I had hoped that when I had time I would do a run down of our travels so far since leaving Nouakchott, accompanied by photos but there would be so much to tell, and unfortunately I lost my camera bag in Guinea Bissau which held the lead to download from my camera to one of our devices. Until we find another way of doing this I cannot illustrate our journey. I am very grateful to Paul and Simon for their input, which tells the story so well. Also our 'editor' son Andrew has interpreted my text messages and emails to him and put his own spin on events.
We have really been travelling far too fast for comfort. To begin with we were happy to do this to have Paul's company to share in the adventures as far as Koundara in Guinea. We then relaxed a bit and thoroughly enjoyed our very slow pace through the Fouta Djalon mountains to Labé and would have liked to have stayed a second night at the Hotel Tata with the rather fierce Madame Tata and her Italian ex-biker husband, Flavio. The only other guests there were 6 French doctors: trauma specialists, surgeons and anaesthetists, who were working at the local hospital as a thank you to Guinea for supporting the French military in the Mali 'conflict'. We had looked forward to having further conversations with them, but to keep to our schedule and get visas in Conakry for Sierra Leone and Liberia we had to leave quickly. Flavio told us it would take us 2 days to drive to Conakry on very bad roads. So, I said goodbye to the 3 enormous hairy caterpillars which had shared our hut overnight and we drove into town to find a bank. The mayhem which greeted us (and Labé was not a huge city) did not bode well for a visit to the capital. It took us all day to reach Mamou on the main road, full of potholes, so en route we decided to give the next 2 intended countries a miss and go direct to Cote d'Ivoire. What a good decision that was. After a night spent in the grounds of the Forestry School in Mamou, meeting a lady from Tennesee who was teaching there, the road to Guékédou was smooth in comparison and again very picturesque.
19km before Guékédou the road deteriorated again to 'cauldron' holes and we were not sure where we would spend the night. Just before sunset we came upon an open gateway into disused buildings. The notice informed us that it was storage for a former seedbank project. We were hidden from the road and no-one was about. Later an elderly man appeared who said he was the 'guardien' and that it was OK for us to park there for the night. We didn't see him again in the morning to show our appreciation. Next stop: N'zérékoré, the dustiest town we have been to. However, the drive once through Guékédou, was back on to really good tar roads and we made splendid progress, particularly close to Kissidougou where we remember news reporters were based during the Ebola outbreak. We saw quite a lot of evidence from that time - treatment centres, huge graveyards and derelict shops and houses which must have belonged to the victims. A lot of sad looking children around also.
Just before sunset we drove in to N'zérékoré and through the dust (probably caused by the Harmattan wind) we eventually found the Auberge Golo mentioned in Lonely Planet. We were the only visitors there and decided to take a room for the night as it was so hot in the Enterprise. We were informed that the Dragoman truck had stayed there on 15th December, probably the last tourists to visit. No wifi, so we arranged for the lady owner's son/driver to take us into town for a bank and internet café. Success with the first, so we could pay our bill in the morning but the owner of the café was at the mosque. We retired to bed without making contact with the outside world. It had been very quiet on the roads during the day, probably because it was Friday, the Muslim holy day. I made us fried (Senegalese) eggs to eat and we had a can of beer. During the night I felt very unwell (was it the egg or the beer?) . The next morning I climbed into the Enterprise, lay down on a bunk and slept again while Chris drove the good road to Lola and on to the Guinea/Cote d'Ivoir border at N'zoo.
Before entering Guinea we had been told about the horrors of the roads and the many police stops where money would be demanded. They were correct about some of the roads but although a little annoying, the police stops became part of the adventure. Chris would not allow me to talk to them in French and insisted that they should speak English! If they couldn't as was usually the case, it made it very difficult for them to ask for a present or a bribe as Chris pretended he did not understand a word. When they asked for 'papiers' he handed then our local 'Peak Advertiser' newspaper which we had brought from home. Also the attempt to buy one of their hats was a distraction and they forgot what they wanted from us.
I will end this post, with me lying comatose in the back of the Enterprise and Chris beginning the start of the worst road ever encountered. I do remember vaguely that while Chris was busy with Guinea customs and immigration, I was in the bathroom retching!
We have really been travelling far too fast for comfort. To begin with we were happy to do this to have Paul's company to share in the adventures as far as Koundara in Guinea. We then relaxed a bit and thoroughly enjoyed our very slow pace through the Fouta Djalon mountains to Labé and would have liked to have stayed a second night at the Hotel Tata with the rather fierce Madame Tata and her Italian ex-biker husband, Flavio. The only other guests there were 6 French doctors: trauma specialists, surgeons and anaesthetists, who were working at the local hospital as a thank you to Guinea for supporting the French military in the Mali 'conflict'. We had looked forward to having further conversations with them, but to keep to our schedule and get visas in Conakry for Sierra Leone and Liberia we had to leave quickly. Flavio told us it would take us 2 days to drive to Conakry on very bad roads. So, I said goodbye to the 3 enormous hairy caterpillars which had shared our hut overnight and we drove into town to find a bank. The mayhem which greeted us (and Labé was not a huge city) did not bode well for a visit to the capital. It took us all day to reach Mamou on the main road, full of potholes, so en route we decided to give the next 2 intended countries a miss and go direct to Cote d'Ivoire. What a good decision that was. After a night spent in the grounds of the Forestry School in Mamou, meeting a lady from Tennesee who was teaching there, the road to Guékédou was smooth in comparison and again very picturesque.
19km before Guékédou the road deteriorated again to 'cauldron' holes and we were not sure where we would spend the night. Just before sunset we came upon an open gateway into disused buildings. The notice informed us that it was storage for a former seedbank project. We were hidden from the road and no-one was about. Later an elderly man appeared who said he was the 'guardien' and that it was OK for us to park there for the night. We didn't see him again in the morning to show our appreciation. Next stop: N'zérékoré, the dustiest town we have been to. However, the drive once through Guékédou, was back on to really good tar roads and we made splendid progress, particularly close to Kissidougou where we remember news reporters were based during the Ebola outbreak. We saw quite a lot of evidence from that time - treatment centres, huge graveyards and derelict shops and houses which must have belonged to the victims. A lot of sad looking children around also.
Just before sunset we drove in to N'zérékoré and through the dust (probably caused by the Harmattan wind) we eventually found the Auberge Golo mentioned in Lonely Planet. We were the only visitors there and decided to take a room for the night as it was so hot in the Enterprise. We were informed that the Dragoman truck had stayed there on 15th December, probably the last tourists to visit. No wifi, so we arranged for the lady owner's son/driver to take us into town for a bank and internet café. Success with the first, so we could pay our bill in the morning but the owner of the café was at the mosque. We retired to bed without making contact with the outside world. It had been very quiet on the roads during the day, probably because it was Friday, the Muslim holy day. I made us fried (Senegalese) eggs to eat and we had a can of beer. During the night I felt very unwell (was it the egg or the beer?) . The next morning I climbed into the Enterprise, lay down on a bunk and slept again while Chris drove the good road to Lola and on to the Guinea/Cote d'Ivoir border at N'zoo.
Before entering Guinea we had been told about the horrors of the roads and the many police stops where money would be demanded. They were correct about some of the roads but although a little annoying, the police stops became part of the adventure. Chris would not allow me to talk to them in French and insisted that they should speak English! If they couldn't as was usually the case, it made it very difficult for them to ask for a present or a bribe as Chris pretended he did not understand a word. When they asked for 'papiers' he handed then our local 'Peak Advertiser' newspaper which we had brought from home. Also the attempt to buy one of their hats was a distraction and they forgot what they wanted from us.
I will end this post, with me lying comatose in the back of the Enterprise and Chris beginning the start of the worst road ever encountered. I do remember vaguely that while Chris was busy with Guinea customs and immigration, I was in the bathroom retching!
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