hi Allan,

first Ethiopia to Sudan - the only really obvious way to do it is to get up to Gondor, a nice town, well worth a stop, and then go across to Gedaref. It's paved all the way to Gondor then you have about 200kms down through the mountains on a gravel road to the border. Once you hit the Sudan border it's brand new Chinese asphalt all the way to khartoum and beyond.

Re the route through Sudan I would pick the one that follows closest to the Nile all the way. More inhabitation along it for shade and water and assistance in case of trouble. Plus for me the villages and villagers were the highlight as much as the scenery so heading out into the desert would mean you missing out.

Yep, when i get home a whole new and different trip begins. For the next few years the bike adventures will have to be a little less ambitious in scope! I've been enjoying the West Coast route. Undoubtedly a lot more hassle and hard work than the East Coast though. I think it's really a route that requires more time than I am giving it. At the moment it feels like half of my trip home has been taken up with fannying around to get visas and waiting in busy capital cities that i don't really want to be in. Still, the feeling of getting well of the beaten track is good. Overall though, in terms of Africa, I have found that you can definitely have too much of a good thing. Getting slightly weary of road blocks where policemen stop you to take a look at your passport upside down and kids in the street pester me with shouts of 'white man give me a present'!

Cheers

Richard

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