The Silk Route Motorcaravan Club.

Bulletin 112.

February 2004.
Editor (Original edition in French) Jacques Mahaut.
Articles that are unsigned are the work of the Editor
Translated by Rowena Brunning and Les Brook.
Translation Edited by Les Brook.

In this bulletin

Editorial: The Life Of The Club.

Is there a chance that, one day, I will send you the perfect document?

I very much doubt it. If it isn't the colours that are not quite right (too much red on the photos in B110), it's the pages of the new membership list that start dancing a jig. If you got this document via e-mail, it would be no problem printing out and collating the 22 pages – at least I hope not! But for the others, PANIC STATIONS!

Would you believe that the machine that copies, assembles and staples (this is quality kit!) was subjected to a power cut? When it re-started, the time-lag on one single page was enough to wreck the order. The sheets were not numbered, the cover seemed normal... we only became aware of the anomaly when collating and putting the bulletins in envelopes, with the help of Rene Notteau, and Bob and Ginette Perdriau... Too late!

Fortunately, as far as I can tell, all the pages are there. You just need to remove the staple take off the cover sheet, turn over the rest of the bundle, turn over the first page (it starts with ‘ABRY’), then put back the cover and re-staple. Are you still with me?

But there will be some lucky winners. These are the people who only paid their sub very recently. I had time to put matters right by then.

5% Off Crossings To Tangiers.

Club members can get a 5% reduction on most crossings from Sete to Tangiers. This offer comes from Euromer +44 (0)4 67 65 67 30 www.euromer.net. The reduction applies to the €600 price for a return ticket. with meals and first-class cabin included, whatever the size of van.

Reports on this ferry have all been excellent. Comfortable cabins (you can ask for a sea view), over-large meals. That was the opinion of the Helmbachers who used Mrs Zapata, Comarit, +44 (0)4 67 80 75 40.

FAO New Members (and to refresh the memories of old-stagers)

WEB SITES: the French site www.camping-car.org is open to everyone but at present is not up to the quality of the English site www.silkroute.org.uk.

SUBSCRIPTION: it covers one calendar year. If you join during the year, you are entitled to receive all the bulletins that appear during that year. Of course these will be sent out as soon as we receive the subscription, but if we forget to do that, don't hesitate to ask. Any bulletins that interest you from previous years can be supplied by Marcel Milliard under the conditions set out in the general summary in B111. [Editor’s note: this general summary was not translated but is largely irrelevant to Anglophone members who get access to the substance of the bulletins, in translation, on the website www.silkroute.org.uk].

PHILATELY: I try to use collectors' stamps on all mailings. You can remove them by slipping a blade under them at an angle and pulling. If the stamp has not been franked, you can even use it again! If you are not a collector, please note that our President has that failing and will gladly accept any returns.

PREPARING FOR A TRIP: carefully read through relevant articles in the bulletins, and don't hesitate to ask for precise details from the authors. When you are on your way back, it will be too late!

HOW SHOULD YOU WRITE UP YOUR TRIP? A sheet of guidance was included with B105. It is expected to be the basis of a new publication [but you can always look it up on www.silkroute.org.uk].

BULLETINS: responsibility for what is in the articles rests with the their authors. Articles that are unsigned are the work of your humble servant, Jacques Mahaut.

Postcards From...

Henri and Malou Denis, Djanet, 27 December 2003. We were relieved to rejoin our van in the mission yard at Sevare. Everything is fine, though during our absence PERSONS UNKNOWN had squatted in it. Fortunately, only mice! We had no problems evicting them. In the company of friends from the VW Synchro club, we are continuing towards Burkina-Faso. We celebrated Christmas in the savannah, in the middle of nowhere. temperature 25°C. Pleasant and unforgettable.

Yo, Jean Lormand, 2 x D Meunier, 5 January 2004. A good boat trip from Sete to Tangiers. Very calm sea, food and life on board pleasant, people very friendly. From Tangiers, we are going south for the fishing.

Lili, Dede and Jimmy Derly, Val Thorens, 5 January 2004. Our grandson is enjoying himself on his snowboard. To avoid the need for crutches, we are content to watch him from the balcony.

At about the same time, Jean and Michele Sommer were staying in the same resort. Did they meet up?

Jeannot and Godron Dinee, Layoune, 6 January 2004. Happy New Year to all from the camp of the Paris-Dakar rally at Tan-Tan airport

2 x G Mulaton, 2 x M Bonjean, somewhere in Germany (lovely stamp but no postmark). From Bavaria in snow but with no sun. New members of the Club, proposed and enrolled by the 2 Mulatons, this is our first journey within the bosom of the organisation. There will be others.

Michel Barbaudy, Waitomo, New Zealand, 9 January. After a long and somewhat tiring journey – 12 hours across time zones – we were able to visit Auckland and enjoy two rain showers! We took delivery of the van from Kea [hire company] – very pleasant staff. The vehicle is nearly new and huge, but the shower and WC are poorly designed and the plastic bodywork very, very light and not at all thick. I took the wheel and we left the suburbs to go south. Very overcast with a bit of rain on the first two mornings, but it brightened up in the afternoons. Visited a place where kiwis live, but no photos or filming allowed: these little creatures should not be disturbed. Tonight at 20.00, a firefly show in the Growword cave at Waitomo. Everything fine up to now. Very beautiful scenery, pleasant people. As in Canada, USA and Australia, a lot of obese people.

Nicole and Lucien Drouillard, Aswan, 14 January 2004. What a surprise it was to meet Maggy and her husband at Orly-Sud airport, catching the same plane as us! On the journey, when we met briefly, we twice met briefly and kissed one another. Egypt is truly a ‘must', and the Nile cruise, with stops to visit the best sites, is a pleasant and delightful way to travel. Almost as good as the van!

Practical Information: Excessive Wear And Tear On Tyres.

Amongst motorcaravanners, if there's one, recurrent topic of conversation and dissatisfaction, it is the excessive wear and tear of tyres due to poor wheel alignment.

Certain manufacturers, keen to exercise their responsibilities, expect the purchaser of a motorcaravan to have checked, at the owner's expense of course, the adjustment of the vehicle's wheel alignment after a certain number of hundred kms on the road. I am convinced that this clause is improper and it should not stop you implementing a systematic approach. I would be pleased to learn the opinions of experts on this matter. (Here I mean genuine experts).

I want someone to prove to me that what follows is mere ‘stupidity and lies'. Thank you in advance to anyone who can demonstrate this. [See here for more details of steering geometry.]

Summary Presentation Of The Geometry Of A Drive Train:

An adjustment of the geometry can only take place following rules that are specific to each type of vehicle.

These rules are set out by the vehicle manufacturer following very precise criteria in order to satisfy the demands of:

  • road holding.
  • stability.
  • precision steering.
  • protection against abnormal wear of the tyres.

The geometry of the drive train takes into account the values of very precise angles of:

  1. wheel alignment - P.
  2. play- Ch.
  3. bodywork.
  4. track-rod ends for toe-in, toe-out.

Most of our leisure vehicles have only two possible adjustments, wheel alignment and play. The other two elements are set up and permanently fixed by the constructor of the base vehicle.

Wheel alignment is the difference in gauge between the front and the back of the wheels of a single axle, measured on the outer wing rims, at the height of the centre of the front wheels.

  • On a front wheel drive, there will be an opening-up of the alignment: P+
  • On a rear wheel drive, there will be a nipping-in of the alignment: P-

The play is the angle formed by the axis of the track rod ends in proportion to the vertical along the longitudinal plane of the vehicle, sited on a horizontal plane.

Consequences Of Poor Geometric Adjustment:

Wheel alignment:

  • Too much opening-up – leads to wear on the inner edge of the two tyres.
  • Too much nipping-in – leads to wear on the outer edge of the two tyres.

Play:

  • Weak = the vehicle will ‘float'. Steering will be erratic.
  • Excessive = drive will be hard and unstable on bends and turns.
  • Asymmetrical = there will be pull to the right or the left depending on the lack of symmetry.

Observations And Findings.

Knowing the values of P+, and P- and Ch is essential to achieving satisfactory adjustment. These values are directly influenced by the design of the vehicle when it is road-ready, ie when it is completely finished with its bodywork and fixtures including full tanks, radiators, hydraulic reservoirs. Faulty loading at the rear of the vehicle which is built with a very significant overhang will directly affect the tracking. The same applies to excess weight at the front which will result most often in a more or less permanent aerodynamic drag – as in the case of spoilers or fins on F1 racing cars. The tracking angle [angle of play] of a Renault Master can vary from 1°30' to 4°. These figures are supplied by the manufacturer. This is not accidental.

Poor-quality play adjustment will quickly have an impact on the steering or will lead to wheel wobble. These vibrations have a destructive effect on the suspension and drive mechanism. In such cases, you are on the road to an exponential process of premature ageing of the mechanical components of the drive train.

I therefore conclude that the values for adjustment - P+, P- and Ch – can only be determined by the final CONVERTOR taking careful account of the technical characteristics of the base vehicle which was supplied. It is vital to understand that a base-vehicle manufacturer gives permission for adaptations to their vehicles – but they don't give carte blanche! For example: to manage the different geometric angles of the drive train, it is necessary to check the height of the superstructure at precise places indicated by the manufacturer. I ask the question: how do these parameters affect our leisure vehicles?

In the world of construction and public works, thousands of 3.5 ton vans are used in many different forms... often under very testing conditions...I guarantee that if these users had as many ‘bloody problems' as motorcaravanners, we would have heard of it. Moreover, I am counting on the manufacturers to come over to my side.

Solutions.

Taking account of this obvious deficiency, quite apart from the fact that you must not give everything away, it is absolutely necessary to appeal seriously to the manufacturers of leisure vehicles through the mechanisms of our clubs and federations, and perhaps also with the help of the speciailist press... I did say “perhaps”!

More down to earth, a few pieces of advice for leisure vehicle users who are not always aware of these ‘traps':

1. Keep an eye on tyre wear from the very first time you use the vehicle.

2. As soon as wear begins to show, have changes made to the geometry of your wheels.

3. Seek out a true professional who is capable of modifying the only values he has at his disposal, namely the values supplied by the base vehicle manufacturer. I deliberately use the term modify because what is needed is a mechanic's ‘nose', and he runs the risk of never actually achieving the ideal adjustment. It is clear that there needs to be set up, between the professional mechanic and the vehicle's owner, a relationship of trust, otherwise the professional will simply take the values supplied by the manufacturer, which will cover him completely in respect of his responsibility to achieve results. Do not forget that practically everywhere, these adjustments are carried out with the help of electronic apparatus which, with the help of a printer, supply a sheet showing the adjustment values which have been taken into account. Keep this sheet in a safe place since it can be helpful later when fine-tuning the initial adjustment.

4. If there is abnormal wear on the rear wheels, it is most likely that your mechanic cannot do much about it. The most you can do in this case is to switch tyres, or to put the tyre back on the rim in order to increase its life whilst abiding by the law.

5. Try to distribute your vehicle's load carefully, and load it in moderation.

6. Weigh the vehicle fully loaded and, perhaps, consider whether you may be at fault.

7. Do not carry a motorbike, often weighing more than 100 kilos, as this accentuates an overhang which is already excessive. Instead, use a small 400-500 kilos trailer.

8. Change our clubs into genuine associations for the defence of motorcaravan owners. Unfortunately, this isn't the present case I'm afraid, and I don't have a solution to offer.

Josian Oliver.

Gas In Morocco.

Leaving for Morocco (like everyone else!), Michel sent me the following message about gas.

A collective effort would be certainly more effective than action by just one person so I ask members of our Club to tell us the cities where they fill up with gas, and the conditions in which they do so.

We could publish any new locations and after several months, establish a listing in our bulletin and on the web.

Michel and Marie-Claude Daviaud.

The Length And Breadth Of South America.

LANDandino 2003 is finished: we are on our way for LANDandino 2004!

We are preparing for our second trip. Take off, Monday 5 January, Roissy. We are sad to be leaving the children, grandchildren and friends, but the weather is prompting us to leave for the sun, and – en route - for the adventure!

After a few days in Santiago to meet family and friends and to make some changes to our Land-Rover, we head east, a 4,000m pass with a view of Aconcagua, the highest peak in the Andes, and also the route to Argentina.

Mendoza, an area of vineyards, the descent, and then south, skirting the Andes, until the chic town of San Carlos de Bariloche.

Now east, to the peninsula of Valdes, a paradise for marine mammals. In Patagonia, we hug the Atlantic, sometimes by road, sometimes by tracks to get close to the ocean and to meet the colonies of penguin. Descent to Ushuaia where we should arrive at the beginning of February. From Tierra del Fuego we shall head north through Argentina and Chile, admiring the lakes and glaciers. We will follow the Chilean coast and will spend a few days on the island of Chiloé, without swimming in the sea. Despite it being Summer, the Pacific is too cold. We will go right up north following the coast or zigzagging to visit interesting places. The Andes, which rise gradually, are never very far.

We'll re-visit Santiago where we will greet the family again, and go to Copiapo to see our friends Omar and Olga. Then northern Chile, its deserts and its mountains, Peru and perhaps Ecuador.

Return via Peru, northern Bolivia, and Brazil where we would like to visit Pantanal (a very significant marshy Amazonian reserve, full of wildlife), then via the Brazilian coast and Uruguay.

If everything in this ambitious program goes well, we'll end up at Buenos Aires to take the return cargo ship in August.

But for the moment we have snow. The arrival in Santiago at the height of the Summer will be a shock to the system. But we are raring to go. In Bolivia we passed from over 20 to minus 20 degrees in the same day!

Extract from the account of LANDandino 2003 that you can read in full on the www.abmlemans.net website – click on Grands Voyageurs and then on Berlivet.

... a short distance before Purmamarca, the weather gets worse. Karl-Heinz, a German in a Combi, crosses us. We both make a half-turn. It is so rare to find a European vehicle! We have an appointment with the Salta campsite. In the afternoon, the cold and the wind persuade us to abandon the artisans' market stalls in the small square, and we go to warm ourselves up with a delicious soup of empanadas. After some photographs of the pretty church of Purmamarca and its thousand year-old carob tree, we quickly return to the Land-Rover. It's below 6° outside, snow starts to fall, then the rain. We continue to Maimara all the same. More stops, photographs to capture the image of the multicoloured mountains. The threatening sky gives an unreal light. But at 17.00 we have to return to Salta, 220 kms away. The rain falls then freezes. Finally everything works out, and we arrive as night falls.

Wednesday September 10. At the campsite, the two Argentinean pensioner couples invite us, Karl-Heinz and another Argentinean couple to join them to eat parilla. Ricardo and Nicolas cook tasty meats on one of the giant campsite barbecues site while the women prepare salads and the water for the coffee heats in our solar furnace made out from cardboard and aluminium. In the four months since our departure, our hair has grown long. Marie-Paule gives up the Bolivian pigtails and we have our hair cut for hardly more than €1 each.

Friday 12th. Mathé and Dedette board the Cloud Train which will take them from Salta (1200m above sea level) to San Antonio de Los Cobres then to the Porvorilla Viaduct (4200 m). The road runs alongside the narrow gauge railway. The train climbs at 40 kph and we will have no difficulty following it which will enable us to photograph each other. Despite doing nothing to attract attention, we do not pass unnoticed. In addition to Mathé and Dedette, all the passengers give us a wave.

The landscapes are sublime. We see herds of llamas, some gracious vicunas and lots of cacti. After San Antonio, some pick-ups go up carrying passengers, llamas and various goods. When they get to the viaduct, they have to climb a steep hill with their goods, llamas, musical instruments, ironing boards (which will serve as stalls), then wait for the arrival of the train which crosses the viaduct, stops and sets off again in the opposite direction. (The line continues towards Chile, but the train goes no further). Within 15 minutes they will try to sell their products or collect some pesos from the tourists posing with the llamas, while two groups of musicians simultaneously play local (but different) tunes. Then the train sets off again. The salesmen descend the ravine and quickly board the pick-ups which drive towards the station at San Antonio, 20 km further along the track. Us too. Still half an hour to the next stop, not long before the next chance to sell.

(The train will arrive at Salta around 22.00).

We have reviewed and corrected the info on the website. Shortly you will see the new version, with accounts of our cargo ship crossing in May-June 2003, and of the last month (October 7 to November 7) of the first part of our trip.

Jacques Berlivet.

Peru.

Macchu Picchu, Peru, Sunday 18 January 2004

It will be another two months plus before we finish this trip which has already clocked 12,000kms. We still have to go to Lake Titicaca, Bolivia, and then return via Salar de Uyuni, then Rosario, Missionnes, and the famous Iguasu Falls. On the road which leads to Nazca, we saw the splendid Colca canyon, the second biggest canyon in the world, after a pass at 4,800m. From Nazca, we flew over the mysterious Lines. It's essential that these are viewed from high up. The Nazca-Cuzco road is all tarred, except some bridges that are under repair. The altitude goes from 3,000 to 4,000 m on a road consisting of a series of continuous z-bends. It makes you giddy.

Cuzco: our vans are securely parked next to the Tourist Police station, only 200m from the Plaza de Armas [the main square]. This is bordered by the cathedral and another church from the C16th, made from gilded stones. It's really special in the evening when the site is illuminated and animated; it's really alive.

We took an organized three day tour round Macchu Picchu. Arriving in the rain and fog, the ‘curtain' went up at 08.00 after we had climbed about 100 steps. This place has a website www.machupicchuperu.net so we don't need to describe it.

It is a spectacle in stereo against the background of a sugarloaf mountain, and a deep valley which separates the whole. It grabs you. Return that evening to the hotel, 8 km below in an attractive village.

The next morning, we wait for the 05.45 train to Pisac... No train: the track has been weakened by strong rains. We will take a bus. It is the first unplanned element in our journey. Not a serious problem... we will stay here for another day.

Best wishes to you all, Pierre and Lucette Michel, Genevieve and François Petit

Senegal and Carnets de Passage - For Senegal, Iran, Egypt etc.

It is no joke! For Senegal, you now need a carnet de passage for all vehicles over five years and one day old! Another warning regarding listed prices... If the price of your van is no longer quoted (and over 6 years old?), you will need to supply a bond of €2,300 minimum. In future, it will be €3,200 for Iran and €3800 for Egypt.

[Translation editor's note... The RAC in the UK say “I can confirm a carnet is now required for entry into Senegal, with effect from October 2003. Security requirements between RAC and the French clubs would vary, but we also recognise the higher risk for Iran and Egypt, being 500% of vehicle value”. February 2004].

It seems that the Banc d'Arquin National Park in Senegal is out of bounds for vehicles.

We also note the disappearance of the Automobile Club of France. You are now obliged to go through regional clubs to get a carnet. For the Ile-de-France, the carnet is €135 and compulsory membership is €62. When will this monopoly end? The specialist magazines don't seem at all interested in this problem, but it's true that we are ‘exceptional'.

New Members.

We are particularly pleased to welcome our first Dutch members, Cees and Hanne Heim.

France to Africa: Togo and Benin.

[Attentive readers will recall that on 24 February 2003, the Mahauts and the Demontes had decided not to follow Michel Barbaudy and his companion, Daniel Maguin, who had left them to go to Togo, Benin etc. We'll now go and find the pair of them on their tour, this time the story is related by Michel himself.]

Burkina-Faso.

On the road towards Ouagadougou, 70 kms after Lori, we leave Mahaut and Demontes and take the rather good earth road N18 until Fada N'Gourma via Bogandé. Cows, goats and sheep; many stretches of water and food crops. For the night, free parking in front of the Yammame hotel-inn in Fada N'Gourma. Small city re-named after the honey of Gourma, some buildings in stone including a large town hall. Asphalt road in the direction of Niger until Kautcharé; overland route towards Liapaga, Namounou, Yobri, Tansarga.

It goes alongside the cliff of Gobnaugou until Arli [national?] park. On this route, more small forests and savannas with tall grasses. Visit park with a guide (4000 FCFA the day); entry ticket 3000 + 2000 FCFA per person. Cost of guide: 2000 or more per person. We will see hypotagises (large deer), antelopes, a number of hippopotamus, baboons, monkeys, buffaloes, damalis, partridges and thousands of wild guinea fowls, then two elephants and six elephant calves. Free camping in the park close to the office of the guard.

Bumpy track N19 for 20kms in the direction of Togo. At Tingandou we reach the border of Burkina-Faso: formalities, two minutes.

Togo.

Ponio, border village. Visas have to be obtained in Senkansé, towards Lapaong. 10,000 FCFA per person, permit to travel for the vehicle 5,000 FCFA; very fast formalities but only a 7 day visa (possible 23 days' extension in Lome). At Lapaong, camping at the Orchard hotel: 1500 FCFA. The regional museum of Lapaong is not interesting.

N1 to Kanté; very green landscape, forest, potholes in the road, a lot of trucks. 12kms from Kanté by an earth road is the Tamberma country with its Tata houses: mud [?] houses, fortified, with conical turrets covered in thatch. Outside, small sacrificial altars dedicated to the spirits - and fetishes. There are many of these houses over a distance of several kilometres.

To Nadola and return to Kanté. On the N1 towards Kara, one passes the Lefalé hills, large gorges, many trucks overturned by the side of the road. Pya, home village of President Ejdama, who has transformed the place with a park and presidential residence. 15 kms further on, Kara, city with some beautiful buildings; park the night in the court of the Leota hotel (1500 FCFA with shower). Asphalt road to Ketao, very green landscape with the Kabjé hills.

In Ketao, we visit a weaver plying his very rudimentary trade, in the same way as in Bafilo. N1, the Aledjro Fault, a large rock in the middle of the road. Sokodé, second city of Togo but charmless. Atakpame, street market. Park the night in the court of the Sahélien hotel, 1500 FCFA with a shower in the morning. Tar all the way to Badou (90 kms) then Tomg-Be village (toll 500 FCFA per person)., An hour from the village along a rather difficult path through the forest, we reach the foot of the Akloa waterfall. A guide accompanied us and helped me a lot. Then a very narrow path which never ends, but the landscape is beautiful.

One passes the villages of Agbo Kojé, Adomi Abta, Eketo Elavagnon; cross the mountain of the fetishes. Agavé, Elavagnoj on the Lanjé plateau, 800m high. In Lzogbegan, we visit the Benedictine monastery. I buy honey and coffee produced by the monks.

N5, we arrive at Adeta then Kpalime. All of this mountainous area, near Ghana, is very beautiful. Close by, Mount Agou. Then unattractive landscape. After the villages of Keve and Sauguera, we arrive in the suburbs of Lome which is not very clean. Thanks to people I know, we can park free, shower included, at the hotel Mercure Saranawak, directed there by a compatriot. Lome is a pleasant city with some broad avenues. It is rather extensive; the national museum (1000 FCFA per person) is not that good. The market of the fetishes is rather astonishing.

Armed with a visa obtained at the consulate in Lome, we go to Ghana whose border is a few kilometres away. After having had our passports stamped by the Ghanaian police, we go to the customs who refuse entry to the motorcaravan because I don't have a carnet de passages en douanes. In spite of a discussion with the local customs' director, we are obliged to turn back towards Togo, a country for which we no longer have a visa!

Fortunately the police officer that we had seen at the beginning recognizes us and agrees to let to us enter and go into Togo with the proviso that we must get to the Benin border that night. It is already dark, the traffic is heavy, and there are 50 kms to go before we get to Aneho and then the border.

Benin.

19. 45. We are at the Togolese border, formalities are very fast in Togo and there is no difficulty at the Benin border to obtain a 48 hour transit visa (10,000 FCFA per visa). We will have to extend it in Cotonou. Travel permit for the vehicle: 5850 FCFA.

20. 35. We leave Hillacondji on the Benin border. After 20 kms of asphalt road, we arrive at Grand Popo and we stop in a street beside a bar restaurant. Tropical landscape, with palm trees along the asphalt road towards Cotonou: it runs quite far from the sea. A lot of traffic in Cotonou and in the suburbs: many motor cycles and mopeds, scooter-taxis,, trucks, cars. Parking at the Beach Hotel on the edge of the beach but in the town (expensive, 5000 FCFA per day).

Cotonou is not a very beautiful capital. Visit city by taxi: Star Square, Main Square (unattractive), Friendship Stadium which is a great sporting complex built by the Chinese. No remarkable buildings, some large buildings but without character. Illicit hawkers everywhere. 30 kms from Cotonou, arrive in Porto Novo on a dual carriageway. Old city, visit Museum of Man in the old palace of the Porto Novo kings from 1688 to 1976 (entry 1000 FCFA per person). Construction in banco with thick walls; very simple, not comfortable.

Michel Barbaudy, to be continued.

A Jaunt to Mauritania from 20 December 2003 to 12 January 2004.

Before undertaking our great expedition to the Baring Straits and Alaska, we decided to go to Morocco, but our nostalgia for Africa prompted us to spend a weekend at Nouadhibou in Mauritania.

By Thursday morning, having arrived in Rabat, we go to the Mauritanian embassy where we are told that visas are issued from the consulate in Casablanca. Since Friday is the first day of the weekend, we decided to carry straight on knowing that the formalities will not cost much more at the border.

We take the coast road. Donkeys graze in the flowering meadows, little wild creatures unlike others which, led by peasants in djellebas, bravely pull the plough. We go through villages dominated by white minarets. This is cool, floral Morocco! On our route, we enjoy sole and spider-crab grilled on Oualidia beach.

At El Jadida we visit the Portuguese city and cistern [water tank]. In the evening, the police invited us to spend the night outside the police post opposite the ocean. The local press tells us that an American national has just been stabbed to death by a villain, and a young girl whose bag was stolen has been wounded.

At Essaouira, the city police ask us politely but firmly to use the campsite. We film pretty scenery and goats in the argan trees.

About 20kms from Agadir, on Devil's Rock, hundreds of motorcaravans are lined up on the cliff. The campsite in Agadir is overflowing with vans. After a lovely meal of prawns and fish, accompanied by a white wine, well hidden under the table, in one of the harbour restaurants, we continue on our way.

We meet Club members Daniel and Dany Meunier at Tiznit and then Henriette and Jeannot Lormand at Oued Mafatma. We spend an excellent night there, cradled roughly by the wind.

We set off once more on our long and rather dull route. A veil of sand swept up by the wind restlessly crosses the carriageway, here and there forming dangerous little sand dunes. Tantan, Laayunde, Dakhla, the great land of southern Morocco, a huge desert-land, constantly changing – mirages, blue sky hazy with reddish sand, dromedaries who eye us proudly and disdainfully, and men in turbans coming from heaven knows where. We rediscover the indefinable charm of Africa.

On 30 December, we spend a quiet night beside the Moroccan border post of Bir Gandouz. The well-tarred road gives way to very inferior Spanish tarmac; only a few traces of bitumen remain.

Here is the Mauritanian customs post on the side of the track. Averaging €50 per person, €15 for the vehicle and €10 for goodness knows what else, we obtain visas and a permit to travel. After 50kms or so, on a track that is sometimes sandy and at others rocky, we reach Nouadhibou.

An excellent weekend, spent with the children of Marie and Germain Oliete. We are welcomed with warmth, foie gras, champagne, prawns, lobsters, magret, and home-made cake. Our hosts take us to visit the fishing centre, the cabin, the gardens, the White Cape, all the attractions of Nouadhibou*. The days are hot and the nights cool. Early in the morning, we are woken by the turtle doves and the muezzin who chants at length the praises of the Prophet. Allah ackbar!

If you have time to continue towards Senegal, it is possible to take your van on the mines train. The roads which will link Nouadhibou with the Moroccan frontier and Nouakchott are expected to be finished by the end of 2004. But don't count on it. Everything moves so slowly in Africa.

Before setting out, consult www.casamance.net/tilibo and you will discover, at Casamance, a little corner of heaven.

At Nouadhibou, Fabrice, from Nouadhibou du monde** (tel 00 222 640 43 77, e-mail: auberge.lechinguetti@voila.fr) sorts out everything – visas, insurance, tours, currency exchange. For €20 he got us a guide (Sidiya Messoud) whose knowledge was greatly appreciated – many tracks criss-cross one another, back and forth, certain tracks are difficult for the van, and yet others lead to Nouakchott, but of course there are no road signs. The passage from the Mauritanian customs into Morocco is incredibly swift and easy. No searches, no checks on currency. they simply wished us happy new year! (Nothing like the 1994 harassment and hold-up. Our papers, including the carnet de passage en douanes, were in order, and in the end we were obliged to take a cargo-boat via Las Palmas to return to France with our Defender).

And now the long road once more.

The magic of the desert and the beauty of the ocean make us forget the 1,200kms that separate us from the Tan Tan border point. Between Tan Tan and Sidi Bibi we come across vehicles from Dakar [on the Paris-Dakar rally?] which will set off tomorrow for the tracks of Mauritania.

From Agadir, we turn towards Marrakech We cross the richly colourful High Atlas. Already the almond trees are starting to blossom! After two nights rest beneath the ramparts of Asilah and a disappointing visit to the Caves of Hercules (which are dirty and spoiled by the behaviour of tourists) we arrive back in Tangiers to board the huge white boat, the Biladi (my homeland! ).

Christiane Dumas

* If, having read this wonderful narrative, you wish to take a tour round Nouadhibou, it's too late... our expat friends are moving away.

** It is possible to park up alongside the sea. Cost: 2,500fcfa (€3.80) per van per night, with access to sanitation.

"It Seems To Me That Life Is Sweet Throughout New Zealand"

Michel is really unlucky with his travelling companions but for once he has found a good one...

[The story begins a few days earlier.]

Having left Auckland on Thursday 8th after taking delivery of a comfortable van which was a bit too big for my liking, we went towards the southern part of North Island as we were to catch the South Island ferry in Wellington on Sunday 18th. I had made a reservation and paid for the crossing in Auckland.

Road along the west coast: the beaches on this coast are all of black sand which I don't care for and found disappointing. Lovely scenery, especially pastures and forests, very few crops. Lots of sheep and cows; occasionally horses that look cold... most of the time they wear blankets on their backs.

Lovely roads, mostly covered in tarmac, sometimes just with loose chippings, but all easily driveable. Here there are lots of hortensia and agapanthus with umbrella-shaped flowers along the roadside. Moreover it's almost the end of the flowering period. We find these flowers in the streets and gardens of all built-up areas, both large and small. The small towns are almost all planned in a uniform manner – a main street with shops, single storey buildings with a verandah over the pavements, most probably to shelter people from the frequent rain. The houses in towns and villages are almost all on one level, made of wood, very well-painted, mostly in white, with superb green and well-mowed lawns.

Towns and villages are pleasant and quiet. Friday evening in Wellington – we go to the campsite for the first time, 15kms from the centre. It is nice and nowhere near full, costing NZ$26 per night (€14.50). On Saturday, visit the capital.

As we were going to visit the very interesting [Te Papa, the NZ national] museum in Wellington (entrance free), Daniel my travelling companion gets a phone call. His 21 year old daughter Carole has had a serious accident in England where she is on a course. She has been taken to a London hospital and operated on for several fractures of the right hip. Our plans are thus shattered. Daniel wants to return to Europe, which is only natural. I contact my former companion on the Paris-Beijing trip, Robert Vangrevelinghe, who will help me out.

We set off towards Auckland, first travelling through the centre of the island. Lake Taupo in the rain, Rotorua and its geysers. Then back towards the shores of the Pacific and the Coromandel Peninsular. Now the beaches are magnificent, white sand, a jagged and often rocky coastline. The landscape boasts many valleys and is very beautiful. This is the most beautiful region we have yet encountered. Superb mountain areas: Tangarivo and Egmont Park.

Back to the departure spot, Auckland, where Daniel is to catch a plane and where I will welcome Robert. Throughout these 17 days, it has been very cloudy with three days rain (two consecutive) and a few, lovely hot days. One can well understand why North Island is very green.

The New Zealanders are very friendly. Outside Wellington and Auckland, we have been wild camping without any problem whatsoever, next to the beach, in the mountains, even in built-up areas, and we have never been disturbed. The police are so unobtrusive that you don't see them! Towns are very clean; dogs are often not allowed. The towns all look pleasant thanks to the green spaces and the well-kept grass verges. As it's Summer, many of the shopping streets are decorated with flowers. Most supermarkets, and there are many, are open 7 days a week and some from 7.30 to 22.00. Lots of shops are open on Sundays but in the week they close at 17.00. It seems to me that life is sweet throughout this country.

Although it is right in the middle of the Summer holidays, the roads are not at all busy and we were surprised that there were not masses of people in the seaside resorts. There are lots of yachts in the harbours, but we haven't seen many sailing. It's odd... just like the fact that there are very few restaurants with lamb on the menu when the production of lamb is so important. Wellington is an agreeable small city with a lovely view from Mount Victoria (which I was forced to climb on foot because of a map-reading mistake). There are very many Asians, especially Chinese, particularly in the two big cities, but more or less everywhere. 90% of vehicles are Japanese, with a small number of Fords, a few Mercs and BMWs, and rare examples of Peugeot and Citroen. I never saw a Renault. Fuel is not expensive: diesel is NZ$0.56 per litre and petrol is 1.10. Exchange rate: NZ$1=€0.56-0.57. Living is generally a lot cheaper than in France, and if you want to build your house here, it will be a lot cheaper. But if the bill is less heavy, the construction is also a lot lighter!

After Robert's arrival, we will go straight to Wellington to catch the ferry and to visit South Island which everyone says is lovelier than North Island.

Michel Barbaudy.

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