Thunder's Road - Calum's Road 2010

29-1-10

ZebraBar

The sun came up at some point, it must have, it was up when we emerged from our respective abodes. :rob

We breakfasted, fettled the bikes and Sid and Glenn rode into St Louis to do some messages, picking up a fine from a member of the local constabulary for speeding into the bargain. No speed gun or radar, just in the opinion of the cop. :(

The ZB shimmered under the mid day sun, Tossers lay were they fell. :D

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Nothing really happened until late afternoon when a lone motor cycle rider arrived

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His name was Nigel Swaby and he'd ridden up from Banjul that day after spending 3 months volunteering with Riders for Health, you can find more about him on his website Big Nose on Tour, a real character and able to give us lots of information on what was ahead of us on our trip. :thumb
:thumb

His bike was pretty special as well

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as was his method of parking when the sand was too soft for the side stand :augie

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Dave was in awe!! :eek:

We all had our evening meal together and Nigel fitted in easily with the group, he could talk bollox for England :thumb Lovely guy, check out his website it's worth a read. :thumb

We watched yet another stunning sunset together

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and Gert added a Calum's Road sticker to the bars collection.

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Tomorrow we headed south for our final day in Senegal, Gambia was approaching and the excitement was mounting, thanks to the wonders of alcohol though we managed a decent nights sleep. :thumb
 
30-1-10

Kaolack

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Rooms cleared, Gert Yurt packed we left the ZebraBar for the last time and headed headed into St Louis to top off the tanks before heading south for our final night in Senegal.*

As we crossed the bridge towards the petrol station we were stopped by the same policeman who had fined Sid and Glen the previous day, after their experience we were deliberately keeping the speed down. Having checked our details and fisches he asked Gert and myself for our driving permits and told the others to be on their way.

Gert had been leading the group so he was invited to join the officer in his office, apparently in his opinion we had not indicated long enough when he had pulled us over, guess what? We were getting a fine.:(

Gert emerged 10 minutes later, apparently the initial fine in local currency was equivalent to £105 but after negotiation we got away with 50 Euro as we did not have enough of the local stuff. :mad:

I had the helmet cam going as we left, notice how the nice official stopped the traffic for us and waved us on our way!

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We had read and heard about corruption in Senegal but still could not believe how rife it was, to say it left a sour taste in the mouth is an understatement, as we headed off again all we could think of was what would be the next infraction we would be done for, especially as we had to go back past the check point for the bridge. Would you believe the cheeky bastard actually came out and waved us off grinning from ear to ear? We waved back some actually used all their fingers! :D

As we left St Louis behind we made good time on the tarmac roads and stopped to check the options for the run to Kaolack, main road or a little wellow road on the map which was shorter. We checked it out, it was sand and with the temperature rising elected to go with the main road, not very adventurous but it was getting bloody hot! :augie

As we headed off again I had the helmet cam running as we got pulled in for another police check, normally I'd turn it off but I let it run for a while to see what would happen, nothing did, checked our papers and waved us on our way, even smiled without the need for a fine, could corruption be behind us?

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It seemed it was, every stop from now on was legit, papers checked and waved on our way with minimum of delay, happy days. :thumb

The locals were just as curious about these people on their big bikes, every stop for water or fuel had an interested crowd gathering to ask questions.

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The kids appeared from no where

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we always took the opportunity for shopping

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oranges were still popular

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although not the only fruit. We were offered lemons as well.

Our next stop was for fuel,

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water,

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checking of maps,

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more curious locals,

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and in the case of one rider, the chance to adjust underwear! :eek:

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The local hauliers had never heard of a weigh-bridge.

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Dave's tyres now matched the colour of his bike which was nice :augie

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While Gert's showed evidence of our first puncture :blast

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As the tyre pressure was not dropping significantly and he had gone for the option of pressure monitors on his bike he decided to press on to our destination rather than start plugging it at this point.

The tyre was fine for our final leg into Kaolack, as we approached the outskirts we called into another petrol station and saw a sign for a hotel, only 900 meters away. :thumb

Those who needed to topped up their tanks, Gert and the rest headed off to find the hotel through some pretty dodgy streets with a few bike breakers and workshops on them. As we got to the first junction about a km from the petrol station there was another sign for the hotel, this time saying it was 1km away. :blast We started to wonder if it was a trap for adventurers. :augie

After riding another 2 kms we found it, it was another bloody 4 star in the middle of no where and it seemed we were not the only visitors from Europe :D

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The receptionist told us they only had 3 rooms left, 2 doubles and a triple, just what we needed so she took us to see them to make sure we wanted them.

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We got as far as the pool and bar before saying yes!

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The rooms were fine though, individual bungalows

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each with different locally carved doors, handy to find your room in the dark after a night at the bar, you'd just go by feel!

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Gear ditched we hit the bar

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hit the pool

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while Gert hit the nail on the head :D

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We supported him from afar

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and watched the sun go down

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Tyre sorted, drink drunk we changed for dinner in the hotels restaurant, had some more drinks and posed for a team picture.

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As the night wore on and the drink flowed Mike produced the quote of the day when ordering his desert. It was'nt on the menu but they said the chef would try to accomodate his requirements, so in his best Glasgow accent he told the waiter " Le crepe de glace big man!" There wasn't a dry trouser leg at the table! :D

We staggered yet again to bed, tomorrow we would be in The Gambia!!!! :thumb

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i am quiet enjoying this Roger old boy :thumb
 
31-1-10

Sambel Kunda - The Gambia

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Another day packing and heading down a road, but this was a significant one as we hoped to get to Sambel Kunda where the Horse and Donkey Trust were based and Calum's Road in The Gambia began.

We intended to cross in to Gambia at Farafenni a busy market town then ride down the North Road to catch ferries at Janjanbureh on to the South Road which would take us to our destination. It meant looping back on ourselves but given the reputation of the South Road and it's numerous pot holes was the route that was recommended.

We stopped before the border crossing to check paperwork, stretch legs and take pictures. The roads were getting worse and the landscape was distinctly orange, Dave was delighted! :D

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We were cleared quickly through the Senegalese border and then began the usual long entry procedures even though the officials knew we were coming and why we were there. This was Africa time we kept telling ourselves.

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We also got our first experience of Gambian officials, they did not ask for a fine or a donation to the Chief of Police's beer fund, but if you had something they admired they just asked for it, not in a threatening way and there was no animosity when you politely refused but we soon learned to keep shiny things out of site when dealing with officials.

The Gambians had a very relaxed attitude to entering the country, once the customs paperwork was sorted we were told to call in at the police station some 2 kms down the road " just stop under the big tree when your passing" We did, took a sneaky picture of it, and the latest in Gambian police motorcycle technology while Mike was sorting the paperwork before heading down for the first ferry.

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We were officially in The Gambia!! :bounce1

We passed close to our destination while riding down the North Road, we couldn't see it of course but we knew it was there, we had to take a long loop and catch 2 ferries, the first was waiting to leave as we arrived, quite small, ride on and push off as it had only one ramp but a quick crossing.

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It was hot work so our first stop was for drinks

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then the short run to the next ferry, a ride on ride off one this time, larger than the first but with no engine it was pulled across with cables strung between the river banks, and soon to be replaced by a bridge which was under construction. It was also busy so we joined the queue! :blast

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talked to the locals

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topped up tans

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and lay around waiting

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it was a long wait, the ferry crossing while short was slow and eventually some of our intrepid adventures ended up on board helping to pull it across in an attempt to speed things up. :augie

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Eventually it was our turn, well mine there was just enough room for a single bike hanging over the back on the loading ramp :eek:, I stayed on the bike, :rob

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chatted with one of the locals,

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before reaching the other side, parking up and waving at the others. :D

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who arrived eventually :bounce1

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It had been a long delay but we were on the final leg!!!!! :D

TBC :thumb
 
31-1-10

Sambel Kunda (continued)

Our delay at the ferry had us considering the options for accommodation over night. We were not due to arrive at the Horse and Donkey Trust compound until the following day and as it was getting late and we were aware from Mike that the "road" to the compound was little more than a 15km track we discussed the possibility of camping in the school grounds in Kudang.

What we didn't know was that Mike had been keeping in touch with Heather Armstrong of the trust and people were aware we would soon be arriving.

About 15 kms from Kudang we turned a corner and came upon a white pick up truck and a group of locals, Heather and Anna from the trust with a group of local representatives were waiting for us. We were totally taken by suprise (except for Mike that is) so much so I've not even got a picture of the event.

We did the greeting thing and were told to get on our way, it appeared people had heard we were arriving and had been waiting for up to 6 hours for us.

For the next 15 kms the every village we rode through had people lining the road waving, beating drums, shouting welcome, we were totally gob smacked!

Then we reached Kudang. The road was blocked with locals as far as the eye could see welcoming us, men woman children and even a local "magician"! We couldn't take it all in!

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Gert got 2 shots of Dave which I believe just about sum up the moment

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Just totally amazing! :D

As it started to get dark we made our apologies and headed off to the compound, we still had 15 kms to go and as before the track was lined with locals at bends and villages all waving, smiling and shouting.

Soon it was pitch black and we found the track was not just covered in sand, for most of the way it was sand and soft sand at that! :eek:

Between the sand, roving livestock and excited villagers running across our path it was perhaps the worst riding we had had so far and bikes went down all over the place.

We were becoming exhausted and with 2 kms to go the bikes were showing serious signs of overheating as were some of the riders so we pulled over and stripped our gear off while water was brought out from the compound and the bikes cooled down.

After about 20 minutes we were on our way again, as we rode through Sambel Kunda the villagers ran along beside us and joined others already waiting there to greet us.

As we parked the bikes and threw our gear off cold beers appeared and the party started!!! :D

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It was too dark for the video camera but I videoed anyway just to record the noise, it was deafening :)

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Some of us joined in with the dancing

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some just sat and tried to take it all in

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No one expected our arrival would be like this.

We had another late night before falling into our beds, tomorrow we would finally ride Calum's Road in The Gambia. We could'nt wait! :thumb

TBC
 
Excellent report - I've enjoyed reading this so much and getting my daily fix of it was as exciting as watching you guys on the GPS site as it happened - a brilliant trip and a brilliant write up. I think those 2 pics of Bhud will be on his office wall now:augie

Well done again everyone involved:clap
 
Excellent report - I've enjoyed reading this so much and getting my daily fix of it was as exciting as watching you guys on the GPS site as it happened - a brilliant trip and a brilliant write up. I think those 2 pics of Bhud will be on his office wall now:augie

Well done again everyone involved:clap

It's not over yet, we have another week to go so keep watching :D
 
1-2-10

Horse and Donkey Trust - Sambel Kunda

Today we would actually be riding on the Gambian Calum's Road and meeting some of the local dignitaries, and officials who would be joining us, but first we had time to explore the Trust's compound and the village of Sambel Kunda.

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Dave's bike was of interest to some of the locals :augie

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We crossed over to the stables, learned something of what the trust did, how it was much more than horses and donkeys and some of the background on how it came to be.

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About thirty years ago horses and donkeys were introduced into The Gambia for use as working farm animals and their numbers have increased considerably in the last ten years or so. Many of the 27,500 horses and 40,000 donkeys are suffering appalling treatment and conditions simply through their 'carers' lack of knowledge.

Inadequate food supply is also a major problem and these factors lead to the distressing sights we can see in the pictures.
Our main concern is malnutrition which aggravates problems with parasites, infection, lameness and disease.

Ill fitting or inappropriate harness and little or no knowledge of farriery often compounds the suffering.

  • The Trust aims to alleviate these problems by:
  • Educating the farming community.
  • Training Extension workers.
  • Liasing with appropriate agricultural agencies.
  • Providing hospital and mobile treatment facilities.
  • Employing a Gambian veterinary surgeon and his team of assistants.
  • Making full use of locally available medicinal plants e.g. Aloe Vera.
  • Making use of voluntary expertise from abroad to provide specialist training e.g. farriery and harness making.

It was hard to take in some of the things we heard particularly the fact that The Gambia only has seven vets in the whole country. :eek:

The trust employs 17 local people who are all actively involved in it's work and in addition has strong connections with local schools and community groups. We soon learned it was about much more than just horses and donkeys.

Moving on we explored the village,

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the local school,

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with it's strong Scottish links,

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and recently opened playground which was popular with the children. :augie

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Dave gave a hand at the well

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on our way to visit the headman of the village

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and see the health clinic

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before returning to the compound to get ready for our ride on Calum's Road. :bounce1

TBC :thumb
 
Roger you are a real credit to the team, your report is really capturing our Adventure.

:thumb
 
1-2-10

On the Road

Back at the compound we met with more local officials before grabbing our gear and getting the bikes ready to see the site of the new Calum's Road.

I had the video camera running so if you have 20 minutes free check out the streams below, for an idea of what riding it is like. :thumb

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Like the previous evening people were waiting for us on our route.

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As we reached the section of the road which floods the pick up with the officials had to pull over, this section could not be crossed easily by even 4 wheel drive vehicles, the bed of the road was underwater even in the dry season and the land surrounding it was waterlogged making crossing it impractical if not impossible in any vehicle, hover crafts not included of course :augie

We parked the bikes and joined them.

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The girl in the blue dress is Joanna, she's spending 2 years in the area as a member of the US Peace Corp.

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Horse and donkey carts are the main method of moving things on the "road"

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Even in the dry season we saw an example of the problems the flooded area causes, one of the horses stumbled and fell in the mud and had to be unhitched from the cart and pulled free.

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The elders and people from the village at the end of the far end of the road were waiting to meet us, it had been a day of speeches and the temperature was rising but most of us chose to walk with our hosts to meet them, it was an experience!!!! :eek:

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We met the other villagers and there were more speeches, singing and dancing, luckily for them we were too tired and sober to join in :rob

You can get some idea of the whole afternoon from this video, unfortunately I was rabbiting on at times, it seemed the thing to do at the time :blast

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On the way back to the bikes we stopped for a couple of pictures returning to the compound for a shower and some cold beers :beer:

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Now all we had to do was chill out, get to Banjul and sort the bikes out for the flight home. Easy? Yeah right! :)

TBC :thumb
 


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