FIRST puncture!!
The hotel was really lovely and had wifi but it was slow and kept disconnecting. I had hoped to send a few mails and messages but with the blog too it was not possible ….so love to all from Africa!






Saturday 20 October 2012

Its now the Saturday 20th October, one week after we left, time is really flying!
sorry the blog updates are not as often as I would like, we stayed in a hotel last night 'La Rose du Sable' GPS: N31 02.766 W7 08.052
We leave now and drive a dangerous decent to Marrakech! wish us luck!
 

Todra – Algeria Camp (Bivouac) 338km

Thursday 18th
Mileage 67219
Today we meet the sand! The road book says to make good progress, travel in groups of 3 and take enough food and water as there is a big chance you wont make it to camp!! (we drove this track in 2009 and didn't make it!)
First we have 120km of tarmac, on this part we (Dad and I, Erik and Dave , Fitz and Stan) stopped for a pee break I dropped Dad off and drove a few meters further and got stuck! But not badly, I had my private pee then shouted for the muscles to come and push me! Haha, no-one was bothered though, we treated it as a practice run for what we have to come today!
I drove all day today, and I am very pleased to say I only got stuck twice. The sand was really deep but once I got back into the technique I really really really enjoyed myself! I even helped drive another teams car out when they got stuck!
The carb flooding issue from the previous day was a bit of a worry when we first set off but Laura performed better than we could have hoped and we had no problems all day. I really love this holiday!!
Camp was really nice in a fort looking building in the middle of the dunes, we made it!!!!








Boujad Forest – Gorges de Todra 300km

Wednesday 17th
Mileage 67818
Todays track takes us off road firstly, then up and down the Atlas Mountains the views were breathtaking, literally! It was really windy when we stopped at the top of them to take pics. Laura strugged a little as she seemed to flood her carb when we needed to apply throttle uphill, but when we heard other teams having the same problems we tried not to worry too much. Our oil temp was running at about 100 degrees and we did need to bleed the brakes once as they got so hot when going downhill, The roads were loads of fun to drive and really Laura was running and coping well. But as they say, don't speak too soon....before we reached camp we decided to refuel in preparation for a long day tomorrow in the sand, we filled our 2nd tank and when leaving the garage there was a really strong smell of petrol, so at camp it was straight to work. The 2nd tank has a gasket on the top (fuel sender unit) and the gasket was kapot so again we fashioned a gasket, this time from a cardboard (tea bags) box......no problem, just solutions!









Friday 19 October 2012

Assilah – Boujad Forest (Bivouac) 403km

Tuesday 16th
Mileage 66792
We set off from camp at approx 7.30am and after about 30km we stopped to try and get our CB working and decided to have a quick check under the bonnet....good job we did as we found a massive (potentially catastrophic) oil leak! Upon investigation we discovered a crack in the 2nd oil cooler....phew! No major problem, we disconnected it and set off again. Its a shame as now we have no 2nd oil cooler which would have been nice to have, especially on the 2nd part when it really heats up.
The max temp so far has been 30 degrees c
We stopped at a small village and bought chicken and chips which 4 of us shared under the nice shade of a tree then later we had further problems when we realised that we cannot charge our GPS via USB and our inverter is fixed at the rear of the car! But we found a temporary solution and just had to put up with a cable running over the passengers shoulder.
We drove a fun off road track and arrived at the forest camp just as the sun was setting and it was beautiful. (we are 2 hours behind English time – sunset is at 5.45pm Africa time) We spent our evening at camp helping out a team mate who's exhaust manifold had come loose and burnt out the gasket. The parts truck was not at camp as he had gone to find a 'lost' vespa driver so Dad and I worked with Erik to fashion some gaskets from an aluminium tray which we acquired from the catering truck! (4 layers on the one side of the manifold which had burnt out) We got to sleep at about 1.30am with a long day ahead of us tomorrow





Tanger – Assilah (Camping) 85km

I forgot to add, Laura’s mileage when leaving Norfolk was 65587

Monday 15th
The Ferry was very nice. We had to reverse on which was an experience. Moments after being shown the room we were sleeping, afterwards we showered, ate and were all feeling ourselves again. The ferry crossing was slow but the rest was good, we uploaded our first weeks worth of 'tracks' onto our GPS and after 26 hours we docked at Tanger and after approx 2 hours we were through the border and had our money changed into the local currency 'Dirham' we then drove a tarmac route to our first camp.
Before setting off in Europe Laura was struggling a little with power but when her rubber hit African soil she began to wake up :)







Sunday 14 October 2012

Tevueren (Belgium) → Bacelona. 1,350km

Saturday 13th / Sunday 14th October

Barcelooooonaaa!
We are here!! Its been a long drive and I am feeling a little confused by what day it is but the first big leg of our adventure was a complete success and good fun.
I am pleased Dad ignored one of my 'how we can lose weight' requests and left the stereo in the car as we really enjoyed singing our hearts out on the way here!

We met at the Africa Museum as planned and talked with the friends who kindly came along to see us off and wish us a safe trip...Thank You!
At 2pm we left the pretty heavy rain behind in Belgium (Sorry guys) everything went smooth and to plan, but we did decide to take a look at Lyon in France (aka, took a wrong turn) and it seems to be a very pretty place (at approx 11pm at night) maybe I must go back there sometime hey?! Haha

Those who own a 2cv can probably appreciate that its not easy to sleep in one, yeah yeah, I usually have no problems sleeping (I can hear my family and friends saying now) but I was running really high on excitement, coffee and cakes! Well, I still am!
We have all met up at a truck stop approx 30 miles before the ferry port and will be leaving here at 11am (10am UK time). The ferry leaves at 4pm. I was very excited at the thought of eggs and bacon when we got here and was quickly disappointed by the gloopy eggs and leathery bacon served up :( ….(not to mention the price...jeez) Take me to Africa, the food is better there!

We are now going to raise lauras suspension a little and give her a quick check over. Getting here she ran like a 'Dream' no, like 'Star' no......like 'Laura' does when she knows she is going on an adventure. If she carries on this way for the next 5 weeks it will be great! Fingers crossed :)

Once more I want to think our 'Home Team' for their last minute help, especially my big sis for getting and setting up this lap top for me so I can keep you all updated, Its working great so far too! Cheers big ears!
Oh and big thanks to Peter & Ria Vande Look for taking these pics of us at the start and putting them on facebook for our friends and family :)

 Team Autotest - Thanks for the Merchandise guys! :)

When we get on the ferry we will upload tracks to our GPS and maybe have a beer?! Oh yeah and perhaps I will sleep a little.....!
Its a 24 hour ferry, and then an 85km drive to our first camp :)
Hope to be in touch again soon x

 The rain ponchos came in handy, Thanks again Auotest / Bosch Car Service!

 Some bad luck for one of the teams on their way to the start, Wheel nuts not tightened :(

 Lined up and raring to go! (This is the other car I have been working on the last 4 weeks) 
Don't they look great!!!  :D

 Ok enough Rain.....Lets Go, Go, Go!!!

 Check out the donuts we bought in Spain!

 Good Morning Barcelona!


Friday 12 October 2012

The Penultimate Day...

...Tomorrow we leave for Africa! Well, firstly Barcelona :)
All the teams and most of the organisation will meet tomorrow morning at the Africa Museum in Belgium. Then, at 2pm (Remember UK are 1 hour behind, therefore 1pm English time) So you can all be thinking of us and wishing us luck.....please :)
We will drive from there, non stop, 1,350km (approx 838 miles) to the Port at Barcelona and our ferry leaves at 4pm Sunday (14th)
We arrive in Tanger at approx 6pm Monday and after the border formalities (which can sometimes take some time in Africa) we will drive 75km (approx 46 miles) to our first camp at Asilah.
* These crazy Belgian folk talk in kilometers so I will be following suit from now on in this blog.

Laura, has had a few last minute problems, with ignition and wiring but they seem to be resolved and we have confidence in her now! I am already in Belgium so will be meeting Dad and Laura at the start tomorrow. So I have my fingers crossed for a safe trip to Belgium for them :)
In the last stages of preparation we have received lots of help from our sponsors, Autotest and Threeways as well and technical assistance with the car and the electrical equipment for the blog and GPS etc, from Matt Hoskins, Mark Casserly, Carl Sheldrick, my lovely Sis, nieces, nephew and Mum so a big Thank You coming your way peeps.....
!
Its really nice to know we are supported by our friends and family so please remember so check up on us occasionally and maybe add a comment. I will post you updates as often as I possibly can.

Today I am feeling really excited but also a little stressed, I still need to pack and complete that never ending 'to do' list!

Monday 8 October 2012

Team Building / Training Weekend

On the weekend of 8th & 9th September Dad and I took Laura to Ronse in Belgium to meet the other teams, attend some briefings for GPS use, first aid basics and bush mechanics, to fill in the forms for our visas and to hear a little more details on where our route will take us.
The atmosphere was lovely. Spirits were high, everyone was excited and very friendly. It was a very different experience to the Training weekend we went to in 2009 as this time we had friends there! :)

As you may know from the official website: http://www.touareg-trail.be/  Part 1 of our Adventure we are joined by Vespa's! The riders are all really nice and there is a girl whose Vespa is called 'Star'! I will be cheering her on! :)  They ride a different route to us but we will be at the same bivouac (camping) in the evenings. Also joining us are motorbikes so its going to be a very different experience to last time and I look forward to getting to know everyone better and sharing a great experience with them!


Another purpose of the weekend was to have Laura checked over to ensure she is 'fit for purpose' Well, we knew she was not ready to go. Her 'new' bonnet was still with our sponsor being 'stickered' and we have many new parts to go onto the car which we did not use (and wear out) for the trip to Belgium. The guys advised us of a few changes we could make but nothing major and we have not made those changes as time has simply run out! We also had a small oil leak which we were aware of.
After the Training weekend we resolved the oil leak but Laura was not running very well, she was really holding back on power after making a few changes to the carb we were still a little confused but finally we discovered that the 123 (electronic ignition) was way too advanced, so that is changed and now she is running well again! problem...? nope, just solutions!

There are still some last minute things to do and we must still pack (as light as possible) ....bring on the end of lists! haha

So we are really counting down now! This Saturday 2pm (1pm UK time) we will be leaving the Africa Museum in Tervuren and heading off on a solid drive to Barcelona.
I will update the blog as often as I can in Africa, I will write it each day it just depends on internet access and access to contact home as to how often I can post. Just like last time if anyone has any questions just post them and I will do my best to answer! :)

I know its not in English but it might be nice for some of those not so English friends of mine!......