-- Log 20 --

Khartoum – Dongola – Wadi Halfa

Bush/Village Camp – 27/08/02 – 31/08/02 - FOC

The road out of Omdurman is tar all the way up to Abu Dom, on many maps this road is indicated as a track, but that is not so. The road is in good condition and is not well used. There are a couple of security checks along the way, but nothing else.

From Abu Dom there is no recognizable road as such, the trucks take whichever track seems good at the time, or they make their own track. We decided to follow one of the trucks, as we did not know how to read the roads yet. When the driver stopped for a snack we decided to continue on our own, we got a little lost and decided to head for the telephone poles, which was a mistake as we got stuck in some soft sand. The night was drawing to a close and we were running out of light, as we furiously tried to dig MR W out of the soft sand. Next thing, the co-driver of the truck we had been following came to our rescue and helped us to get out of the area and onto firm ground again! We dutifully stayed behind the truck until late into the night. He pulled into a truck stop and we understood that he was going to spend the night there, so we set up tent. Then he drove off!!! Our knight in shining armour left! Next morning we found a tanker going to Dongola, we asked if we could follow him – he seemed puzzled but said it was okay. About 60 kms from the truck stop was the tar road which went all the way to Dongola – no wonder he thought we were crazy!



At Dongola we took the ferry over to the other side of the Nile – 750 Dinar for car and two pax. Once again we latched onto a truck, which was going to Wadi Halfa – they expected to be there by 20h00. The going on the east side of the Nile was slow and very tough. The dust from the truck ahead of us made it unpleasant and uncomfortable. The road the driver took kept going into the villages and we would have to find our way out of the village through a maze of tiny streets. We found the villages most interesting and neat in appearance. The doorways and outside walls of the villager’s homes are all painted with bright colours and great pride is taken their appearance.

By 18.00 we decided there was no way the truck was going to make Wadi Halfa by 20.00 so we pulled off to find a place to night stop. Some guys in a taxi asked if they could help, and we told them that we would like to night stop besides the Nile River.
No problem, at the next village they arranged for us to park alongside the Nile right in the heart of the village. We had many curious onlookers, and their young men were very taken with Den – wanting to learn as much as they could from him. The women and young girls are very shy and spend most of their time within the confines of their houses. The children were also curious but were chased away by the adults, while the adults were actually more of a nuisance than the children. The villagers were so welcoming and hospitable that we stayed two nights there. They showed us how they fish, where the well was, they gave us dates and invited us into their homes for tea. We really enjoyed our stay with them.

They must have had visitors their before, because they were very keen for us to take photographs of them – especially the babes under a year old. We were surprised by this a taking photographs in Sudan is a very sensitive issue. We took photos with the digital and then showed them the results – all they wanted was for us to ‘take the picture out’! Someone must have been there before with a Polaroid camera and was able to give them the photos. We tried to find out if we could post copies of the photos to them but they are in such a remote area that there is no such thing as a postal service.

The doorways and outside walls of the villager’s homes are all painted with bright colours and great pride is taken their appearance	They must have had visitors their before, because they were very keen for us to take photographs of them – especially the babes under a year old.

We gave the children crayons and paper much to their pleasure and Dennis did the rhyme ‘two little dickey bird’s’ for them and both children and adults were delighted.
Our time at the village was peaceful and most enjoyable.

The road soon left the shores of the Nile and turned into the desert. It became very corrugated and rocky, leaving very few options for alternatives other than to sit (shake) out the corrugations – 110 kms – 10 hours! We called it a day mid afternoon and found a wind free spot amongst the rocks. We had to wait till the sun went down before things started to get a little cooler. As harsh as the area is, it is still very beautiful.

Dennis managed to find the only tree around for miles and smack it head-on with MR W – he was tired and said he would just do a U turn and Sue could take over driving.
We did not realise how tired he was! MR W is now the ‘one eyed monster’ as she only has one spot light!


Wadi Halfa – 01/09/02 – 04/09/02 – FOC

The next morning we managed the last 68 kms to Wadi Halfa about 3 hours. The road was much better than the section we had driven the previous day. It was an awesome sight to see Lake Nasser/Nuba after being in the desert for days.



On arrival at Wadi Halfa we went directly to the dock, only to find out that the ferry left yesterday and that we would have to wait five days for the next vessel. The town consists of three hotels, a bank, and a souq. There is not a tree in sight and nowhere to park the vehicle. We decided to take a drive out of town and see if we could find anything better. Fortunately we came across a huge walled area with a few trees in the compound – it is the Wadi Halfa Quarantine Station – last used 1986! The manager was a brilliant gentleman and did not hesitate in giving us permission to camp under a tree. The staff made us most welcome and they were very curious about our rig and us. Every morning we would get a new batch of visitors, asking questions and offering us tea and drinks.

While we waited for the boat we were able to get information of the various costs involved. The agent, Kamil Hassien, appeared to be a kindly gent, who managed to make you feel that he was doing everything possible in your best interests. We were quoted $325 for MR W to go on the barge, and $23 for the driver to accompany the car. The passenger had to go on the passenger ferry - $46 plus 800 Dinar for food.
Customs and dock fees 1 000 Dinar – this is all for the Wadi Halfa side and then there would be the costs for the Aswan aspect of the trip. There were many questions left unanswered or left ‘hanging’ till we get there – like – how do you get your vehicle onto the barge – there are no facilities at Wadi Halfa and with the wind blowing a gale it would make for some interesting manoeuvring. Also Kamil’s answer to the carnet problem was not to point out that it was not valid for Egypt and he would give us a name of a guy who would get us through!



Wadi Halfa Quarantine Station – our tree!

We were not altogether comfortable with the whole arrangement and Den suggested we drive up to the Egypt border - +- 50 kms from Wadi Halfa and have a chat with the authorities there. We even got Kamil to go to the Sudanese Military for us, but he said it was possible on the Sudanese side, and that they would give us a guard to go with, when we said we would do that, it turned out that it was not possible!

The longer we waited the more the wind blew! The sand got into everything and the heat was terrible. Eventually the cargo barge was able to dock – this is our boat! We were excited to see that there were two vehicles on the barge, which had come from Aswan, so we would be able to get some information from them. The passenger ferry also arrived so there was much activity on the dock. We got to meet the people with the vehicles on the first day, and it was two days before they were able to get their vehicles off the barge. (No photos – due to Sudanese sensitivities) But I can tell you that the two young drivers aged 10 years while taking their vehicles off the barge!

The one vehicle was a Toyota pickup with two young students from Germany, Jan and Carl, the other was a 1979 Land Rover (ambulance) with a young couple from the Netherlands, Jelte and Anneke. We swopped notes with them about costs etc and found that they had paid far less than what we were being charged. In total they paid 950 Egyptian £ - $250 for the entire trip, which they felt was extremely expensive.