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Jill Bardsley and her husband, Peter, traveled through twenty-two countries from Manchester, England to Cape Town, South Africa in their Outfitter Caribou pop-up truck camper.
Africa by truck camper. At first blush, it sounds like a dream, and possibly, a nightmare. While there should be little doubt that a properly planned and executed truck camper rig could handle the overland rigors of African travel, it's the social and political equations that give us pause. What happens at border crossings? What about language issues? Are there any military or tribal conflicts to be aware of? And where can you camp overnight safely? So many questions.
Jill and Peter Bardsley took these questions on for eight straight months. They considered every facet of an African expedition and exhausted every concern they could think of. Of course nothing could have fully prepared them for the experience that awaited them. Let's just say that Africa had much more than adventure up her sleeves. This is one truck camping adventure you're going to have to read to believe. Get your safari hats on. We're going to Africa.
Outside their apartment in the U.K.
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Cape of Good Hope, South Africa
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Camping in the National Park in Egypt
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TCM: Were you thinking about the truck camper first or the trip to Africa first?
Jill: We were thinking about the trip to Africa first and were looking for a truck camper to do the trip in. The first time we saw anything like a truck camper was at a motorhome/caravan show in Munich, Germany. Looking at the layout inside made us realize that we could do the trip in a bit more comfort than with just a roof tent and could even manage to have a toilet, which was quite a godsend as it turned out.
TCM: When did you come up with the idea to go to Africa?
Jill: We were staying in a campsite in Croatia and met a young English couple in a Land Rover with a roof tent. They were at the start of their trip to Africa and told us all about it. At first we thought they were mad and decided we could never do anything like that. We followed their progress on their website all the way through Africa and became mesmerized by the whole experience. Eventually we came to the conclusion that we would like to try it ourselves.
TCM: What specific truck and camper did you use for your trip?
Jill: We used a Nissan Navara, known as a Frontier in the United States, with a Caribou truck camper from Outfitter in Denver, Colorado. The team at Outfitter were most helpful and adapted their standard Caribou to meet our requirements. The Caribou is one of the smaller truck campers. In the U.K., we do not have pick up trucks as large as you have in the States. Brian Ward at Outfitter was very helpful and receptive to our requirements. We added a few things like the toilet for which we gave up a small wardrobe and had slightly less seating. We had an extra ceiling fan fitted and they strengthened the overcab area slightly to withstand the road conditions in Africa.
The camper arriving in England
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The camper crossing the Nile River
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Ferry to Nwueiba, Egypt
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TCM: How did you have the truck camper shipped to you in England?
Jill: The camper was transported by road in a container from Denver to Houston, Texas. From there it was shipped be sea to Felixstowe in England. We made the overseas shipping arrangements at this end and Outfitter made all the arrangements to get the camper to Houston. In the end, it was a relatively easy process taking about three weeks. We actually picked the camper up ourselves at the docks in Felixstowe and helped to take it out of the container. It was a very, very tight fit.
TCM: What modifications did you make to the Outfitter for use in England?
Jill: The only modifications we had to make were to the lights on the back of the camper. The indicators flash differently in England.
TCM: Why did you choose an Outfitter truck camper?
Jill: The Outfitter was a good match for us because it features a lightweight aluminum frame and fiberglass shell. The construction quality was very important as the roads in Africa are horrendous, full of potholes, and have corrugations. We were quite worried at the start of the trip that maybe the whole rig would just disintegrate if it couldn't stand up to the conditions. In all of our research, we never came across anyone who had done the journey with a truck camper so we had no idea whether this was the right set up or not. As it turned out, all of our worries were unfounded as the camper more than withstood the rigors of the road.
Another reason that the camper was a good match for our trip to Africa was that it provided somewhere safe to sleep inside while camping in the wild. We didn't have to worry about any wild animals creeping around outside while we slept like the people with roof tents and ground tents did. During periods of bad weather, we were warm and dry inside. We also escaped into our camper to eat our meals well away from biting insects.
The ruins in Palmyra, Syria
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Lake Oanab in Namibia
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The main road in Rwanda just near to the border with the Republic of the Congo
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TCM: How long did it take to prepare for your trip?
Jill: Planning for a trip to Africa trip takes months and months starting with purchasing the right vehicle, which is probably the most important. The vehicle had to have a lot of modifications done to it even though we chose to go in a brand new vehicle. We had to add an extra fuel tank allowing us to carry 140 liters of fuel, extra underbody protection as the roads in Africa are notoriously bad, and an upgraded suspension to carry the camper better. We also needed a snorkel, not so the vehicle can go underwater, but to stop sand and dust clogging up the air filter. When we were in the United States, the snorkel caused a great deal of interest.
We had to get a Carnet de Passage which is effectively a passport for the vehicle to allow it to be taken into and out of different countries without the necessity to pay import duty. Visas for visiting different countries had to be obtained. Extensive research was undertaken as to exactly where we would sleep and whether there were campsites along the way.
Health is obviously an important factor on a trip such as this so we had to have a large comprehensive first aid kit as well as take anti malaria medication while traveling through Africa. We had injections for lots of infections plus rabies.
One of our worries was making sure that we had every piece of documentation at hand that we may be asked for at border crossings. Obviously you don't want to be turned away at a border as the whole trip would be ruined. Also we had to know how to obtain a visa for countries which we didn't already have visas for while we were actually on the road. Sudan visas are tremendously difficult to obtain taking up to eight weeks in England and then not always being successful in obtaining one.
Clothing, camping equipment, food supplies, water supplies, research, planning, and preparation took over our lives for about eight months. In the end, we thought that we couldn’t possibly do anymore preparation. Strangely enough while everything seemed of major importance before we set off, once on the road things became much more relaxed. But, I cannot stress how important the research for the trip is. The better prepared the more smoothly things run.
The second puncture of the trip - changing a tire in Namibia
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Driving in Namibia
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In Malawi leaving Livingstonia after heavy rain
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TCM: How did you decide where to go and where not to go?
Jill: First, we wanted to travel through Europe, Turkey, and then the Middle East rather than the route through Lybia. If you travel through Lybia, you need an escort with you at all times who either travels in your vehicle or follows in another vehicle. The escort stays with you the whole time it takes to get through the country, which about four days. He camps, eats with you, or stays in the same motel, and you have to pay a fee for that person together with his food and accommodations. We wanted to visit Syria and Jordan and be free to stop and sightsee wherever we wanted without an escort with us.
We decided to take the route through east Africa which is much safer than the west as there had been no major incidents or political unrest on that route for many years. To some extent, the route is pretty much decided for you as there are not too many roads which you can take, particularly at the beginning through Sudan, Ethiopia and into Kenya. The road between Ethiopia and Kenya is notoriously bad and commonly known as one of the worst roads in Africa. It is a two day drive over volcanic rock which shakes the vehicle and yourself so much that you think your teeth are going to drop out. It is a deserted road and the only other occasional vehicle that may pass are overloaded trucks carrying people loaded in the back and sitting on the roof.
After that, it was a case of what we actually wanted to see in the countries we were to visit, which determined which countries we went through.
TCM: How did you prepare for a trip that far away from home?
Jill: The first thing we had to do was get new passports as although ours were still valid we needed extra pages to allow for all the visa stamps crossing in and out of every country. We used Michelin maps for every country we visited and had a Lonely Planet Guide book for each country also. We had a huge folder with every piece of documentation we had like vehicle insurance and ownership papers for the truck.
TCM: I noticed on your website that you went to several courses before going on your trip. Were they beneficial?
Jill: The 4x4 driving course was by far the most beneficial as neither of us had done any off road driving before. It taught us how to drive on sand and though water. Everything we covered on the course we put into practice on the trip. We also went to a first aid course. While it was beneficial, we luckily never needed our new found skills. GPS training was also a must as we had never used a GPS system before.
Pyramid Gigi in Cairo, Egypt
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Peter in South Africa
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Halali campground Etosha National Park, Namibi
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TCM: What countries did you go to on your trip?
Jill: France, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Albania, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania including Zanzibar, Malawi, Zambia, Namibia, and South Africa.
TCM: How did you navigate around Africa? Did you buy maps or did your GPS get you to where you needed to go?
Jill: By far the best piece of kit we had was Tracks4Africa, a GPS navigation system for Africa. The system is with the meticulous record keeping by travelers through Africa recorded onto their GPS and is virtually a turn by turn directional system from Cairo to Cape Town. It was an absolute must have. The system also details safe places to camp, fill petrol, and garages for vehicle repairs. It even has restaurants. We found it particularly useful to help us navigate through major cities. In Africa, the cities are particularly demanding as the traffic is so chaotic.
TCM: How was it at the border crossings? Did they all go smoothly?
Jill: This was one of our major worries before we set off. We had read websites where people had been kept waiting for up to eight hours at borders just for the sheer hell of it. The worst crossing is into Egypt. We had heard stories of the Egypt border taking up to twelve hours because there is so much red tape. Luckily for us, we managed to get through in about two hours. Sometimes bribery came into it and, if people didn't offer a small bribe, then they were made to wait. We were never kept waiting for the hell of it, but sometimes we probably paid a small fee that went into the customs guy's pocket.
Each country has different costs for visas and vehicle insurance, both of which you must pay at the border if you have not already obtained a visa. As there is nothing really written down anywhere as to these costs, you have no way of knowing if what they charge you is correct. If you felt they were charging too much for something, you just had to argue with them. At one border we were told we had to pay a fee as if we were driving a commercial vehicle. We argued with the guard that a Nissan pick up truck was not a commercial vehicle and eventually he let us off. Likewise sometimes we were stopped by the police for a vehicle check or for speeding. But again, we argued that we had not been speeding, which we hadn't. When they realized you were not going to pay the fine, they sent you on your way.
TCM: Where did you camp overnight? Did you stay in campgrounds or did you mostly boondock?
Jill: For people doing this trip known as overlanders, there are many well known places to camp. In Nairobi, there was a popular place called Jungle Junction. Jungle Junction is actually not a campsite, but the grounds of a large house. The owner had converted it to backpacker accommodations and the grounds were used by people with a vehicle or people in tents. Another well known place in Kenya was run by a Swiss guy and was simply known as Henry the Swiss's. These are places where travelers meet and sometimes stay for a couple of days for a bit of rest and recuperation. They also swap stories about their journey and warn others of any dangers that they might come across.
While traveling through Sudan, we simply camped in the desert for the three nights it took us to cross it. We had plenty of water but obviously no showers, although we had a toilet! In Ethiopia, it was very difficult to camp anywhere out in the open as there are masses and masses of people there just walking on the side of the roads. Wherever we stopped whether to eat, make a call of nature, or camp, we were immediately surrounded by lots and lots of inquisitive locals who would silently stand and watch every move you made. Sometimes there could literally be about twenty people watching something as mundane as us washing out pots.
Sometimes we would stay in the grounds of hotels. If we felt there was any danger, we would ask at the local police station if we could camp in their compound. Every so often we would treat ourselves and actually stay in a hotel!
Gorilla trekking in Uganda
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Jill in Sudan with a goat
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An Elephant in Kenya
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TCM: What were the highlights of your trip?
Jill: There were so many highlights it is hard to pinpoint them all.
One highlight was driving through the desert in Sudan and meeting all the wonderful friendly Sundanese people.
Gorilla Trekking in Uganda was another one. We were lucky to obtain a permit to track the mountain gorillas as only something like thirty permits a day are issued. We found the family that we were trekking relatively easily as they happened to be low down the mountain. We were able to spend an hour with them and got quite close, especially to the young ones which are curious. You are with guides and an armed escort the whole time. It’s a totally wild animal encounter. There is nothing zoo like or theme park about it.
Taking our own vehicle on safari around the game parks and not having to go in an organized group was another highlight. We were able to get up close to many animals and loved sitting around the waterholes watching the elephants in Samburu National Park.
Taxi accident in Uganda
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The container at Cape Town, South Africa
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Hotel in Albania
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TCM: What challenges did you face along the way?
Jill: The whole trip is a challenge from start to finish and that is part of the enjoyment of doing it. Most important is that you get on very well with and trust the person with whom you are traveling. You have to look at it that you are both in this together. When things go wrong, you have to stay calm, not panic, and jointly decide how to sort things out.
The driving itself is a challenge as the road conditions are absolutely atrocious and nothing can prepare you for the bone jarring, pot holed roads that make up Africa. Each day we would decide how many miles we wanted to do and each day invariably it would take twice as long as anticipated due to the conditions, a road accident, or some other force.
By far the worst challenge was in Nairobi in December of 2007 when we managed to arrive during the general election. Unfortunately, things turned bad and tribal warfare erupted with people being brutalized and murdered in the streets and even in their own villages. Villages were burnt out and thousands made homeless. People took shelter in churches but these were set on fire and the people inside were killed. It was a frightening time and we were more or less confined to Jungle Junction where we were staying. The gardens of the house were sheltered by ten foot high walls but outside we could hear gun fire all through the night. When we did venture out, we had to have an armed police escort to get us back safely.
We also had a collision with a taxi in Kampala the capital of Uganda. The police were called and we had to go to the police station along with the driver of the taxi. The police were more than helpful and the situation was soon resolved with the owner of the taxi firm having to pay for repairs to our vehicle. The taxi’s bullbars had caught around one of the jacks on our truck camper, virtually snapping it off!
TCM: How did communication go with people who spoke different languages?
Jill: Actually English was very widely spoken and we had no trouble whatsoever. The only time there was any difficulty was in the countries where Arabic is the first language and we were unable to read road signs, but really, that was all.
TCM: What advice do you have for people who may want to go truck camping in Africa?
Jill: Go for it! If you have the time and the funds to do it, it is a marvelous and rewarding experience.
TCM: How long was the entire trip start to finish?
Jill: Eight months.
TCM: Would you do the trip over again if you had the opportunity?
Jill: Absolutely. We still talk about it quite often and have conversations about how we would go about it if we went again, where we would visit again, or which new places to go to.
TCM: Do you still have your truck camper?
Jill: Yes. We have just completed a five month stint in the USA. As we speak, our truck and camper are stuck at the docks in New Jersey awaiting shipment back to England. Apparently the paperwork was rejected by the customs authority for whatever reason and we are in the hands of our shipping agents who are trying desperately to resolve the matter. We cannot understand that we shipped the vehicle into New Jersey with no problem and there appears to be a problem taking the vehicle out again!
To read more about Jill and Peter's adventures in Africa, visit their blog at www.offexploring.com/peter.
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