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sub-Saharan Africa Topics specific to sub-Saharan Africa. (Includes all countries South of 17 degrees latitude)
Photo by Marc Gibaud, Clouds on Tres Cerros and Mount Fitzroy, Argentinian Patagonia

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Photo by Marc Gibaud,
Clouds on Tres Cerros and
Mount Fitzroy, Argentinian Patagonia



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  #1  
Old 7 Jun 2008
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so how far on tarmac?

Quite interesting tread, but I dont really want to get involved in all this tit for tat sniping at each other.

A related question:

How far can you go on tarmac along the west coast route down to south africa? If you can get to Bamako then does this mean that Angola is the only part left where there you are forced off tarmac?

James
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Old 7 Jun 2008
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so how far on tarmac?

Interesting question, which I cannot answer in total, as I have only done two thirds of Transafrica (Western Route, missing Lagos to Luanda) and some of it voluntarily on bad secondary roads.

Coming from Morocco, it looks to me like you can continue on relatively good tarmac via Bamako through Burkina onwards to Cotonou and then through Nigeria.

From all my preparations for the remainder of my trip, it seems like there is tough roads when entering Cameroon and then again in both Congos and Northern Angola. Please correct me, if I am wrong.

Pretty soon, there will be entirely tarmac from Luanda to Capetown. Currently it's still tough parts between Benguela and Lubango. And potholed till the Santa Clara Border to Namibia.
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Old 7 Jun 2008
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If you'd said 'New tarmac in Mauritania, but I can't see those corrupt, callous bastards who run that broken country spending money or time on maintenance', I'd have agreed. But you didn't - you painted clumsy broad-strokes, meaningless generalisations, and I responded.

I'm done here. Have the last word if you like. When I'm attracting cheap insults from a copper and a car-driver with a really expensive watch, I know I'm doing something right.

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Old 7 Jun 2008
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"a copper and a car-driver with a really expensive watch"
:confused1: :confused1:
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Old 7 Jun 2008
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Africa is not a country nor a region...its the Western name of a continent...any attempt to generalize beyond that may be futile...

Also since when is a road, a sign of progress? Who gets to make the judgment call and define the criteria for that one?!?!?

Considering the breadth of experience of folks within this travel forum, its a good place to have a discussion about our travel experiences...but lets not get too presumptuous or judgmental

PS TO the OP, the recent road between NDB to Noakchott is smooth and perfect...but be wary of sand creeping on the road if you're on 2 wheels...BUT be careful of no-man's land between Morocco and Mauri...Land mines are around the unpaved piste...
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Old 7 Jun 2008
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Smile re: how far on tarmac

travelbug, I'm in the same boat as you, I have driven the west coast route, but did lots of voluntary off roading (the congo fiasco wasnt voluntary tho!) along the way, so dont really know how much could be done on just tarmac.

The Nigeria/Cameroun border was a bit unavoidable, but I dont know what it is like crossing further north. Congo Brazzaville and DRC can both be done tarmac only I think.

maybe the answer is to get a bike that forces you not to go off road (ducati 1098r anyone? ) and see where that takes you.

I did meet a french couple in Ouaga trying to do the west coast route in a coach, with a TLC troopy on a trailer. I dont know how they got on, but surely they were not going to stray too far from the gudron.

Has anyone tried this route tarmac only? Does this somehow go against the HU spirit?
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Old 8 Jun 2008
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Question

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Originally Posted by Jimbobby View Post

Has anyone tried this route tarmac only? Does this somehow go against the HU spirit?
What's the "HU spirit"?
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Old 10 Jun 2008
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great work

lots of great info on this page very impressec with the knowledge graet stuff
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Old 8 Jun 2008
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Quite interesting tread, but I dont really want to get involved in all this tit for tat sniping at each other.


James
Actually it was all tit and no tat.
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