Countries with little fuel outlets
 

Morning evryone,
I am trying to list all those countries with little fuel outlets availability on the road. I know few which I travelled myself few years ago but the situation might have changed by now.
I don't know Africa for example but I wouldn't like to assume that the whole continent lacks of fuel outlets just because it's a third world zone.
Based on my experience with 300 kms average range (with my 600 Honda Transalp and 18 liters tank) I only had to look for black market fuel or ask local people to sell me some liters out of their own storage in:

• Bolivia
• Argentina
• Cambodia
• Laos
• Russia

Would you be happy to add to this list similar countries, considering a range of 300 kms?
Cheers

If 300 km somewhere in the country without fuel is your only criteria then you might have to add Australia to the list.
Argentina is a little the same. There might be a few routes you can come up with to fit the criteria, but generally we found fuel outlets were more than close enough together. Chile - there is at least one trip where we found it was way over three hundred km without fuel, but two days later the fuel truck arrived.

Hi Tony,
thanks for your reply. I rode both Australia (2007) all around and had no such problem (not even reaching Cape York). I know Chile very well and you are referring to Paso San Francisco (470 km) to Fiambala gas station. Since it's the only part of Chile where fuel is on a longer distance I blamed it on the Argentineans :)
What about Africa? Would you have any knowledge about its countries?
Cheers

Mauritania (North-West Africa) can be difficult for petrol. Almost no motorcycles and 95% of vehicles are diesel, so on sometimes you are looking at 400-500km between reliable petrol stops. Now, there will be petrol on the black market in the medium-sized towns (all 3 of them), but getting it is expensive and often time consuming.

Now from what I understand, these days there is pretty reliable petrol on the main coast road. Off that is where most problems are. Twice in Mauritania I had to lay flat on my tank and go slowly for over an hour to sputter into the next city.

Thanks Jordan for your accurate feedback.
In the meantime my list grew a little with all the info other bikers sent me via email.
I'd happily update it with more countries.

• Bolivia
• Argentina
• Cambodia
• Laos
• Russia
• Australia
• Tunisia
• Kazakhstan
• Mongolia
• Mauritania
• Philippines
• Tajikistan

I think you need to set forward some very clear criteria before making such a list public because It all depends where you are in a country (unless the country is small).
I had no problems in Cambodia personally, but it depends on where you are in the country and how hard you look/ ask. If your looking for a gas station then you might as well list the countries that actually have gas stations because most of the world someone has a barrel of fuel in their backyard and everyone in town knows that house is the fuel house but passing by people would never know.
Large countries all have places where no one lives for hundreds of miles, here in Canada we are a first world country but up north finding fuel is hard because far and few between the Innuit live in remote areas and only have on hand what they need for their yearly use.

So what exactly are we talking about here? because any large country if you take the back roads you might run out of fuel.

Hi Nickdock,
I agree with you about big first world countries having lack of fuel in remote areas as everywhere else. I rode Cambodia in 2006 and remember that sometimes, even though main roads had proper gas station, few of them had little availability and I ended up having to get gas from local people selling it from their drums. The same thing happened when I rode Bolivia, Laos, Argentina, and Russia. But my riding started in 2005 and after 10 years I thought something had changed + I haven't ridden Africa yet so I thought it would be a good idea to brush up this topic about countries I've been and countries I haven't.
Since I am considering all those countries where fuel isn't always guaranteed between 300 kms range on main roads, I am interested in listing here all those countries with a similar situation as those already listed.
Thanks

Laos and Cambodia should not be on that list by now. I have just travelled extensively in those countries and there is absolutely no problem with gas in these places. Even up to the most remote province in Laos - Phongsaly along the approx 240-250 km route from Oudomxai there were many gas stations.

Kazakhstan is a different matter. Some places up to 250-300 km between gas stations and sometimes they where out of gas! And usually low quality gas of 80 octane. My bikes milage went drastically down with that gas...

Cool - I'm crossing Kazakhstan in July -
I can get 230+ miles from a tank (370km) and I'll carry 2 x 5 litre cans giving me a range of about 330 miles (530km)

obviously the range will drop given the quality of fuel and riding :thumbup1:

In Russia - the road from Novosibirsk to Vladivostok appears to have frequent fuel stops ??

Actually - if all gas stations in Kaz had fuel I think it wouldnt be a problem. But apparently around for example the stretch Aktobe - Aralsk it seemed that they didnt always have.

As for low quality gas - could mostly get gas from pumps that said 90 octane although I am not sure if it was. But one time I had to fill from a pump that said 80 octane.

As for the russian stretch you mention I dont know, havent been there.

Thanks SnakeBoy, will update my list with your feedback.
Cheers

Fuel
 

Have traveled a lot in Cambodia ,loas , and even in the north west of thialand you may not find a fuel station but you will most probably no more the 30 ks from a shop with a fuel drum or whisky bottles full of fuel Dave