Africa Trip 2012 – Hear it from Charley…

During August and September 2012 I’m leading a whole bunch of bikers on an incredible trip from Cape Town to Victoria Falls and onward into East Africa, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and back into SA. The trip heads north from the Cape, along the coast before cutting inland through Namibia and east along the Caprivi Strip, finishing at the ‘Smoke that Thunders’ – the iconic Victoria Falls in Zambia. Covering over 5,000 kilometers, we will see some of the very best that the Dark Continent has to offer – beautiful land-scapes, amazing sunsets and incredible wildlife – things that dreams are made of.  In August 2011 we took nearly 50 riders on this adventure – and now we’re planning the next one – 2012 – read on to wet your appetite – would love to see you!

On many of my trips, we’ve had the great experience of inviting riders to join in on sections. We’ve always been excited and amazed at the turn out – sometimes hundreds of like minded bikers cruising along – it’s just fantastic. So now I’ve taken that a step further. I’ve joined forces with a very reputable and experienced off road touring company Moto Aventures, to create an adventure of a life time.

We’ve broken the trip down into two amazing sections – the upward leg from Cape Town to Victoria Falls starting in August and then the downward leg starting straight after in September heading east towards the coast, covering Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and the eastern side of South Africa. We have a few days in between in Victoria Falls to service and repair the bikes, get new rubber and flavour some of the amazing activities in Zambia!

The bikes are all from BMW Motorrad South Africa and we’ve got two big 4×4′s to act as support vehicles. The support trucks will carry luggage so apart from a simple tank bag or rucksack, the bikes will be nice and light – no panniers, so much easier to manage when the going gets a bit tough. Five thousand kilometers across 16 days means we will be doing some long rides – however, depending on the weather – as over in Africa the weather either gives you beautiful hard gravel roads OR impassable ones – we will have time to stop off and saver some of the sights along the way.

I’ve been to South Africa and a lot of the surrounding countries a few times – it goes with the job! But Namibia does stand out as a hidden gem. Vast stretches of emptiness and scary deathly desert and then weird old colonial towns that look like you’ve stepped back in time – sausages, red cabbage and two Weiss beers please barman! Yes, the Deutschland influence is very strong, dating back to the 1800′s where key European empire builders where deciding what chunks of Africa they could lay their hands on! And then of course there’s Etosha National Park – wild life that you only see on a David Attenborough documentary!

You have to pinch yourself as you come up close to elephants, zebra and big cats – wow, am getting itchy to leave! Last year we realised that a big Bull Elephant doesn’t really seem to know the difference between a jeep and a sexy lady elephant – I’ll tell you about that story when we meet up!

We’re well underway on our side of the trip preparation, booking lodges and organizing bikes and support trucks.  Billy has just returned from the recce for the East Africa leg – Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and then back into SA.  He’s got loads of pictures and some stories to tell! Check his Facebook out and see some amazing sights.  The second leg into Mozambique, we’ll be staying in places where Ewan and I stayed, so will be stirring old memories for me. Lake Malawi – oohhhh, deep blue fresh water, beautiful beaches – I love Malawi.  Then into Mozambique – a place with a troubled history and yet I truely believe one of the friendliest countries on the continent.  Colonised by the Portugese it has a uniqueness that you have to feel and take in.  Incredible places, jungle, bush and of course the Indian Ocean.

The East Africa trip is far more road orientated – simply because road / track options are limited.  This means that for those who perhaps would prefer more road and less track, its the ideal choice.  Billy reckons it’s about 70/30 on road.  But dont think we’re talking motorway here! No, roads that take you high into the mountains, thick jungle – and little villages where you’ll be one of the highlights of the year for the kids as you pass through!  You’ll experience African border crossings – Zambia into Malawi, Malawi into Moz and then Moz into SA – a great big tick in that box!

We’ve got some early birds signed up and already they’re going through their check lists, getting visas, sorting out malaria tablets and buying new bits of kit – keen eh! I really think that the preparation is a real part of the bigger experience. Picking your new helmet, trying on the new jacket or boots – it’s the kind of excitement that sometimes only children seem to get, before Christmas and birthdays.

We’ve pulled in some of our old friends to help out – we’ve got Simon Pavey from the BMW Off Road School getting riders skills sharpened up, Touratech are helping us with essential equipment, Garmin giving us key support with the Zumo 660 and mapping software, and Buff are helping out with clothing. It’s like a group version of the Long Way Down project – only this time I can share the experience directly with people around me and not just on the TV screen.

In 2010/11 we had riders from all over the world – Australia, Hong Kong, Middle East, USA and of course the UK – the adventure is open to anyone from any corner of the world. So, get your bike gear out, buy some maps and get excited – then check out the details on the Moto Aventures website and join us for the trip of a lifetime! Hurry – there’s not many places left.
Keep the rubber side down!
Click here to book now!