Basingstoke to Dakar

Drumacoon Lad.

Well-known member
UKGSer Subscriber
Joined
Oct 6, 2008
Messages
1,492
Reaction score
5
Location
Central Basingstoke, Hampshire, England
I've chosen this title because I live near Basingstoke and I'm not sure these 2 places have featured in the same sentence before. Like last year when I rode from the Candover Valley to the Euphrates Valley. So this is no Dakar ralley, I'll be mainly sticking to roads not sand dunes, as I already have a photo of one of my bikes on it's side in the Moroccan sand and do not need another.

After some trips on an R1200GS over the last few years I decided to use my G650 XCountry this year for a trip to Africa. I had considered a long trip maybe all the way down to South Aafrica but could not pull that one together this time, so have decided on a solo round trip from Hampshire to Dakar. Travelling in Africa at the moment has it's complications and some people believe it is not the right time to go, but when is the right time? The right time is when it is possible and you have the time and the means of travel. This October and November is the time for me. I took a calm review of the risks, listened to the concerns of friends and relatives, but overall riding to Dakar and back before December seemed a reasonable plan. However, *the risk are not trivial, and either an upsurge in terrorist activity on my route or the spreading of the Ebola epedemic will make me reconsider my final destination. So as I remind friends, I am travelling on a motorbike, to its more likley something may happen on the road than having issues with terrorism or Ebola.

*

So the plans are to take the Portsmouth to Santander ferry, ride down through Spain stopping at Seville, then down to Algeceris and over on the ferry to Morocco. Then on to Rabat to get a Mauritanian visa and work my way down the Moroccan coast, into Western Sahara to Dakhla. At Dakhla I'll review the situation further south before heading into Mauritania and Senegal. The Western Sahara/Mauritania border and the Senegal border crossing at Rosso are a couple of the most interesting in Africa, and in a way I look forward to them both, apart from the landmines. Once in Senegal I'll stop off at St Louis, rest of at the Zebrabar campsite south of St Louis and finally on to Dakar.

*

I've had the smaller 650 xCountry single for a couple of years. It is a delight to ride, very responsive, handles well and quite uncomplicated. When the idea of riding down to South Africa was mooted, the xCountry was a good choice for me and a lot of the preparation I have done to the bike was with Africa in mind. BMW only sold these bikes for a couple of years and they were expensive when launched so never became high volume. However, they are becomjng a bit of a classic and have a loyal following. They were developed as a lightweight option, mainly for road use but with some capacity to go offroad. For me it is considerably lighter than my R1200GS and more suitable for the variable roads you may find in Africa. I bought the bike in standard form with about 5,000 miles on the clock and have enjoyed carrying out a number of modifications. When I conclude this report I'll detail the modificstions and equipment used, but in summary I've updated, the suspension, rear subframe, sump guard, screen, lights and added luggage, auxiliary fuel tank, engine protection, tool box etc. Of course this has made the bike heavier than standard but it is still a light 650 bike and should be great for this trip. Having done most of the work on the bike myself I'm looking forward to seeing how it performs.

*

I've enjoyed the preperation of the bike and the planning of the trip. Some people claim that throwing their priperafion for a trip like this to throw a few clothes in a bag, check they have the passport and credit card and head off. I'm not sure if this is how it really happens, but that does not work for me. I don't want a rigid plan but I like to understand the route, make sure the bike is ready, take apropriate tools and spares.

This time I've had to have innoculations, understand visa requirements buy new maps and GPSmaps and load to the Garmin. It was also important to learn a bit about what was happening in Wester Africa and what other travellers were experiencing, the Horizons Unlimited HUBB was had a wealth of update information

In August I had serious concerns about going to Dakar as they had a case of Ebola and worried this may be the start of an outbreak. This case was treated in Dakar succesfully and recovered, and no other cases were detected, so Dakar was back on my itinary.

*

So on Friday 17th October I loaded the bike and headed off to catch the ferry with lots of good wishes following me. Riding a bike to West Africa in late 2014 is one way to get attention from family and friends. Many of them had reservations about the trip but no one said not to go and respected the fact I had done the research and was determing to do this trip. The route to Portsmouth to the ferry is quite short for me and I was there in under an hour. I filled up before coming on board and struggled to get 2 litres into my auxiliary tank but this means I can ride straight from the ferry and head for my first stop a few hours south of Santander. Tha bikes were loaded efficiently and strapped down by the ferry handlers.

*

The boat is very modern and well equipped and it was good to get into the cabin and get the bike clothes off. My first focus was to try and sort out a little problem I noticed with my Garmin. I spent some time before the trip ensuring the right maps were loaded but forgot to check that there was music installed. I had had a silent run down to the ferry and wanted to have some music to listen to along the way. It would have been easy if I had my laptop with me but for the first time I left it behind and was working with a small Samsung Tablet. I had a 2nd Garmin as backup and thought I could copy music from the SD card, but this was not possible as the Cards were different. However I was able to copy music from my phone, so problem is solved.

I'll be happy if this is the hardest problem I'll encounter on this 6 week trip.

*

The boat trip has been quite rough so far, particularly during the night when we were out in the Atlantic. It is calmer now and we are still on target for a 5:30 arrival in Santander. Am looking forward to geting back on the bike.

*

Unloading at Santander was fine and the bikes had survived the rough weather without problems. The route out of the port has changed and now you do not go out into the Santander city traffic, but stay longer in the port and join the dual carrigeway to the motorway. It seems slower than the old route but it makes morse sense. I had forgotton how much of a climb it is going over the mountains heading south. The motorway goes up to nearly 1,000 meters and the temperature dropped from 31C to 20C in about 30 minutes. The bike purred as we climbed and was hapy to cruise at the limit of 120km/hr. The only issue i had was that the fuel light came on as we entered Palencia. This shoule not happen. Either the fuel consumption had suffered crossing the mountains or some of the fuel in the auxiliary tank had "evaporated" during the crossing.I'll do a further testtomorrow and see how it goes.

*

I had a hotel in Palencia booked and loaded into the GPS and it took me to the door of the Hotel Don Rodrigo and very soon the bike was in the underground car park. The room is fine and good value for 29€. Once changed, I had a wander around the town. The locals were either inside or more often outside various tapas bars and it semed rude not to join in. I posess both skills required, I can drink beer and eat tapas and it was fun to spend some time excersising these talents. However although I rode 200km today I have 630km to do tomorrow to get to Seville. And then a further 3,500km to ride to get to Dakar and I forgot to bring my padded cycling shorts! So an early night was in order.

A photo of arriving in Santander and one of Polencia church. More to follow.
 

Attachments

  • IMAG1115_resized.jpg
    IMAG1115_resized.jpg
    48.3 KB · Views: 2,599
  • IMAG1118_resized.jpg
    IMAG1118_resized.jpg
    72.3 KB · Views: 2,503
I don't live far away and have just come back from Morocco - I left it warm for you.

Have a good trip!
 
Am still in Spain but looking forward to Zebrabar. I got a residence confirmation from them for my Senegal visa, very helpful.

When you get there, have a serious look around before you pitch tent.......there are little beach hut type things to rent if you fancy a bit of deserved luxury after the Sahara sections, or for free, I'd thoroughly recommend taking your sleeping back up to the platform at the top of the watch tower.

The views at dawn are stunning, and the huge advantage of it is that it's high enough to be in the breeze and is thus normally completely mosquito free up there :beerjug:

346030.jpg


Don't get a taxi into St Louis...tht's long and expensive (4 hours, 100 euros) but get a boat to it.....a great experience (apart from for Rev Chuck) and a brilliant place to be for a day...don't take photos of any people without permission though, or like one of our party, you stand a god chance of getting arrested :eek

I haven't looked at their website in detail recently, but there used to be a voucher you could print off and redeem at the bar which gets you a free beer, and a very warm reception :)

Enjoy :clap
 
Riding days 2 and 3.

Leaving Palencia it was a chilly 12C and it reminded me it was at 800 meters over 2,500ft and it too a long time to warm up, but it did to about 30C. The petrol issues continue. It seems I'm getting about 13 miles per litre or or less than 60 miles per gallon, but at home I was getting 17 per litre. So clearly the heavy load and motorway speeds are impacting mpg. Also the auxiliary tank is not feeding the main tank reliably and I have not yet worked out why. I stopped a couple of times today to see if I could get the auxiliary tank to work better but could not find the problem. I arrived at Seville pretty tired and although the GPS had a good fix on the hotel, I missed the tiny turning, and had a ride around Seville for a few km. The hotel was in a good situation in a busy street. I asked about parking and the receptionist offered me a place at 18€. I asked if that was correct for a bike but there was no reduction, so I declined and put the pike on the street using the locks I had brought. I asked if they have wifi, she gave me the code but explained that it does not always work. I asked if it worked today but she did not know. Little things amuse you when you have had a long day in the saddle...

The hotel was actually quite nice and I had a very smart room, tiny, but clean and nice toilitries. However, it was just as well i had not brought a cat to swing. The hotel was in an area I had visited before and I knew the walk into town. Seville in the evening is a delight. It was warm and lots of people promenading. I headed for the cathedral which used to be a mosque. I sat outside in a teeshirt eating Tapas and having a beer in view of the cathedral. Lots of people were in the square and I went for a little wander but when I came back to the square it was packed and a procession was entering. Was surprised they were able to lay on something so elaborate for me at short notice but was told later it was a trial for the procession for holy week, at Easter. Well it is better to prepare early. It was quite spectacular however.

Before leaving Seville I had one more go at the fuel issue but did not find anything significant. I packed up and joined the Monday morning rush hour. Once out of the city it was easy on the motorway to Jerez. I must visit Jerez one day *and maybe on the way back, it will be Christmas soon. Jereth stays with me from my schooldays as I was asked by the geography teacher, what the main produce of Jerez was. I did not know then, but I never forgot, as my family name is Sherry.

After passing Jerez the road climbs again came upon the most unplesant wind. It was strong and to the side and gusting. It's not so hard to ride with a steady side wind, you just lean the bike and ride along. This wind was lumpy and a gust would move the bike more than a meter to the side before I could recover. Also it would sometimes throw my head over to the side which was disturbing. What was good about this was, I learned that the bike even with all the luggage is quite stable. The wind may have destabilised me but not the bike, quite reassuring.

Eventually I got to Algeceris and the ferry. The terminal has improved since I was here 4 years ago. There is a nice modern ticket office but of course there still guys willing to sell you a cheaper ticket in the street and some of may even be valid. I bought a ticket at the first booth and was on a ferry in about 25 minutes. The crossing to Couta(Spanish enclave in Africa) takes around an hour, was not checking. And then you have the delight of the Moroccan border. The process is quite simple, and well described in Jim Cullis' s notes on this forum, and again seems simpler than last time. You just need to fill in a short police form, English as well as French. Bring it to the police booth, they check it and stamp your passport, with this passport stamp you take the custom forms (completed on line in advance, as per Jims advice) to the next booth. The customs check and stamp and give you 2 of the forms and you are done. You may get checked a couple of more times but no more paperwork. The admin took me about 10 mins but it probably took more than an hour to get through.

Once through, I was off over the mountain to get the coast road to Rabat. Getting to Rabat was without incident but I spent some time finding the Mauratinia embassy for the morning, then off to the Rabat Ibis and my first Tagine of the trip. Tomorrow I need to get up early to get to the Mauritania Embassy to apply for a visa which I hope to collect in the afternoon. Been a busy few days so ill try and load a few photos from my phone...
 
OK, 2 pictures of the bike, one performing repairs on the fuel and the other loaded up leaving Seville. And One of the Seville procession and the other of the famous mosque tower which was incorporated into the Christian cathedral.
 

Attachments

  • IMAG1151.jpg
    IMAG1151.jpg
    77.3 KB · Views: 2,333
  • IMAG1138.jpg
    IMAG1138.jpg
    65.9 KB · Views: 2,283
  • IMAG1134.jpg
    IMAG1134.jpg
    97.6 KB · Views: 2,303
  • IMAG1120.jpg
    IMAG1120.jpg
    61.3 KB · Views: 2,351
The bike looks very loaded up, considering you are using hotels can I ask what is filling up the panniers, the top box and the yellow bag?
 
Yes I probably have too much stuff. One pannier has camping gear as I'll probably camp in Dakhla and in Senegal. The other has some spare clothes, bike spares, tubes etc. The topbox is mostly empty for the helmet. I'll learn minimal packing one day. The fuel containers are empty at the moment saving them for Mauritania. Been down for my Mauri visa this morning and should pick it up at 2.

I'm carrying the TKC 80 tyre to have it fitted here in Moroccy to keep it fresh for further south and to get me home.
 
The Tower in Seville has sloped sections (ramps) internally - instead of steps- to climb to the top.
Supposedly to allow those important enough to ride their horse to the top.

I had to make do on foot, but the view from the top is nice.
 
Days 3 and 4

Before moving on from the journey to Rabat there are a couple of incidents worth mentioning. I hit the first high temperature of the trip having 37C for a while just north of Rabat as I still had my goretex liner in the jacket, it got a bit warm. It was still warm when I arrived in Rabat and the bike got a quite hot as I poodled around looking for the Mauritanian embassy. The fuel problem was still not sorted and I then got concerned I could smell petrol. When I looked down at the auxiliary tank there was petrol coming out of the breather. This made me determined to get this petrol issue sorted.

While the petrol problem worried me, the biggest scare I got was following a truck coming down a hill into Rabat. I had been riding cautiously because of speed traps and decided not to overtake this truck. What happened next was out one of those U-Tube videos, as the truck ploughed through the red lights with traffic crossing in front of him. He had his hazards on and was beeping his horn but he did not stop. It seems his brakes had failed on the long hill down. I was glad to be behind not in front of him. The police at the lights took him in hand.

*

Next morning the plan was to get to the Mauritanian embassy before a long queue formed but was deleyed as it was the 4th hole-in-the-wall which eventually worked. I still arrived 20 mins before the visa section was supposed to open but people were already sitting on the ground filling out forms and was told if I knocked the door he'd give me a form. The form was not too difficult, though in French, and I filled in the front carefull but was more skimpy with the back. "Which countries have you visited in the last 5 years?" may have taken a while. I settled for, France, Spain and Germany.

By the time I was done the door was open and people were handing in forms and getting turned away. I handed mine in and sure enough he wanted more detail on the rear, I asked what and he said address. Now the address was the same as the one on the front of the form, but he wanted it written again. To please the nice man I wrote it out again. He accepted the form. Then the others wanted to know what I'd done to get the form passed. I seemed ironic for me to be explaining in my weak french, to a French lady how to fill in this French form. Anyway, she got it through too.

So we were told to return at 2 for the visa. However I spoke to a guy outside, who was admiring the bike, and he explained that because there were not many people today the visas may be ready much earlier than 2 PM.

*

I headed back to the hotel and had a good go at solving the auxiliary tank issue. I had raised the issue on a technical forum on AdvRider which has mass of information on these bikes. Many use an auxiliary tank so there were a number of ideas coming forward. Many of the fixes I had alresdy tried but I replaced one clip, shortened the feed hose and tightened a few other things. Once done I got a few rolls for lunch and also baught local SIM for a spare phone then headed back to the embassy. It was 12:30 and I thought I was chancing my arm, but the door was open and the visa was ready. So I headed off to Casablanca.

*

Casablanca was not far and I could have ridden further but the previous 2 days, the ride to Seville, and the crossing and ride to Rabat, had tired me. So a short ride was fine and I may even have a rest on arrival. I had read that morning that Casablanca is one of the largest cities in Africa and as I rode in, deep into the city I wondered if I had been wise to pick a hotel right in the centre. When I found the hotel it was in a reasonable street, and when I asked the receptionist about parking he said for 30DIRAM (3€) I could park in their underground garage. Perfect. So I unloaded, rested up and later found the website for the place I wanted to visit. I then got a bit concerned that my compression-sac clothes may not pass the dress code for Rick's Cafe. Anyway, I put on the best I had and headed off.

*

It may be diappointing for some to learn that Ricks Cafe from the film "Casablanca" did not exist, but 10 years ago a lady set up a passable replica, including piano. So the clothes passed scrutiny and I spent a plesant couple of hours, heard the pianist playing "it" twice, and enjoyed a few beers and snacks at the bar. I spoke briefly to the owner, an american lady, who was taking a close interest in proceedings, and she said she was pleased they had survived for these 10 years. So if in Casablanca, *I do recommend Ricks. I did also have a wander around the medina, which has a lot for sale but the quality is not as good as Marrakesh. In Marrakesh there is a lot more hand made goods. I got lost walking back from Ricks but the Petite Taxies are cheap and he deposited me at the hotel.

*

Next morning I was planning to ride to Essaouira along the coast road. I loaded the bile and asked the guy to open the garage door. He was happy to open the door but that would not allow me to leave. There were 3 cars blocking the entrance. One of the drivers was apparently still asleep. It was a bit of a farce and the receptionist was embarrassed but what could I do. Anyway it got sorted in 15 mins and I was away. I had put Essaouira in the GPS to get me out of Casablanca but before I realised it was on a motorway to Essaouira, but via Marrakesh. I could not face going back into Casablanca to find the right road and headed off somewhat dispirited. It then ocurred to me that this road would also take me to Agadir and in only a little extra time. I punched Agadir in to the Garmin and it confirmed Agadir was practical so off we went. *The main aim of this part of the trip was to travel south not so much to visit Morocco, and getting to Agadir was a positive move.

*

The bike by the way was purring along very smoothly and I noticed that the auxiliary tank appeared to be working correctly. Had I fixed the problem? I also resolved to try and fix another issue and have the new rear tyre, which I had carried from the UK, fitted to the wheel and not be siting on top of my top box getting in the way. The ride was fine, the motorway quiet and the landscape changing as I went south. For the first half of the ride there was a lot of agriculture taking place but later if became desert like and as I climbed through the hills close to Agadir the soil changed to red, dotted with some Argan trees. As I decended from these hills the temperature rose and at one point it got to 39C. I was glad I came at a cooler time of the year.

*

Approaching Agadir I passed some shops and noticed a tyre fitting service. The building was new, brightly painted and although aimed at car tyres I decided to stop and ask if they would change my tyre. They were not busy and indeed one of the mechanics was asleep in the pit. They were up for it and while I was not certain it was a good idea I decided to let them have a go. I unloaded and we got the rear wheel off. Communication was not easy but we managed. They first thought I had a puncture and tested the tube for leaks. I was planning to put in a new heavy duty tube I had brought from England but we both agreed that the existing tube was better so we stuck with it. Next they started to put the tube back in with the original tyre. Did I say communications was difficult. We clarified that and they got the new tyre on the wheel and the tube in and I noticed that the direction arrow on the tyre was pointing the wrong way. The tyre and tube had to come off again. Eventually we got the right tube and tyre on correctly. There were a fair few scratches on my wheel rims from massive tyre levers but they were not pristine to start with. And the charge for all this work, 30 Diram, less than £2.50. In the end not a bad day.
 
Watch out for the minefields, but don't get a guide ! (or sit at the campsite gates at Dakhla and follow the muppets :D) :rob

:D

:popcorn
 
Day 6.

I spent the evening in Agadir watching Liverpool lose to Real Madrid, in a bar, but a coffee bar and the locals were avid Ronaldo fans, so I left after the 1st half. Dinner had been hummus and Baclava to follow. I could have been in Turkey.

Now that the tyre was gone off the topbox I took the chance of reorganising the luggage a bit and bury some of the warm clothes and to try and get weight as low as possible. The bike was handling well but had not been asked to do much apart from eat up motorway. I hoped that tomorrow would be different. I had looked at the map over dinner and decided on a route. I would go down to Tiznit then go out to the coast at Aglou-Plage and follow along the coastline to Sidi Ifni and back across to Guelmim and on down to Tan Tan Plage. Not a long riding day but hopefully interesting.

I was down just after 7 for breakfast at the Atlantic Hotel as I heard that it can all be gone by 8. Did my paking and tried again to load up some photos to this thread. In the swapping around of SD cards my phone card decided not to talk, to my phone or my pad. It lay there with it's legs in the air. This took a while to get my head around and delayed my departure. So no photos of last few days. I resolved to use other cameras, buy more SD cards, and handle cards with extra care in future. With the thoughts of what I had lost in my head I had to get on the bike and ride, and concentrate on avoiding the Petite Taxis in Agadir. Things will go wrong on a trip and you need to get on with it.

The road south to Tiznit started as a dual carriageway but soon became a normal road and it felt good to slow the bike down and take in the scenery more. I'd had no reocurrance of the fuel delivery problem and the Auxiliary tank was working as expected, since my repairs in Rabat. I was interested to see what fuel consumption would be at this slower pace. The desert was coming up and it was important to know my fuel range particularly for the longer stretches. In Tiznit I found the road out north west and was soon heading to the coast. It seemed strange to see big breakers coming in but I had to remind myself this was still the atlantic ocean even if it was over 30c. The road along the coast was a great, with the waves rolling in just off to my right. I stopped at a small bay and had a drink and marvelled at how similar the coastline was to west of Ireland or Cornwall (photo below).

I continued to Sidi Ifli and just after where the R 104 comes in, the road became a riding delight. It had been resurfaced and was perfect for a tarmac lover like me. It wound its way along the coast with smooth sweeping bends, little traffic and the sea an ever present distraction to my right. I know a few friends I'd like to ride this stretch of road with. There was no need of music from the GPS as this road took my full attention. As I had a new tyre on it was good to scrub off the sheen off the surface. The bike felt better and at times I forgot I had full luggage on for a 6 week tour. I stopped at Sidi Ifni and watched the surfers and then went on to Guelmim. The road out to Guelmim was not as smooth but still a good ride, so if you are ever down this way this stretch is worth a detour. I certainly was not thinking about failed SD cards during this little detour.


Guelmim is known as the gateway to the desert and I had seen a few photos of a sign stating Dakla 1000km and was hoping to find it. I got stopped by the police leaving Guelmim who gave a cursery check of the passport. I try to be as friendly as possible and greet them with a bonjour and upen up my helmet so they can see a friendly face. I can have a basic chat with them in French and it seems to help. Just after the checkpoint I saw the sign and had to stop for a photo, also below.

After Guelmim the landscape changes. The desert streatches out either side of the road and the road seems to go on for miles in a straight line. There is a feeling this is the start of the desert and suddenly I find myself listening a little more closely to the hum of the engine, reassuring myself it will continue until we get to the destination. This feeling was a big part of what the trip was about. Out here on my own, riding a bike I had chosen, modified, prepared and serviced. Looking into the distance and just taking in the sheer space and wilderness. This is just the start of course, I only did less than 100 miles in the desert today there will be days when I need to cover 300, *so I better get used to it and trust the engine. When I got to the hotel I found myself checking the tyre pressures and oil. The bike and I will need to be partners more closely than in the past for the next few weeks and I'll need to make sure it is looked after. It also seems that the fuel consumption has improved dramatically now that the motorway is behind us and I feel more confident that I may have enough fuel capacity to for the 300 mile stint in Mauritania.

For the record Tan Tan Plage is a little less than a one horse town but the hotel is 20€ plus breakfast which helps the budget. The bike it perched on a veranda in front of the hotel and I needed knobbly tyres just to get it up there. Laayoune or further south tomorrow.
 
Day 7.

I dined in the hotel last night. I had hoped there may be something further up the town but after walking for 15 mins saw noting except a few dogs, two of them fighting over something edible. Returning to the hotel football was on, Everton, they do love their football here. I asked if they could do me a sandwiche but they offered an omlette. Fine, omlette it is then. It came with a moroccan bread and the coffee I had ordered and the whole thing cost 20 dhiram, £1.50. As you can tell I'm still getting used to the prices, even though I've been here a few times before. I do sense that now I am out of the tourist area I'm getting similar prices to the locals.


So I had a lot of debate with myself last night about where to go today, but in the end the only real option was Laayoune. I was not confident what accomodation would be available between Laayoune and Dakhla, and Dakhla was over 800km. 800km is possible, I've done more in a day before but it would not be sensible across the desert. So after packing the bike, which was sitting on the hotel porch...





I headed for the shore which was 200 meters in front of the hotel just to take in the sea air. Then to the service station to fill up. All the hoses were black, so which one was petrol. The one he pointed at. I do remember when we had all black hoses it's just we are used to green for petrol etc. Again the auxiliary tank was empty, so it was working correctly. So with full tanks I took the road south. Soon I pulled in to switch on the head cam as I expected some good shots today. For anyone who has not driven in morocco it's worth mentioning that stopping at the side of the road is a challenge. You are mostly going on to at best loose gravel and in my case fine sand, so it can be tricky. I stopped without falling off and then nearly pulled the bike on top of me as I slid my boot over the seat, ooops! Once I joined the road I was overtaken by a Toyota land cruiser, with more behind. I assumed it was a pro job, taking tourists out for a desert experience, but the reg numbers were not local, were they French, no, and then I realised they were Irish. We'll I had not expected to meet some of my countrymen in the Sahara. We were all stopped pretty soon by a police checkpoint and got chatting and agreed to meet up later. I got through the paperwork more quickly and as they were going faster than me I led off. Strangely that was the last I saw of them for nearly 2 hours, but we met up again and shared lunch. The lads were mostly from Dublin and were also heading for Dakar. It would have been great to travel with them but they were heading for the Mauri border today, or close to.t was too long a ride for me. But we exchanged contact details and may meet up in Senegal. They said it was good to meet someone as mad as them. I'll have to think about that, but not for long.





The road surprised me in that it was close to the see but at times was real desert.




I saw my first camels too, occasionally wandering across the carriageway.*





And in this one the bike has sneaked in too.





Anyway despite the camels, sand and police I got to Laayoune in good time and was surprised to find it has quite a modern centre with fountains and some grand buildings. I had a wander around joined the locals for a fresh orange juice, one of the delights of being in Morocco. Later I had some chicken from a small but busy restaurant. I won't quote the price but it was cheap. OK, enough for tonight as 500km of desert awaits tomorrow.
 


Back
Top Bottom