Uk To Nairobi (33 Weeks) Trans Africa

We begin our journey from the UK in Gibraltar or southern Spain where you're Trans Africa Crew will greet you. We will have a free day here so that you have time to explore the Rock of Gibraltar, you will also have time to stock up on any supplies for our Expedition not forgetting Xmas and New Year's are just over a month away. We will then cross the Straits of Gibraltar by ferry to Ceuta, a Spanish enclave on the North African Coast. In Morocco, we visit Chefchaouen - set in a fertile valley of the surrounding Rif Mountains - where we will camp on a ridge overlooking this picturesque town with its white roofs, blue alleyways and narrow streets. You can wander around this relaxed town and even visit one of the old hammam bathhouses. We will visit the Roman City of Volubilis, a remarkably well-kept reminder of the Roman presence in North Africa 2000 years ago. You will have time to walk around the ancient streets and monuments before we continue to the fortress city of Fes, known for its huge covered bazaar with narrow winding alleys, crammed with craft workshops, restaurants, food stalls, mosques, dye pits and tanneries.

Our few days in the capital Rabat are spent organising visas before travelling onto the old capital of Marrakech, our base for the next few days of our Trans Africa overland adventure - allowing you the chance to wander around Djemâa-el-Fna. This square is alive with activity through the day - from storytellers, snake charmers, water sellers and musicians. A nightly ritual sees hundreds of food stalls transform the square into one of Africa's largest local eating areas - the aromatic smells of fresh local food is fit for locals and tourists alike. The fishing port of Essaouira is our last major stop in Morocco before we head south following the rugged Atlantic coastline towards Mauritania and the Sahara Desert. This journey will take a few days where we will be camping in the wild, and with no light pollution, an abundance of stars can be seen in the night skies.

On this leg of the overland Africa trip, after crossing into Mauritania we will travel to the desert city of Nouadhibou. From Nouadhibou will see us drive south. Passing small isolated villages surrounded by vast desert, we will also see herdsmen migrating with their camels in search of water, before reaching the capital, Nouakchott. With very infrequent traffic on the roads, no food crops being grown leaves one wondering how tough it is to live in such harsh desert conditions. At Nouakchott, we spend a couple of days re-organising the truck and life in general after our dusty desert travels. It is quite incredible to think that slavery was only abolished here in 1980 and it is rumoured that it continues in some outlying areas. South of Nouakchott, we will take 1 of 2 borders crossing into Senegal, the infamous and hectic Rosso border, crossing the Senegalese river by boat, or travel through a remote border - Diama, passing along the piste through Diawling National park (weather permitting). We enter sub-Saharan Africa by crossing the Senegal River and continue into St Louis, West Africa's first French settlement and from where French colonialists conquered the interior. Senegal has a very different feel from the west Saharan countries we have just come from. We begin to be exposed to West Africa's vibrant food and music culture, colourful fashion and markets. We will start getting used to bad roads, 'interesting' local driving styles and a mixture of modern West African cities as well as some fly blown and remote border posts and villages. The city of St Louis is located at the mouth of the Senegal River and is an interesting place to visit. We will spend a couple of nights near town camping within the national park 'Langue de Barbarie', well known for its fauna rich with various species of birds. You can take a pirogue trip and bird watch, relax and swim on the sandy beach, try your hand at fishing and much more. On our Overland route through Senegal, we will visit Lake Retba (or Lac Rose as it is known by locals) where you can float in the pink lake. Its salinity content compares to that of the Dead Sea and during the dry season, it exceeds it. From here you may have the opportunity to visit Dakar. Like any large city in the world, Dakar has its undesirables so compared to the laid back countryside and small towns that we are more familiar with, in large cities we learn to take care and go out and explore in pairs.