Thought folks may want to know a bit of info about travel in Mauritania. I arrived home just before Christmas after riding to The Gambia with me mate Dave. This was the Simon Milward Memorial Run. Riders for Health is a great place to visit in The Gambia. We buried a 'time capsule' of Simon's personal items at RfH for the Milward family.

When planning the journey, the new road through Mauritania gained mythical status, with all kinds af varying reports about it, so here's some reasonably up to date firm news.

The road was finished in October 05 and is was extremely good and smooth on the way down to Nouakchott (we were travelling down in Nov). Tar all the way from Nouadhibou to NKC. As of Dec 05 THERE IS STILL NO PETROL on this route! You need gas for 470km, we carried jerrycans to supplement the 17 ltr tanks on our GS650 Dakars. There are some fuel stations being built, but the people we met didn't seem to positive about petrol being available even then... (though one gas station owner tried to swap his baby for my GS...) Diesel can be bought en route from the side of the road (Bottles, big plastic cans and fuel 'bladders'.)

Fuel situation in Nouadhibou can be flaky. On the way down, we had to search hard for petrol, finding some in the end. On the way back every station had petrol. If you need to carry a fuel can on your bike, I recommend that you fill it in the Western Sahara -- just in case. Oh for bigger tanks...

On the way north in mid Dec, we noted that lots of sand was starting creep across the new road, with several large berms forming. I don't know how often this is cleared, but beware of this, particularly if travelling at night.

The locals have also started 'nibbling' at the road in one or two places (Seems a Mauritanian pastime to steal the tarmac for other uses, like sealing roofs. Even saw guys digging the road up and carting it off under the noses of a police checkpoint in Nouakchott)

Road from Nouackchott to Rosso is OK for a gentle cruise, but full of holes. Bits of it have been carted off and there's a 300 yard section completely missing. Lots of potholes 20-30km from Rosso.

Rosso border is a total nightmare. Watch out for fake cops. If you value your documents and your wallets, turn off in Rosso and head for Diama Dam. The piste along the River Senegal is 100km and mostly good. Plenty of sand traps for the unwary if travelling on the path below the dyke. Stay on the dyke if you want an easier ride. It's a lovely route actually and fun for even nervous piste travellers. We only had road tyres and didn't have problems. Enjoy.

At Diama Dam, Mauritanian formalities are straightforward and should cost about 10 Euro, plus a small fee for being in the national park. Once over the dam, you pay 10 Euro to a guy who guards a pole barrier (an unofficial road toll), then between 20 and 40 euro for customs and police. This is unofficial rip-offs of course, so if you've got the time to argue... (we didn't)

Don't even try getting into Senegal without a Carnet. There was one guy who was stuck because he didn't have one. There are rumours that a short terms pass is available, but frankly I wouldn't bank on it. If available I expect it will cost the earth.

Gambia in revenge for Senegal insisting on the Carnet, now also ask for one.

I have lots of GPS waypoints and a reasonable plot of the new road on the Michelin 741. Please email me if you want these.

Cheers!

Craig

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