Hot and bothered

[MichaelMcKendrick]

Greetings fellow travellers,

It is hot and dusty somewhere else. Here, it is raining and will be for about the next four months.

The only Paradise you know is the one you've lost.

Self-flagellation aside, I'm going to the bloody dusty Sahara if it kills me. The only problem is how.

Never rode a bike, so I'm wondering if I should learn to, and haul it across the desert. A 4x4 is a big, unwieldly thing, not easy to put on a plane from here (Vancouver) to there, but you can sleep in it and it protects you from stone-throwing children. And lions, not that there are any where I'm going. I hope.

Okay, on to my questions, which are several, having spent so much time reading the related portions of this well-appointed BB that my eyes are drying up and threatening to fall out:

1. Anyone have experience shipping a vehicle (two or four wheeled) from Canada/US to North Africa/Europe?

2. Anyone from Canada/US have experience in crossing the Sahara (Morocco-Algeria-Niger-Chad-Sudan, or Morocco-Mauritania-Mali-Niger-Chad-Sudan, etc) WITHOUT the sell-your-other-kidney initial outlay cost of a CDP ?

3. Anyone have experience continuing onward from Sudan/Ethiopia and environs to Saudi Arabia/Yemen and points East?

4. This is my idiotic question: Would it be better to travel as an American or a Canadian? I hold both passports.

5. This is my ludicrous question: Is it possible to hitch-hike across the Sahara, Morocco-Egypt or Mauritania-Sudan, or some wildly zig-zagging combination? Anyone done this?

Thanks for any info.

Michael

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I am going because I cannot not go.

[Steve Pickford]

What about flying to Europe & purchasing a 4x4 (or a bike?)once there? I assume from your post that you have yet to buy such a vehicle? There's also the option of buying a ready equipped 4x4 that needs minimal preparation? I see that this is your first posting on the HUBB -there's quite often a selection of such vehicles for sale in the relevant forums.

This option may also afford you the possibility of picking the brains of someone who's "been there & done that"?

If you decide to go on a bike - I'd leave it a little longer, get some experience first, including some sort of off road instruction.

I would definitely be a Canadian - no explanation necessary.....

Steve

[Chris Scott]

Hi Micheal,
>my eyes are drying up and threatening to fall out:..
Get some Optrex and check out: http://www.sahara-overland.com
The related book may be useful too.

Unless you know and are really into bikes, go in a car or neither, it's safer and easier and less tiring.

1. Anyone have experience shipping ...
IMHO it would be much less complicated to buy a machine this side. You dont even need a 4WD.

2. .... Morocco Algeria not possible. See: http://www.sahara-overland.com/routes
You dont need a CDP for any of these countries.

4. This is my idiotic question: Would it be better to travel as an American or a Canadian? I hold both passports.
Have a guess!

5. Not so ludicrous. It gets done (but not Maroc-Egypt via Alg - see .../routes
See also the lastest S-File at sahara-overland.com.
It will be hard travelling but much more rewarding and less stress/expense than a vehicle. Then if you like it you might want to do it in a car, etc.

CS

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Author of Sahara Overland and the Adventure Motorcycling Handbook, among other things

http://www.sahara-overland.com and http://www.adventure-motorcycling.com

[MichaelMcKendrick]

Hello again,

There really is no substitute for experience. Many thanks to you both, Steve and Chris, for the advice. You've set my mind at ease, I am expecting to be in the desert by Christmas 2005...for as long as I'm meant to, I guess.

I'll leave the two wheelers to experts, and consider more four-wheeled options, whether my own or another's. It would make more sense to buy overseas, and simply drive off a ferry, rather than risk some of the logistical horror stories foisted upon others who've left warnings for the unwary on another part of this BB.

So, it's either my own wheels, or ingratiating myself sufficiently to hitch in the backs of of lurching vehicles.

One last question: Would fairly fluent, conversational French (not to mention rudimentary Canadian English) be sufficient to travel the routes I suggested, or is Arabic essential ?

Michael

[Jon]

With conversational French you will be fine (in Algeria and Niger at least). Even my own numb-tongued primitive French got me by. A few words of Arabic, Berber, or Tamachek could help in social relations but it's by no means necessary.

[bnoij]

If and when you decide to fly to europe and buy a car over here, here's some pointers:

1. Germany is a good place to look for second hand 4x4 cars. There's plenty of them available and at reasonable prices.

2. It's a good idea to make sure the car is 'container fitting' if you should decide to make alterations. We ourselves have made a Toyota Land Cruiser into a kind of mini-camper. We did it in a way that we can still roll the car into a standard sea container and ship it anywhere in the world.

3. Another option is looking for an 'overland ready vehicle'. There's probably a lot of those available in London, as London-Capetown and vice versa is a popular overland route. Downside is righthand steering (as most of the countries you talk about have right hand driving so left hand steering is better)

4. On older cars the CDP bank guarantee is usually not that stiff (e.g. for a 6 year old TLC that was 35000 euro new and is now worth 15000 we put down a guarantee of 4000 euro).

Good luck!!

Bas.

[gjackson]

We just shipped 2 Land Rover Defender 110s from Denver Colorado to Southampton England. The container is in transit now. Cost was about $2100 for shipping and another $1000 for insurance. Takes about 3 weeks. I'm sure a bike would be less, especially if you could share a container with someone. I did ship a car from England to Seattle by roll on/roll off transporter and that was about $1800.

Graham
www.africaoverland.org

[IanC]

Do you have a contact email or web address for the Atlantic Roll-on Roll-off service? I was trying to find it a while back but without success.

(Sorry Chris, not Sahara-related!)

[Sam Rutherford]

Talking about Right Hand Drive in west Africa, I have a personal theory.

It is based on the thought that a potential thief is less interested in nicking the whole vehicle, given that he cannot use the car anywhere in the region, without causing comment.

So, an advantage... (?!)

Sam.

Might still want it for parts, though, and the contents are always interesting.