Insulation tape on the threads? Might work like plumbers tape
And/or cut a rubber gasket from old inner tube?
And/or cut a rubber gasket from old inner tube?
Gael warning in the Congo
- Thread starter simondippenhall
- Start date
Thanks all. Checked the breather and couldn't see problem. So have washed all the bits and added a layer of tape to seat the o ring on the filler cap. It is now a firm fit.
Tried same with the seat (ring is present on it and I believe also new.) it didn't seat well after taping so have removed the tape and will road test on todays ride. I am reluctant to play further with the seat but will have to this evening if the leak continues
Sent from my G8441 using Tapatalk
Tried same with the seat (ring is present on it and I believe also new.) it didn't seat well after taping so have removed the tape and will road test on todays ride. I am reluctant to play further with the seat but will have to this evening if the leak continues
Sent from my G8441 using Tapatalk
There are some great photos to go with this update but you'll have to take my word for this until I get to Wifi, so I am afraid you will have to make do with my monochrome notes for now!
Saturday
Leave Lalibela, heading West to Gonder where I had heard there were troubles but enquiry suggested it was ok to go now.
Rubbish breakfast
Cold morning at 2500 metres
Immediately make a wrong turn and have to turn the bike on a gravel slope, and repeat this a couple more times
Fortunately today’s ride of 360 kms will have less than 20 kms of piste ...but I was still pretty tired by 4 pm!
Good to see Chinese engineers out supervising new roads building...
The odd isolated roundabout in middle of nowhere
Then I finally Rejoin the tarmac and see red hand
Decide I have enough petrol and head off west...then second thought and turn around and fill up at black market...no more water than regular stuff! Just dearer but still only £/litre or so
Glad I did as it was another 150 miles before any petrol and I would have been worrying about running out!
Then get to turnoff North up the mountain to Gondar: it's a terrible muddy mess and locals say it's another 6-7 kms of dirt...I am knackered and ask around. Eventually someone says (in Amharic/ English) ‘or you could take the bypass ‘! Which I find...12 kms of lovely tarmac up the mountain too city and I treat myself to the lovely Inn of Four Sisters. Turns out mine host is Belfast/Ethiopian Chelsea supprter! Good to see that the conflict of a few weeks ago seems to have subsided. (Referring to Gondar, not Chelsea!)
Early to bed after spaghetti with vegetables and a Fanta...living the dream!
Have spent most of the day between 2500 metres and 3,300 metres so it has been cold which is also tiring
Sunday: a spot of fettling and tourism:
Wake early and visit beautiful and very well attended Selassie church but resist the inevitable ask for money to enter and view from outside. Ditto later the Castle!
Everywhere worshippers throng in the customary white wool shawl.
Then I go back to the hotel work on the leaking filler cap, with Emily my 5 year old helper in attendance.
Finally and with trepidation I set off, aiming for Metame on the Sudan border, but keeping an eye fixed on the filler as it has been pulsing alarmingly. But the test ride showed it would stay out although on actual 200 km ride west it still leaked.
Tony has warned me that things were tense on the road northwest and mentioned one of his tours had problems earlier in the year. He said I may end up getting a security escort.
And indeed I saw armed soldiers everywhere in the villages but experienced no problems. I was slightly rattled to see the buses I was overtaking had soldiers with guns on the roof, a bit Wild West style.
Also a dramatic moment with an errant cow which lead to some unplanned off-roading but I kept the bike upright . Amazing how much faster a speed seems off the road than on the tarmac!
But arrived safely at Mrs Firewhot's wonderful establishment. A lovely lady and a warm welcome which included laundry and an Ethiopian supper and several coffees which she cooked from green beans beside me.
(She also had one of her girls wash my socks for me).
And the warmth down at 800 metres, quite a change and some mile and a half lower (2,400 metres) than yesterday. Will need to acclimate to this again as the last three weeks has all been at altitude.
With that I turned in Sunday night, conscious I had a challenging day trying to cross the Sudan border without the necessary Customs paperwork!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Saturday
Leave Lalibela, heading West to Gonder where I had heard there were troubles but enquiry suggested it was ok to go now.
Rubbish breakfast
Cold morning at 2500 metres
Immediately make a wrong turn and have to turn the bike on a gravel slope, and repeat this a couple more times
Fortunately today’s ride of 360 kms will have less than 20 kms of piste ...but I was still pretty tired by 4 pm!
Good to see Chinese engineers out supervising new roads building...
The odd isolated roundabout in middle of nowhere
Then I finally Rejoin the tarmac and see red hand
Decide I have enough petrol and head off west...then second thought and turn around and fill up at black market...no more water than regular stuff! Just dearer but still only £/litre or so
Glad I did as it was another 150 miles before any petrol and I would have been worrying about running out!
Then get to turnoff North up the mountain to Gondar: it's a terrible muddy mess and locals say it's another 6-7 kms of dirt...I am knackered and ask around. Eventually someone says (in Amharic/ English) ‘or you could take the bypass ‘! Which I find...12 kms of lovely tarmac up the mountain too city and I treat myself to the lovely Inn of Four Sisters. Turns out mine host is Belfast/Ethiopian Chelsea supprter! Good to see that the conflict of a few weeks ago seems to have subsided. (Referring to Gondar, not Chelsea!)
Early to bed after spaghetti with vegetables and a Fanta...living the dream!
Have spent most of the day between 2500 metres and 3,300 metres so it has been cold which is also tiring
Sunday: a spot of fettling and tourism:
Wake early and visit beautiful and very well attended Selassie church but resist the inevitable ask for money to enter and view from outside. Ditto later the Castle!
Everywhere worshippers throng in the customary white wool shawl.
Then I go back to the hotel work on the leaking filler cap, with Emily my 5 year old helper in attendance.
Finally and with trepidation I set off, aiming for Metame on the Sudan border, but keeping an eye fixed on the filler as it has been pulsing alarmingly. But the test ride showed it would stay out although on actual 200 km ride west it still leaked.
Tony has warned me that things were tense on the road northwest and mentioned one of his tours had problems earlier in the year. He said I may end up getting a security escort.
And indeed I saw armed soldiers everywhere in the villages but experienced no problems. I was slightly rattled to see the buses I was overtaking had soldiers with guns on the roof, a bit Wild West style.
Also a dramatic moment with an errant cow which lead to some unplanned off-roading but I kept the bike upright . Amazing how much faster a speed seems off the road than on the tarmac!
But arrived safely at Mrs Firewhot's wonderful establishment. A lovely lady and a warm welcome which included laundry and an Ethiopian supper and several coffees which she cooked from green beans beside me.
(She also had one of her girls wash my socks for me).
And the warmth down at 800 metres, quite a change and some mile and a half lower (2,400 metres) than yesterday. Will need to acclimate to this again as the last three weeks has all been at altitude.
With that I turned in Sunday night, conscious I had a challenging day trying to cross the Sudan border without the necessary Customs paperwork!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
So I promised pictures. And now I have arrived in a sizzling hot Khartoum I will try to post a few...once I have recovered from the traffic jams on the last kilometre of my 409 km ride this morning
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Views from lalibela, in the N Ethiopian Highlands, is famous for its churches hewn from living rock:
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Views from the descent, when the road conditions permitted!
Imagine my feelings getting to the end of the dirt trail to see the Ulstermen had been putting their signs up!
And finally, the committee that supervised the filling of my tank with black market petrol (which by the way worked fine!).
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Imagine my feelings getting to the end of the dirt trail to see the Ulstermen had been putting their signs up!
And finally, the committee that supervised the filling of my tank with black market petrol (which by the way worked fine!).
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
The northern Highlands were so beautiful, marred only by people who approached asking for 'manney' whenever I stopped. I will let the photos speak for themselves
As the ground levelled, there were lush paddy fields
I found a garage with petrol thank heavens....the other pump was being used to fuel up a black market distribution operation (the truck was also full of big containers but I thought a photo might be unwise):
of //uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191022/fbe4c26f98f3be3a720ca7b4c030a840.jpg[/IMG
Note the stack of cash in payment![IMG]//uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191022/5ef5cea6c12e22a5e80f0c985db89742.jpg
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
As the ground levelled, there were lush paddy fields
I found a garage with petrol thank heavens....the other pump was being used to fuel up a black market distribution operation (the truck was also full of big containers but I thought a photo might be unwise):
of //uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191022/fbe4c26f98f3be3a720ca7b4c030a840.jpg[/IMG
Note the stack of cash in payment![IMG]//uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191022/5ef5cea6c12e22a5e80f0c985db89742.jpg
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Finally made it to main Street Gondar (using the bypass!) and to avoid the touts I parked up for a coffee and cake while I scanned Booking.com for some accommodation
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Decided on an upmarket joint after two nights in sh**holes. It was almost worth it just for the slippers
Unfortunately there was a barbershop group of barking dogs all night so I ended up with a very disturbed night.
Set off early to see the Selassie church
The town was thronged with white shawled churchgoers
Then back to work on the oil filler plug
with my inquisitive assistant Emily
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Unfortunately there was a barbershop group of barking dogs all night so I ended up with a very disturbed night.
Set off early to see the Selassie church
The town was thronged with white shawled churchgoers
Then back to work on the oil filler plug
with my inquisitive assistant Emily
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I checked out the Fasilides castle from the outside but having been ripped off it was disappointing I saved the price of an admission ticket
Then it was time to hit the road headed east towards the Sudan border. Blagged some fuel here too
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Then it was time to hit the road headed east towards the Sudan border. Blagged some fuel here too
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I was looking out for Mrs Firewhote's pension and found it with the help of this flag waving fixer (who was to be of some help the next day).
For $8 I got a room with a fan and Mrs F set to making me coffee starting from green beans.
I asked about food and she produced, Blue Peter style, a lovely beef and kale dish...spicy but enjoyable, which was included in the room rate as well!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
One of her assistants washed my socks (I was starting to do this but she was horrified that a man would wash his own socks).
When I left early the next morning I realised I may have missed another dimension of the establishment, judging by the contents of my bedside table
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
When I left early the next morning I realised I may have missed another dimension of the establishment, judging by the contents of my bedside table
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Enough for an energetic night then.....
- Joined
- Oct 6, 2008
- Messages
- 1,610
- Reaction score
- 466
Great stuff Simon. What an adventure!
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Whilst running water was limited, we did have a delivery after I arrived
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Whilst running water was limited, we did have a delivery after I arrived
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Not sure those tyres would pass an MOT
So from the African overland FB group that has been such a great help to me, I extract this post I made:
'So I arrived Khartoum this afternoon. I can definitely attest it is not possible to enter Sudan from Ethiopia at Metema without a carnet of some sort. I tried to put together a collection of documents but they were adamant. Fortunately Aboubieda at Sudan Automobile and Touring Club was able to arrange a Sudan carnet (via WhatsApp!) that got me legal (cost Sud£ 10k.). And my carnet was checked on the road also. So the first country in my circuit of Africa, from Morocco via Rep of Congo to Capetown and from there to Sudan, that has refused me a TIP.
But very nice people.'
This is a succinct summary of a long morning, from 0630 Ethiopian time to 13h00 Sudan time (bafflingly, an hour later)...so in effect a 7 hour period.
In preparation I had tried a little home made carnet
All very amicable but it was clear my homework project was getting 0/10 and I was going to have to mobilise my Khartoum contact Mr Abiubieda of the grandly named Sudan Automobile and Touring club, the FIA affiliate in Sudan, if I were to get
into the country
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
'So I arrived Khartoum this afternoon. I can definitely attest it is not possible to enter Sudan from Ethiopia at Metema without a carnet of some sort. I tried to put together a collection of documents but they were adamant. Fortunately Aboubieda at Sudan Automobile and Touring Club was able to arrange a Sudan carnet (via WhatsApp!) that got me legal (cost Sud£ 10k.). And my carnet was checked on the road also. So the first country in my circuit of Africa, from Morocco via Rep of Congo to Capetown and from there to Sudan, that has refused me a TIP.
But very nice people.'
This is a succinct summary of a long morning, from 0630 Ethiopian time to 13h00 Sudan time (bafflingly, an hour later)...so in effect a 7 hour period.
In preparation I had tried a little home made carnet
All very amicable but it was clear my homework project was getting 0/10 and I was going to have to mobilise my Khartoum contact Mr Abiubieda of the grandly named Sudan Automobile and Touring club, the FIA affiliate in Sudan, if I were to get
into the country
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Whilst waiting I got a local SIM card which if course necessitates a committee of people to get it working
The Chao on the right was helping me in the carnet process although soon it became a direct exercise between me, this helpful Caot Ahmed and the Khartoum chap. Amazing what you can get done by WhatsApp of documents around the place (although I had taken the precaution of emailing soft copies of passport and v5 to Aboubieda in the previous days as I could see this problem being insurmountable!
Whilst waiting (interminably, it seemed to me but I am not always the most patient) I was offered breakfast by another Customs official (which I declined) and then local coffee which I was pleased to have
He paid the coffee lady and would not accept any reimbursement from me... lovely chap!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
The Chao on the right was helping me in the carnet process although soon it became a direct exercise between me, this helpful Caot Ahmed and the Khartoum chap. Amazing what you can get done by WhatsApp of documents around the place (although I had taken the precaution of emailing soft copies of passport and v5 to Aboubieda in the previous days as I could see this problem being insurmountable!
Whilst waiting (interminably, it seemed to me but I am not always the most patient) I was offered breakfast by another Customs official (which I declined) and then local coffee which I was pleased to have
He paid the coffee lady and would not accept any reimbursement from me... lovely chap!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
After numerous assurances that it was almost ready, the required paperwork rolled out...a copy of the triptych and I was good to go.
And to exit onto the atrocious road (they said) to Al gadaref I had to produce the carnet again....so it's clear there was no way I could have winged it through this border!
First view if the fertile plains
The roads were atrociously potholed (so much so that I lost my 2 litre water bottle and jerry can and had to go back to find the latter).
But like the curate's egg, they were good in orts and I made progress.
Good decision to recover the jerrycans as it became clear that fuel shortages were a big issue here
So I was glad I had filled everything in Ethiopia and plugged in to Al gadaref in search of a hotel. I visited three before returning to the original, overpriced and run down one which at least had AC of sorts. Because it was getting really hot now I was down at 700 metres.
One hotelier explained he would help me push the Laden GS up these stairs to his lobby
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
.And to exit onto the atrocious road (they said) to Al gadaref I had to produce the carnet again....so it's clear there was no way I could have winged it through this border!
First view if the fertile plains
The roads were atrociously potholed (so much so that I lost my 2 litre water bottle and jerry can and had to go back to find the latter).
But like the curate's egg, they were good in orts and I made progress.
Good decision to recover the jerrycans as it became clear that fuel shortages were a big issue here
So I was glad I had filled everything in Ethiopia and plugged in to Al gadaref in search of a hotel. I visited three before returning to the original, overpriced and run down one which at least had AC of sorts. Because it was getting really hot now I was down at 700 metres.
One hotelier explained he would help me push the Laden GS up these stairs to his lobby
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I wandered the warm and very friendly town in pursuit of a shawarma and a lovely banana juice (milk no water!) before turning in. I was told 'there will be benzine in the morning' so decided to check before leaving.
In the morning I went to a busy bakers stall and queued whilst everyone collected big bags of 20-30 loaves. Eventually I said I only needed 'birr' (two) so I was sent to the front and gifted this small quantity!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
In the morning I went to a busy bakers stall and queued whilst everyone collected big bags of 20-30 loaves. Eventually I said I only needed 'birr' (two) so I was sent to the front and gifted this small quantity!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Similar threads
