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“Africa is hard.”
These words were spoken by someone who knows what he’s talking about: he was born in Africa and has lived there his entire life. At around 40 years old, he has already experienced several wars.
“Africa is hard.”
He utters these words as I have just informed him of the death of a childhood friend of his father, who has also lived in Africa all his life. The friend in question was a traveler like me, but he traveled by 4X4. He died in Cameroon. Alone in his 4X4. Just ten days prior, another traveler lost his life in Nigeria, struck by a car. He was traveling by bicycle. He was Argentinian and barely 37 years old. I knew both of them. Two deaths in such a short time among my fellow travelers is a – sad – first that I could have done without. A few months earlier, it was an Italian motorcyclist who died in Angola. I hadn’t met him. In recent months, I’ve also heard about a couple who died – yes, both of them – somewhere in West Africa. I don’t know the exact circumstances, but what I read made me think of food poisoning or poisoning.
This is an opportunity for me to take a first assessment: what is it like to travel in Africa in 2024?
I am fortunate to have traveled around Africa once already in 2003/2004. Sixteen months of a tough journey. I wrote a book about it: “The Blue Bandana, Tales of a Promise.” At that time, I traveled on an R100 GS.
I am doing it again, this time on a BMW 650 X Challenge. An enduro motorcycle by nature. Lighter than the first one. I will explain below the reasons for this choice.
I was 40 years old during my first circumnavigation of Africa. I am now 62.
So, is Africa easier now or was it easier before?
The answer isn’t simple.
In the past, when one ventured into Africa, there was little information available, just road maps. During my first journey, I indeed had a GPS, but with no onboard mapping. It would only indicate the cities. Moreover, the paved roads were still rare. Once past Morocco, you were faced with the desert. The current road in Mauritania dates back to 2004. Guides were necessary, and one traveled in convoys. In the 1980s/90s, there wasn’t even any pavement in the part of Western Sahara. Today, there is a highway and nice gas stations. Going to Dakar is no longer an achievement. I would even add: it is possible to travel from France to Cape Town without almost ever leaving paved roads, which are of varying quality. This seemed like science fiction just 10 or 15 years ago. Furthermore, smartphone applications where one can find all the necessary information are abundant, starting with the famous IOverlander application, which has become almost as indispensable as GPS for travelers around the world. And it must be acknowledged that it is practical. There are also many guest houses where one can meet and exchange with other travelers like Claude or Juan who have recently passed away.
On the contrary, when I crossed Africa in 2003, I had no information about what I would encounter. Angola, for example, was emerging from war, and the people I met there looked at me like an extraterrestrial. Once their initial surprise passed, they deemed me with a title that represented the only type of white person who could venture into these areas: PADRE! Yes, they thought I was a priest. I did not deny it; it was a guarantee of safety. And indeed, I loved Angola. Before me, I only know of five people who had crossed this country: Tanguy and his partner Daniela, who were heading north. Two Portuguese motorcyclists who wanted to go from Luanda to Lisbon. At our meeting, one of them was injured. And finally, Christophe, a French motorcyclist who had traveled around Africa in 1998, crossing the DRC and Angola during the war. Note: I’m referring here to the Western route, which was the most complex at the time. There were quite a few travelers going down the Eastern road, which was safer and more well-known.
So, is crossing Africa simpler today?
Partially, but this statement needs nuance. Many countries have become impossible for Westerners, especially for the French: Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, for example. Going there risks spending a few years in captivity while awaiting ransom payment. Imagine being a big wallet on legs riding a motorcycle. You will surely attract attention. Therefore, one must pass through coastal countries. It’s already a different Africa, much more Westernized and – as I’ve already said – equipped with numerous paved roads. This is the route taken by the majority of travelers. I will be frank, risking displeasing some: I find it particularly boring. It’s a bit like crossing Europe on the highway. Moreover, these areas are particularly polluted to a degree you could hardly imagine and extremely dangerous from a road safety perspective. I recently saw a video on Captain Morgan’s account where he and Margaux were forced to stop in front of a truck that had swerved into their path. This kind of situation is very common, and every traveler has faced it numerous times. It is truly life-threatening. In the aforementioned video, Margaux gives a well-deserved middle finger to the truck driver. In doing so, she attracted the ire of a certain number of self-righteous internet users accusing them of a form of neocolonialism and Western arrogance. To them, I say: shut up! You have no idea what you’re talking about. And in the same situation, you would probably have had some gastrointestinal issues, assuming you survived.
To the increased road danger, we must also add the administrative hassles that have significantly… amplified. The purchase of visas has become a real budget item in travel (count on at least 1000 euros minimum to cross Africa) and crossing borders has become quite the chore. Where there used to be a stone shepherd’s hut and a mat to sit on when arriving in Mauritania, there now stands a series of already dilapidated buildings with facial and biometric recognition, a multitude of customs officers, and unimaginable chaos. This is just one example (I don’t underestimate the extreme difficulties for an African to go to Europe. I’m simply positioning myself from the traveler’s perspective and comparing the evolution over 20 years).
So is crossing Africa simplified but become almost “boring” and more dangerous?
I would tend to answer: yes, if one sticks to the main routes. But Captain Morgan and Margaux, who just returned, have proven that adventure is still possible: you just have to get off those main routes. Quickly, one then finds paths and traditional villages – even though smartphones are now everywhere. In my opinion, this is the best option for anyone wanting to discover Africa in its most “authentic” form. By authentic, I mean: traditional.
This requires departing with a lighter motorcycle than before. The reason is simple: in the past, one could stay on the main routes to encounter Africa. Those, though sometimes very rough, were still maintained: local transport, which is not all 4X4s, needed to be able to use them. Secondary routes, on the other hand, are not always as “simple.” So, to talk about motorcycles: a 650 seems to me to be the maximum. Even a 700 like Captain Morgan’s T7 seems too heavy. Of course, it all depends on your technical level, your height, and… your age. Morgan is young and tall. Personally, I’m shorter and almost 30 years older. So, the 650 seems ideal for me.
However, getting off these routes isn’t without risks either. I personally spent three days “under guard” in northern Togo (see the previous article for those who haven’t read it). The local authorities suspected me of being some sort of mercenary. The same misadventure also happened to a Spanish motorcyclist in Cameroon less than three months ago. Not speaking French and unable to explain himself, he had to endure five days in a cell, and his embassy intervened to get him released.
So? Is Africa easier or harder than before? Both, my captain. Different for sure. But it remains Africa. And it is still a land of adventure, even if it is shrinking like a sad skin.
For my part, after a three-month break in the West, I will soon return to the roads, and if all goes as planned, I will travel part of the way with an exceptional person…
Can you tell the 2003 photos from the 2024 ones?
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