We didn’t have 1.25 million dollars in cash strangely?

Mar 31, 20236 min read

I’m not sure where we were when we heard the news. Ethiopia had imposed a 500% tax on any foreign vehicle entering the country. The money was to be paid in Cash (American dollars) at the border and they vowed you would get it back when you leave the country but this is Africa and that just wouldn’t happen. And anyway, we didn’t have 1.25m Dollars hanging around strangely?

Our route home to avoid the political conflicts and the lack of roads in some countries.

And so with Ethiopia effectively closed, our options were to ship to the middle east or a drive from Kenya, west to Angola and then north through a whole load of countries to get back to Europe and then to the middle east. Just a mere 16000km (10,000 miles) detour to Europe and then the drive to the middle east but hay, we like a challenge.

An early start for us as we pass a village is just coming to life.

Leaving Kenya was easy. Good roads (ish) and easy travelling. Smiling people, good food and so all was good with the world.

From Kenya and on to Zambia, the roads took a decided turn for the worse but still, we pressed on. Bits started falling off the truck due to the roads but we kept going.

We were never short of inquisitive visitors and these guys gave us the thumbs up.

Zambia turned into Namibia and the Caprivi strip. We saw Elephant again and that’s always positive despite the roads and the detreating state of our truck.

The Caprivi strip turned into Angola and we headed westerly to Luanda the capital to start the fun and games of getting our visas for the difficult western African countries.

Hawkers selling their wares to a passing coach. A common sight throughout Africa.

The Nigerian Embassy rejected our paperwork 3 times with the final excuse our internationally recognised passport photographs were too small and we needed larger ones.

The Congo’s embassy told us we couldn’t have visas as they had run out of stickers for our passports and we had to drive around 1000km to the next Congo embassy to fulfil our visas. Luckily it was on our way north.

Is someone else on a journey?

We drove 12-hour days with only a short break for lunch to try and get back to Europe so we could continue with our journey, our life in the Middle East.

The days were tough and the truck continued to take a battering by the roads.

Believe me, this was a good road

Roads in the Congo during the rainy season.

It appeared as though at every border crossing, the officials were out to catch us out for something.

Checking and double-checking papers, finding faults and trying to delay us by whatever means.

The roads took their toll and when we stopped for a bush repair a dad and his 7 apprentices (his sons) take a look.

At the Ivory coast border to Guinea Conakry, we had a laissez-passer (letter to pass issued by the Ivory coast Embassy) that said we could pass at ANY border crossing. The head of immigration wouldn’t let us pass as the LP didn’t state this particular border crossing. We eventually persuaded him to let us pass.

Just an average road in West Africa

Nothing to add really

It went on and on, including having our truck papers stolen by a Cop who said we couldn’t have them back unless we paid a bribe. We sat it out and 3 hours later he threw our papers back at us.

The bent cop stole our papers and demanded a bribe.

At least he has some Tarmac

The bus that hit us. The cops just waved us on. I knew well enough not to even ask about compensation for the damage they caused us.

I even had my foot run over by a car in The Congo (no broken bones thankfully).

All the above pail into insignificance though compared with 3 incidents that will stay with me for the rest of my life.

Driving through The Congo (after my foot incident), we were in the rainy season and the roads were almost non-existent and flooded with one stretch of over 300m long completely flooded meaning we had to drive through this soup of mud and water not knowing what lay below the surface of the water.

Normally I would walk such areas with a pole prodding my way looking for holes or rocks before entering with the truck but the weather and the water condition made that impossible. We made it but drove at a pace slower than walking pace and the truck threw us all over the place as we entered unseen potholes.

Always big smiles in Africa from those that have the least.

The next challenge was the road between Cameroon and Nigeria. A mountain pass, a single track meaning no overtaking should we encounter an oncoming vehicle. If we had met anyone, goodness knows?

With sheer drops on both sides and narrow paths, we were so scared but had no alternative other than to carry on. We drove deep into the night as there was nowhere to pull over to sleep and driving in those conditions in the dark was petrifying. I just wanted to stop and weep it was so bad. At one stage with a sharp turn and a huge bolder on one side and a sheer drop on the other, I drove the truck into the bolder to give us a chance of getting around the corner without sliding down the side of the mountain.

We have no photographs of the mountain passes. We didn't think to take any but this was at the start.

It was a mere 350km/220 miles from the start of the ordeal to the end but it took us 7 days to complete driving 12 hours a day.

It was brutal.

The last incident occurred in Nigeria.

A local road diversion sent us through a residential area with atrocious roads (are you getting the common denominator)?

Again, our assailants didn't seem keen on posting pictures, so a gritty street picture from Nigeria.

So, driving at a walking pace we were surrounded by a gang of youths who brought the truck to a stop and demanded money. When we refused, they got aggressive with one guy jumping onto the step up to the cab and trying to break the window to get into the cab. They were hyped and I suspect under the influence of some substance.

Scared out of our wits, Charlotte acted quickly and handed me a can of Pepper spray we had bought in South Africa for such incidents.

I lowered the window enough to discharge the spray on the gang member. That was enough to make him fall off the truck, and we escaped in the ensuing chaos.

Local women going about their business in Benin I think?

Life got easier thereafter but one more incident when a pack of dogs chased our truck with each dog eventually falling away apart from one poor guy who chased us for quite a while before he and we realised he had entered the territory of a rival dog gang and he was attacked by his rivals. I was able to deploy the pepper spray for a second time on the dog pack and the little fellow escaped but looked more like a strawberry as he whimpered his way back home at least he was alive and the pack where for ripping him apart.

And so eventually we covered the 16000km and the sight of the Mediterranean sea was in our nostrils and we were safe.

Vowing to never return to Africa, we took the ferry to Spain and then drove back the repairs done, including to the UK to get a twisted Chassis.

A Cracking Fish lunch in Morocco. We had started to relax by this time

Now we are recuperating in Southern Spain before we head off towards the Middle East and were already talking about our return trip to Africa.

We spent 3 months getting to Morocco from Kenya. We had weeks on end of not seeing another white person.

We were scared senseless and just wanted it to be over but we now know, Africa gets under your skin, in your hair, under your fingernails but mostly, Africa gets in your heart.

Africa is the ultimate Hotel California; we can't wait to return someday and do it all again.