Daring to Dream Big: Andrew Norris’ African Odyssey

[MotoNews]

Published in: Rides

How many people actually achieve their childhood dreams? For Andrew Norris, it took a lifetime and would require a 107 day trek across 17,989 km and 18 countries. A marathon overland adventure from Edinburgh to Cape Town.

As a child, Andrew lived just outside Johannesburg, South Africa. Due to Apartheid-related political instability of that time his parents wanted to immigrate to the United Kingdom. Those were the insecure and dangerous days of 1979.

His father was adventurous and decided that the best way to reach the UK would be via a VW camper van, driven through the heart of Africa. There was no stopping him in his plan, so off they went to Botswana. However, when they were unable to negotiate a border crossing at Victoria Falls their overland trip was cut short, and the van had to be traded in for airline tickets – their dream was crushed (for the moment, at least).

• Inspiration

Andrew would never forget his father’s attempt at a trans-Africa journey, and held onto dreams of one day fulfilling the quest. His yearnings were not made easier by the horrible weather in Sheffield that he’d now have to suffer, especially after a childhood of open spaces and sunshine in South Africa.

For him, comparing South Africa to life in Sheffield was an almost alien concept – there were just no connections real between the places. “My idea from the outset was to link the two parts of my early life to create a physical link, overland through Africa and Europe. I needed to experience how the people, landscapes, cultures and ideas changed between my two homes.”

His early attempts to get his dream on the road were eventually seeded in university, where the travel section of the bookshop would take centre stage – and it was there that he planned his motorcycle through Europe and East Africa from Cairo to Cape Town.

• Family Tragedy

But Andrew’s story is not without tragedy, following the passing of his father in 1983, and before his mother sadly parted in November of 2008, he pondered how such things change us in more ways than just grief. It was through the grieving process that Andrew finally summoned the courage to dream again and commit himself to the big ride – an estimated 17,989 km.

Why a motorcycle? “Because you can still appreciate your surroundings while having the wind cooling you down. Driving in a car puts you in a bubble.”

Andrew would do much of the trip without assistance, but first he needed to familiarize himself with his new Yamaha XTZ 660 Tenere. The Yamaha was also his first bike, and he fitted a heavy duty bash plate to protect the engine, a centerstand to ease maintenance on the road, and a power source for the GPS.

• Preparations

With the bike sorted, a plethora of paperwork was next. As you might imagine when passing through 18 countries’ border posts, not to mention myriad injections needed to stave off potential life threatening diseases, the tasks ate up several more weeks.

Although the African segment was perceived as the most dangerous part of his trip, a freak snow storm with worst snow in 20 years made his journey down to London a dodgy affair.  But during a visit with his brother on the way to Portsmouth, they shared some exciting news. Tracy Andrew was pregnant.

“The child will ensure that a little bit of our father and mother live on. This trip is really all about my family, and my coming to terms with all that has happened in the years since leaving our original home in South Africa. To spend time with all my family at the beginning of the journey seemed just right,” mused Andrew.

But Africa is where the real journey would begin. So on the final day of 2009 the 39-year-old decided to take the westerly route, starting in Morocco, going through the Western Sahara towards central Africa, where his father had once looked forward to travelling through 30 years before.

• Friendly Fixer

Andrew insists, “Anybody planning a trip through Africa needs to be even tempered. Fortunately a friendly ‘fixer,’ for five Euros, helped us through the madness. Less than two hours later we popped out the other side of customs, slightly bewildered, to a very wet Morocco. It was hard to believe the Sahara was only a couple of hundred miles away.”

Contrary to popular opinion, Africa does have a winter. “In Morocco, coming over the Atlas mountains in the mid-winter, it must have been just below freezing – but what stunning scenery! I’ll never forget those mountains and beautiful palm trees.”

• Dakar Country

“Mauritania’s just wild and open scenery.” Andrew was entering Dakar Rally country in Mauritania, and signs of the event were evident. “You go through the Dakar stages, and there’s all the evidence for that. You also see all of the signswhere the Dakar has been, and you even find some of the old bits of bikes in trucks for sale!” Continued the 6’6” adventurer.

In Mauritania he hooked up with a motley crew of travellers for a small convoy that would get them more safely over the border into Senegal. “There was a the French guy in an old Mercedes full of bric-a-brac that he was selling in Mali/Senegal; two French guys in an old Renault going to Mali; some guys who were planning to sell their car, and a crazy back-packing Swiss girl. The first 100+ km was on good tarmac – with plenty of suicidal goats and cows with long horns.

“I became the outrider checking the road ahead. The border was quiet but obviously the guards wanted a little money for their trouble. The first police/customs posts I came to on the Mauritanian side had the guards asleep on beds in their offices. €10 is all each required to get me past. The Senegal side was decidedly cheaper at only €5 to get in and €30 for the one-month-insurance.”

• Rife Corruption

“The level of corruption of the police in this area was laughable. I managed to get through three police checks in 50 km without a fine but the other cars in the convoy had to pay out hard cash for such things as not having a fire extinguisher, not putting the indicator on when pulling over, not wearing a seatbelt or not having a warning triangle and not having insurance. “Of course the locals don’t have most of the these things either but they also don’t carry as much cash. It seems one trait so far is that everyone wants a bit of what you’ve got! Your jacket, sunglasses and money... particularly money.

“The police wave you over wearing their ‘California Highway Patrol’ reflective sunglasses and try to be an intimidating presence with their rather large, athletic, statures. They’re just working out how to get some money from us ‘European ATMs’ – no receipts, of course. Things often work a little differently in Africa. Road blocks and border posts are often just another way of the local police/army of extracting money from tourists and locals. Most of the time AK47s are on show to ‘encourage’ people to give generously.”

Andrew was acclimatising to the African way. A police officer in the UK with an AK47 looking for a bride would stick out like a sore thumb, but in sections of Africa it’s part of the landscape. You end up getting used to in a bizarre way.

“It’s funny that when you are having a hard day you look forward to the evening when you might end up meeting some friendly locals and have a place to get cleaned up. But if it turns out to be a crusty dive you actually look forward to heading off the next day. Ironically it’s when you feel things are mundane or difficult that you invariably meet someone who lifts your spirits. When all is said and done, travelling like this might not be easy but you feel you’re sure living your life!”

Things were about to heat up for Andrew, after an irritating delay getting his visa for Nigeria, thanks to some sloppy work at the embassy, he was on his way. Nigeria is probably the most dangerous country to travel through in Africa, some 200 foreigners have reportedly been kidnapped since 2007, most of which working in the oil industry. Roadblocks are rife, while the cities are congested and dirty. But as he travelled further south, things improved, with notably less AK47-ridden road blocks.

Nigeria is also a staunchly Christian country, all the minivans have religious stickers plastered all over – and they are driven like the clappers. Andrew looks back with amusement at one of favourite bumper stickers: “Shut up – are you god?”

• Red Tape Exhaustion

A sense of humour is important when travelling through Africa, in particular Nigeria, as corruption is of epidemic proportions. After the first 60 days the stress and strains were getting to Andrew... he was becoming emotionally exhausted. “We arrived at a port only to be welcomed by a cop in a polo shirt talking about rules and procedure – directly translated that meant bribes and extortion. He wouldn’t let me take the bike off the van until I’d paid him 1,000 (cash in hand, no receipt). I called my contact by mobile to come out and meet me by the van. Meanwhile the cop assured me I’d be causing more trouble for myself if I didn’t just pay.

“My driver tried to get me to pay the rest of the fair so he could disappear – no chance! He then pulled me aside from the crowd to exhort more pressure – I refused. Then the guy at the gate wouldn’t open it until I paid 500. The guys who lifted my bike down wanted 2,000 – my contact told them 1,000 between them was plenty. My driver again tried to dump me, but after much shouting and discussing between all the people gathered around, he was forced to take me to my hotel.

Then, just as we were leaving, another guy tried to get more money out of me! Eventually I made it to the hotel (about 1pm) where I realized that the driver had hidden my straps that were used to tie the bike down... the cheeky bastard. Then at the reception he asked, “How about something extra?” I said, “You must be joking.” He said, “What about something for a beer?” I said, “You must be kidding – if you want more business you should make good business... it was endless!”

“I felt at that moment that everyone was out to screw me – and they seemed to be succeeding! It puts you on the defensive knowing that everywhere you turn people either want to rip you off, extort, deceive you or outrightly steal from you. Indeed, the most apt description for a white man in these parts is a ‘walking ATM.’”

Foreign investors and tourists are often frightened off by such stories. Many economists agree that corruption is one of the biggest obstacles facing Africa.

• Central Africa

By day 71 and with Nigeria behind him Andrew could enjoy what he’d been looking forward to, Central Africa More specifically Gabon, which boasts lush rain forests with winding roads.

He wrote, “Most of it was spent on roads that surely must have been designed for motor biking. If Top Gear thinks it’s found the best riding road in the world – think again. Today I’ve ridden 450 km of back-to-back perfect turns on perfect tarmac. Rolling hills with no traffic, stunning jungle scenery, bubbling rivers and a cool climate for the tropics. Having this much fun when locals are smiling and waving just doesn’t seem right. My first impressions of Gabon are pretty good. The rain forests are truly beautiful and although logging trucks are around, the forest I saw was in good condition. People are tremendously helpful and friendly with plenty of waving and open smiles. The villages are similar to southern Cameroon – mainly tin-roofed timber houses. There is no rubbish as it is all burned and the clearings are often covered with grass, flowers and orchids.”

“I must mention that from arriving in Cameroon until now I haven’t been asked for anything – no bribes, presents or begging – what a relief! So far Central Africa is being quite the charmer,” he added.

Congo has its share of red tape but the capital, Kinshasa, proved less dangerous than NGOs had reported. “Kinshasa presently has 14 million people living there and it's supposed to be very, very dangerous. When you speak to the UN officials and other NGOs in Kinshasa, they tell horror stories... I had no problems at all, indeed I found it to be a really splendid place and very vibrant.”

• Making Progress

So with just Angola ahead Andrew was approaching the finishing line – South Africa.

Of Angola he said, “It really is a country on the move. Most people live in desperate poverty, but infrastructure is being put in at a hell of a rate. The north of the country seemed pretty desperate, but the rest of the country looks like it’s on the up. The people are amazingly upbeat, friendly and proud of their country. The Portuguese are back in force, regaining the position they had before the war. The Chinese are also here. Like in much of Africa I get the feeling that Angola will be a place of great change in the next 20 years.”

So with the worst of his trip over, an easy ride through developing Namibia with perfectly tarred roads awaited, Andrew arrived at his beloved destination. “30–40 km out of Cape Town I rode over a rise in the main road. In the distant haze I saw the unmistakable silhouette of Table Mountain.” He’s just spent 107 days in the saddle.

“I must confess, I had tears in my helmet. Suddenly, the realisation that I had achieved a dream that I have had for so many years, hit me. Table Mountain, being so familiar, made the distance I had travelled, and the distance from home, feel enormous. I soon pulled over by a beach overlooking Cape Town and the bay. Surfer dudes were out in force, women sunbathing and men fishing from the coast. The people of Cape Town were out enjoying their Sunday while I just basked in just being there. Maybe one day I’ll do it again.”

Read more ...

View the full article