Jean-Marc V. Liotier

Last time I went wandering across Africa, I went with my backpack and used
whatever transportation I found available : buses, trains, trucks, other
people's cars etc. It is in my opinion the best way to really get a ground
level impression, an easy way to meet people and it is quite cheap. I did
it twice and I have wonderful memories of the trips I took. But next time
I want to do it with my own vehicle.

The main reason is that it is extremely difficult to get away from the
main axis of transportation. It is practically impossible to plan to go
somewhere really out of place. Sometimes, an unexpected opportunity arises
and the quick witted traveler jumps on it with his backpack. But most of
the times you have to go where the (bus/truck/other guy with a car) go.
When you really want to go somewhere it is almost always possible but you
need lots of time : that remote village may be serviced by truck once a
week, which means that you may wait several days just to catch the bus and
you will then have to wait a week until it returns. This is clearly not
practical for someone with a limited time budget. And even on the main
axis of transportation, being stuck somewhere not too exciting for a
couple of days waiting for the next bus/lorry is quite common.

The unpredictability is part of the African experience and it is part of
what makes African travel a real adventure unlike travel in most other
places, but the harsh reality of my life contradicts my liking for African
time management : the first time I went traveling in Africa, I was a
student and I stayed more than four months. Nowadays I am an IT consultant
married (to an African of course) and with a kid, and I am quite unlikely
to manage to get away for more than six weeks at a time. And even if I
somehow in the future manage to organize a sabbatical vacation, the
financial constraints will quickly remind me to make the most of my time
and optimize my planning somewhat. I do not want to err on the side of the
hurried mzungu in an air conditioned 4x4 touring the place with a tight
schedule and no time to stop and smell the flowers, but I don't believe I
will ever be able the wandering backpacker with perfect flexibility ever
again. So I'm looking for a way in the middle.

So wish to hear about the experiences of people with similar constraints :
what vehicle to choose with a vehicle budget under EUR 5000 ? Clearly,
whatever fits in that budget is not going to be very nice nor recent. Even
a used Land Cruiser in a reasonable state is probably out of question. I
have talked with an Algerian guy in the south and he told me he enjoyed
quite a bit to go spend a few days in the desert with a handful of friends
on mopeds. Cheap, but maybe a bit too light for long distances. "Real"
motorcyclists laugh at the idea of traveling on anything less than 400 cc.
But light motorcycles are quite commonly used and abused by locals in
local conditions. Whereas rich traveler shun anything less than a custom
prepared Landy with a full set of parts, crazy people went with no
problems in refurbished Renault 4L or Citroen 2CV wrecks. There are many
example of people successfully traveling in really light vehicles, but
there are also many wrecks of such vehicles being slowly blasted by the
sand between Tamanrasset and Agadez, not counting the ones rusting between
Kisangani and Bukavu.

So what is reasonable, what is not ? There are surely people who went with
reasonably cheap stuff that endured long distance African travel. I want
to hear from them. I have read about many options, but I am still on a
theoretical level. I read plenty of practical reports from people with
lots of hardware. I want to hear from the ones with the really cheap
stuff: a 125 cm² motorcycle, a Fiat Panda 4x4, whatever other crazy idea
that has been tried... This kind of hardware has severe limitations such
as limited range, poor obstacle crossing and general flimsiness compared
to the "real stuff" but I want to know about it from people who
experienced what it is like to live on the road with these limitations.

Allan

one must be out of their mind to travel to africa by road. the road
hazard, the safety , and the
cost is not an adventure worth trying. I am from one of the African
countries, but believe me or
not, i am not trying.

Allan

Jim,
i do not know what part of Afria you travelled to, but it appears to
be a very remote country. Next time you are travelling , pls stay in the
city and not in the country. This is because I am from Africa and your
experience is not in congrou with my experience of Africa.
Charles

Jean-Marc V. Liotier

On Thu, 27 Nov 2003 16:54:01 -0500, Allan wrote:

    > one must be out of their mind to travel to africa by road. the road
    > hazard, the safety , and the cost is not an adventure worth trying. I am
    > from one of the African countries, but believe me or not, i am not
    > trying.

Man, you don't know what you are missing. In addition I do not think you
really know what you are talking about, and you may even be a troll. But
I'll answer anyway. While it is true that the road safety is far from
European levels, I do not feel less safe than when I am roller skating in
the traffic at rush hours in Paris. You can count on incidents from time
to time, but all the travelers who went there and all the locals who use
the roads everyday are all the living proof that one should never let
mongers of fear, uncertainty and doubt dissuade him from setting foot out
of his home.

Jean-Marc V. Liotier

On Thu, 27 Nov 2003 17:09:13 -0500, Allan wrote:

    > i do not know what part of Afria you travelled to, but it appears to
    > be a very remote country. Next time you are travelling , pls stay in the
    > city and not in the country. This is because I am from Africa and your
    > experience is not in congrou with my experience of Africa.

Could you please elaborate your position ? I do not quite understand what
you mean.

Koos Greeff

Would you say clearly what you are saying - do I hear you correctly or am I
dreaming?
Koos

Allan <choke-> wrote in message
news:9485-3FC67279-...
    > one must be out of their mind to travel to africa by road. the road
    > hazard, the safety , and the
    > cost is not an adventure worth trying. I am from one of the African
    > countries, but believe me or
    > not, i am not trying.

Riverman

"Jean-Marc V. Liotier" <> wrote in message
news:...
    > Last time I went wandering across Africa, I went with my backpack and used
    > whatever transportation I found available : buses, trains, trucks, other
    > people's cars etc. It is in my opinion the best way to really get a ground
    > level impression, an easy way to meet people and it is quite cheap. I did
    > it twice and I have wonderful memories of the trips I took. But next time
    > I want to do it with my own vehicle.

Every vehicle has its limitations. A lightwight car gets good mileage and is
cheap to buy, but as you said, they can get easily stuck in the mud of NE
Congo or buried in the Sahara sands. A solid 4WD like a Landrover might be a
great all-terrain vehicle, able to carry lots of stuff, but the purchase
price might make it hard to walk away from if it breaks down, and in many
parts of Africa, you would get robbed and might have it taken from you (DRC,
Rwanda, sections of E Africa..). A motorcycle has the lowest purchase price,
you can toss it in a truck if you need to, and is by far the most versatile;
however you cannot carry much stuff and you are open to the elements.

My guess would be for some old beater 4WD that you can work on and know
intimately, that wouldn't draw attention, or else a solid motorbike (like an
AfricaTwin) that you can walk away from if need be.

--riverman