When the mind wonders off – part I

What to do, what to do? Personally I sit back and wonder off in my mind, to a time and place more beautiful. This time it was a trip down the memory lane for about a year, using the best time machine possible – photos, notes and memories. A moment of me, being a happy man, comes back to mind and I’m in Namibia, just outside the South African embassy, where I found out I’ve been given an entry visa.

Namibia? South Africa? Visa?

Thus a simple idea spring to mind – let’s just unplug from the daily staring at the screen and go where a computer is more of an exception than a rule. Let’s go to Africa! And since we’ve been fed up with flying, we decided to take a car. »It’ll take a bit longer,« we thought, but with the job out of the way, we suddenly had loads of time on our hands. We enjoyed the idea of going by car, for the road there (regardless which route you take) is full of interesting stops along the way. And finally Africa with so many things I just don’t know where to start.

Preperations

When we calmed our imaginations we started taking care of the details and one such not-really-small detail was the car we’re going to take. What to chose to make this 40.000 kilometres journey? What kind of roads to expect? Will there even be roads everywhere? What fuel will we get? Do they drive on the left or right side of the road?

We realized we’ll need some help, so we turned to the vehicle supplier specialised in custom equipment for special needs; Foley Specialist Vehicles, which also has an outpost in Zambia. They set our minds at ease, the shop owners were in Africe themselves a few times and have equipped many vehicles for the journey, thus giving us a lot of first hand information. We  decided to entrust our vehicle to their shop, to make it ready for the road.

Listening to several experts, we’ve also decided upon a Land Rover Defender 300TDI as our mode of transport. It’s a vehicle that doesn’t have any electronic components, which is of utmost importance if anything would break down in Africa. About 70% of all Defenders are still driving around, many of them in Africa. So it shouldn’t be a problem finding somebody to fix it and to get spare parts if needed. Since the model is not being made anymore, we decided upon a 10 year old unit that got its engine renewed at the car shop, where they also helped us with equipping it. 

More we thought about what awaits us, the longer the must have list of things to take with us became. For instance: spare fuel tanks, spare drinking water, water pump with a filter, two spare wheels, satellite telephone, roof carriers to support a tent (and a tent to fit them), enforced under section of the car, electricity transformer, a leader to get out of sand, spare car battery, refrigerator and many other spare parts for the car. Talking to experienced drivers also convinced us to get a safety cage too. The most common accident in those pathless lands is tipping the vehicle aside, which can easily happen to a tall structure with a tent on the roof – if driving at higher speeds.

So the dream was becoming a reality, which also brought a lot of responsibility with it. We were full of expectations, counting down days to our departure. We hadn’t any experience driving in pathless landscapes or handling a three ton beast in extreme situations, so we decided to make a few test runs. We got together with the British six time off road champion Ed Cobley. We learned how to handle the sand dunes, how to dig out of the sand, how to check for the depth of a river and drive through rough water and in general learned what the limit to the capability of the vehicle were and where to use the common sense and give up.

Ready to go?

Not yet. Apart from the vehicle we also had to take care of ourselves. We got shots for the yellow fever, hepatitis A and B, rabies… as well as renewing some of the shots we’ve been given as children.  The nurses also equipped us with anti-malarics, because we travelled through malaria infested regions.

When we placed the spare wheel, we went on a trial weekend across Wales. We discovered camping can be rather cold and that our gas tank is leaking – not a good sign for a long trip ahead.

Solving this little detail, we realised it was time for a farewell party and then off we went. From Britain, through France, Germany, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Jordania and finally Egypt – our first destination on the African continent.

Simon Pečovnik
Translated by Borut Jurisic