Im an old fashioned boy - does it matter?
 

Im intending Nottingham paris barcelona, casablanca marrakesh dakar timbuktu, tunis, napali, greece, macedonia venice, swizterland etc back to Nottingham over a year BUT

completely alone - call it soul searching!
I have a thesis to write and feel i have a book in me!

on a f650gs
with only minimal gear -ie no technolgy like GPS - ive spent years with this stuff and now i hate it!
amps and a compass worked 400years ago...
any advice (any?)

thank you all

Jo

You can ride wherever you want on whatever you want, just do not let other road users or circumstances bully you into riding outside your comfort zone. Take an easy to get at folding chair and take a break ever 2-3 hours. ( use this time to write up your notes). Try to time your journey through the countryside to coincide with local weather. Avoid riding at night. just enjoy it and run without any timetable. If you dont have a timetable you cant run late and therefore stressfully. and if you're only travelling in a 'general direction' you cant get lost either.

Plenty here travel without GPS. I'd worry more about how you're planning to get from Mali to Tunisia.

Mark

If you're travelling solo with only a rough itinerary then GPS isn't needed at all. On my first trip I cut out a section of a world wall map that covered my route. I generally had no idea which road I was on but could always point the map at people and ask which direction to the next country I wanted to be in. This had the added bonus of making people laugh and got me a lot of free tea/food!

My only advice would be to do it and thoroughly enjoy it!!!
What sort of book is in the planning?

Great trip and I would love to join you....

You need to check out the Africa routes in a bit more detail. The Paris/Dakar was moved to South America because of trouble around that part of the world so check out your routes there. The situation changes frequently, and that in itself presents problems.

Timbuktu is a tough tough ride from what I read, so check out the articles on this site. There are tons of reports, so start with them.

The borders between African states are nothing like in Europe so check out what's possible between the countries you plan to travel through. Some borders are not open and tracts of adjoining land are mined.

Aside from the poiltics of getting from Mali to Tunisia (can it be done????), I'd avoid solo travel in the Sahara. Obviously the time of year is critical but it is stupid to do it solo at any time. There is no recovery or rescue in the Sahara! Some people have had miraculous rescues but we haven't heard from the ones that haven't. Check out Chris Scotts books and website on Sahara travel.

You might need to modify your route but you have the making of a great trip.

Enjoy.