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Updated Information
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Date |
Camp Site or Accommodations |
GPS |
Distance Today:
189km |
Meals
Grilled chicken, brochettes, fries, onion
salad |
Weather |
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Niamey, Niger |
11 March
2004 |
Camping Touristique |
13°32.048’N
2°04.674’W |
Odometer: 11335km |
Dusty & hot 97(F) degrees
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Having arrived at our campsite after dark and
not knowing how close we were to a village we got up early and headed for
Niamey. We arrived at the only campground in town at about 1030 and after
checking in went to the Chad embassy which closes at noon. We were led
into an air conditioned office where a very polite man helped us fill out
visa applications. We paid the 15,000 CFA each and were issued visas on
the spot. We were pleasantly surprised after Lonely Planet’s report of
widely varying prices and arbitrary refusals. Next we went to the internet
café where Witt received a message from a fellow traveler with whom we
have been trying to meet up for the journey to Chad. He reported some
recent fighting at the Niger/Chad border as well as banditry on the Lake
Chad route and problems with officials in Cameroon. Their group had
decided to go to Ghana and ship their vehicles to South Africa. Meanwhile
Graham replaced another damaged shock on the front of his car. The problem
seems to be that a valve on the shock is rubbing against the inside of the
shock tower and eventually causing it to break off. Graham has an after
market suspension system from Safari Gard, and Graham was frustrated that
their installation instructions did not indicate that the valve covers
should be removed for proper operation. Graham found that removing the
valve cover increases the clearance by 5mm, which he hopes will be
sufficient to eliminate the problem. Unfortunately this required removal
and re-installation of both front shocks. Over dinner at the campground we
discussed the reports from Chad and decided to check with a couple of
embassies in town tomorrow to try to get more information. We will be very
disappointed if our route is closed, as the only alternative involves
going through Nigeria (which we had hoped to avoid). |
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Updated Information
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Date |
Camp Site or Accommodations |
GPS |
Distance Today:
0km |
Meals
Chinese |
Weather |
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Niamey, Niger |
12 March
2004 |
Camping Touristique |
13°32.048’N
2°04.674’W |
Odometer: 11335km |
Dusty & hot 97(F) degrees
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Apparently our campground is a popular night
spot for locals. The music didn’t stop until late and we seem to be
surrounded by mosques and so got to listen to multiple overlapping calls
to prayer at six o’clock in the morning. We went to a nearby pastry shop
and enjoyed some delicious goodies for breakfast before heading to the
French embassy, which is where the report from the other traveler came
from. The man there told that there were unspecified bad things happening
in Chad at the moment and that we should go to the French consulate across
town for more information. The US embassy was nearby so we stopped there
next. In comparison with the Chad embassy, the American compound is a
fortress, with metal detectors and security escorts within the building.
The staff told us that Chad was dangerous and that we should wait to see
the RSO (some sort of security officer). In the end, Jen and Witt waited
1.5 hours for the RSO to show up while Graham and Connie went to the
French consulate (who knew nothing, as it turned out). Tired of waiting,
Witt and Jen made an appointment to see the Consul at 2pm. We went and had
some lunch and then hit the internet café. While there we saw some news
reports that cleared things up a bit. Apparently the Chad government
yesterday carried out an attack on the GSPC in the northern Tibesti region
of Chad. The GSPC is the group responsible for taking 32 European tourists
hostage in Algeria last April. The CNN report said that the US had
congratulated Chad on it’s “aggressive stance against terrorism.” For once
US foreign policy has helped us. Feeling better about the situation we
went back to the US embassy where we met with Richard, the very helpful
Vice Consul there. He had printed out the report for us and didn’t think
there should be any risks out of the ordinary on the route we intended to
take. He turned out to be a CU graduate and we asked if there was an
alumni club in Niameny. He asked us to say hi to his friends at the
embassy in N’djamena and wished us a good trip. Knowing that we now had a
6-7 day, 2000km drive to the next large city, we went to the local
supermarket to stock up on essentials (Gin and beer, mostly). We bought a
bottle of locally made Gin for about $3.50, as anything imported is very
expensive. We’ll see how that goes. We decided to go out to a nice
restaurant, as we wouldn’t have that option for a few days, and very much
enjoyed Le Shanghai in town. |
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Updated Information
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Date |
Camp Site or Accommodations |
GPS |
Distance Today:
340km |
Meals
Stuffed Cabbage |
Weather |
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Near Dogondoutchi, Niger |
13 March
2004 |
Bush Camp |
13°44.660’N
4°16.284’W |
Odometer: 11675km |
Clear & hot 101(F) degrees
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Our guide trying to find the giraffes
Hooray!! Giraffes! (They looked cool through the binoculars, really!)
Our guide trying to find the giraffes
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Updated Information
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Date |
Camp Site or Accommodations |
GPS |
Distance Today:
408km |
Meals
Soup & Rice |
Weather |
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Near Maradi, Niger |
14 March
2004 |
Bush Camp |
13°32.002’N
7°14.613’E |
Odometer: 12083km |
Clear & hot 101.8(F) degrees
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The morning found Witt under the influence of
some recalcitrant food, and not feeling too well. We packed up camp and
hit the road at 8:15. The road we were on is very good almost all the way
to Maradi, except for the enormous speed bumps that every village likes to
put out. Each speed bump has an associated group of onlookers no doubt
hoping to see someone break. We did see one overturned truck on the road
in the morning. At about 11:30 Connie mentioned that something was
thumping on the floor board on her side of the car. Stopping to check it
out revealed that the shock tower had ripped free of the spring mount and
was gaily flapping in the breeze. After a quick check of the other side
Graham discovered that it had come loose as well. Seems blowing a shock on
each side had spread enough oil around to allow the bolts on the shock
towers to loosen. Graham secured the flapping shock tower with a ratchet
strap (not duct tape) and decided that it might be wise to turn around and
head back. He had seem a wrecked Defender 110 pick up beside the road the
previous day that had its suspension on it, and thought that the shock
towers might be available. So we all turned around and headed back the way
we had come. After about 10km, Graham changed his mind and we turned
around again. His intent this time was to find a welding shop to try to
get the shock towers fixed. As it turns out, the very next town has a
welding hut on the main road. Graham stopped and started negotiations
concerning the repair. Witt was still feeling the worse for food, so he
and Jen went down the road to find some shade to wait in. Meanwhile, back
at the welding hut, the guys were busily fabricating new pieces for the
shock towers. They did a fantastic job, bending some 3/4 inch strap steel
the hard way and welding it in place. The welder was a scary affair, with
lots of exposed wires. At one point the handset wire touched the wheel of
the car and welded itself there! After an hour and a half, the repair was
complete, and the guys asked for 2000CFA ($4) for their trouble. Graham
gave them 5000CFA ($10) for their excellent, fast work, and everyone was
happy. We drove out of town, had a quick bite of lunch and then hit the
road again. By 5pm we had reached Maradi and we went into town to fill up
with fuel. Having done that, we found a nice tree off the road out of town
to camp under. Since Witt was still feeling poorly, we had soup and rice
and Connie made slaw with some more cabbage. Graham removed all the nuts
on the shock towers and replaced them with red loctite, hoping that will
keep them from coming loose again. Witt and Jen’s car has nylocks on the
shock towers, but we don’t know if they were put there by Land Rover or
the Canadian military. |
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Updated Information
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Date |
Camp Site or Accommodations |
GPS |
Distance Today:
357km |
Meals
Sardine sandwiches for lunch, stir fry for
dinner |
Weather |
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Near Goure, Niger |
15 March
2004 |
Bush Camp |
13°32.002’N
7°14.613’E |
Odometer: 12440km |
Hazy & hot 99(F) degrees
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Witt woke up feeling better this morning, and
after a breakfast of cereal we headed for Zinder, which is our last
certain supply of good fuel from a real fuel station until we reach
N’Djemena, 1200km to the east. Since we don’t have the range to make the
entire distance with a reserve, we will fill our tanks and jerry cans and
plan to get fuel along the way where we can. Zinder feels a bit like Gao,
a long way from anywhere. We got the impression that not many tourists
come through here and most foreigners are Peace Corps volunteers or work
for an aid organization. While gassing up in Zinder the usual crowd of
touts and beggars arrived, although somehow here the beggars looked more
desparate than elsewhere. I (Witt) got out a 100 CFA coin to give to a
woman pushing a boy in a wheel chair. The whole group of about 10 moved
toward me when they saw the coin and I backed off and put the coin back in
my pocket, indicating that I couldn’t give something to everyone (I just
didn’t have enough coins.) A man standing nearby indicated that I could
give something to everyone there. I retreated to the other side of the car
and fished a 500 CFA note out of my wallet which I gave to the man. The
people seems happy about this and moved away, which assured me that they
would get the money I gave. Next we pulled into a bank parking lot to
change some money, but it had closed for lunch already (everything in West
Africa seems to close between about noon and 3:30 every day). The parking
lot was secluded and there was a water tap so we decided to fill our water
containers. Graham and Connie found a school with a slow internet
connection to check and see if they could find any waypoints for the route
around Lake Chad. Unfortunately they couldn’t find any. After buying bread
we headed out of town toward Nguigmi, the last stop before we enter Chad.
We are noticing that the further from the beaten track we get the more
genuinely friendly the people seem. The police checkpoints have all gone
smoothly with no requests for gifts. Most of the police officers are
surprised to learn that we are Americans (at least most of us).
Occasionally when looking at the place of birth on Witt’s passport
(California) someone will grin and say, “Schwarzenegger!” Jen get
“Jennifer Lopez” frequently. We made camp at about 530 and were surprised
by a Housa man who rode up to us (quietly) on a horse. He spoke no French
but laughed a lot, so we laughed too. We indicated that we intended to
sleep here, and he smiled and laughed some more. Soon he was on his way,
chuckling to himself as he went. Graham dove under the cars with some
wrenches and found a loose panhard rod and rear shock mount bolts on his
car and tightened the drive shafts on Rafiki (Witt and Jen’s car). Jen and
Witt made dinner and after cleaning up we crawled into our tents for the
evening. |
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The African Medusa Palm
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Updated Information
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Date |
Camp Site or Accommodations |
GPS |
Distance Today:
360km |
Meals
Bread and laughing cow cheese for lunch,
Pasta with sauce from fresh tomatoes |
Weather |
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Near Diffa, Niger |
16 March
2004 |
Bush Camp |
13°21.990’N
12°40.072’E |
Odometer: 12800km |
Hazy & hot 99(F) degrees
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The wind flapping our tents about woke us up
early this morning and we were on the road by 730. We passed Goure at
about 830, and were surprised to see lots of kids of all ages very well
dressed and apparently headed for school. The road to Goure consisted of
patches of tarmac with potholes alternating with corrugated gravel. After
Goure the tarmac was more consistent but with sand dunes encroaching onto
the road. About 50km outside Goure Graham stopped to check out a noise
from his car and found that one of the shock towers had broken loose
again. It seems that when the suspension bottoms out, it bottoms against
the end of the shock’s travel, not with the axle against the frame. That
sends the entire force of the impact up through the shock tower, which is
not designed for that sort of load. Frustrated, Graham once again rigged
up a ratchet strap to hold things together and we carried on. At one point
we came across a broken down truck, which inconveniently had broken down
at a point where a large dune had blown across the road. This meant we had
to air down our tires to drive around the truck on the soft sand to the
right. We found another welding shop along the side of the road in the
afternoon, and the shock tower was repaired again for 2000CFA ($4). Graham
is busy thinking of ways to correct the problem that’s causing the shock
towers to break (while quietly cursing Safari Gard), and in the meantime
is driving so as not to bottom out the front suspension. Witt and Jen are
happy with this arrangement, as it means they can actually keep up with
Graham and Connie! This afternoon we passed a Dutch couple on bicycles
(check out their trip at
www.dirkensaskiaopdefiets.com) and stopped to chat. They had been
riding for four months and had started in southern Spain, covering almost
exactly the same route we had, including the ore train route to Choum,
except that they had ridden on the train. They had been through Atar and
had battled the same headwind we had had since Nouakchott. We got the
bottle of water we keep in the refrigerator and gave it to them, since
they looked even hotter and sweatier than we were. Both of them are
tri-athletes at home. They should kick butt on the bike leg when they get
back. We arrived in Diffa at about 330 and pulled into the only fuel
station in town. The tanks were empty, but they were selling diesel out of
barrels, and after taking a whiff of it to verify it really was diesel (or
at least something that smelled like diesel) we had them fill our tanks.
We had a little fun with the digital camera and headed off down a very
poor road toward Nguigmi. A small kid (maybe three or four) threw a rock
that hit Graham and Connie’s car. They turned around and drove back and
scared the pants off the little bugger by threatening to run him over. By
the look on his face we don’t think he’ll be throwing rocks at any more
cars. When we got to camp, Graham and Connie set up their awning and we
all took showers that were much appreciated. |
Welding shop, African style
Welder, African style. OSHA Inspectors wanted.
We slowed for a large herd of camels crossing the road
Africa the hard way, by Dirk and Saskia
Welding shop, African style
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On to Cameroon |
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