I
t had been a long time since
a motorcycle tour company
offered what was and re-
mains one of the most icon-
ic rides on earth; the Cairo
to Cape Town expedition.
With the knowledge that our in-
augural Cairo to Cape Town expedi-
tion would have extra challenges the
Compass Expeditions team travelled
the entire route “again” just weeks be-
fore the tour start date to ensure that
the expedition would run as smooth-
ly as possible
After reams of paperwork, signa-
tures in triplicate, port passes, “ex-
pert advisors” and a mammoth effort
in diplomacy by the Compass crew
it still took 5 full days to get the vehi-
cles out of the dock and on the way to
Cairo. There was huge relief among
the group to be finally on the way to
Cairo for the beginning of this 78-day
adventure. The first official night was
spent at the Le Meridien Hotel in Cai-
ro, spectacularly located in the shad-
ows of the Pyramids.
An obligatory tour of the Pyramids
of Giza and Cairo city then our
first day of riding saw us de-
part, under heavy police es-
cort, to head south to the Red
Sea coast; the resort town of
Hurghada, with its the high
speed open roads.
From Hurghada we
rode southwest to Luxor
and what is regarded as
the world’s greatest open-
air museum. The spectac-
ular Valley of the Kings and
Queens are amongst count-
TRAVERSE
33
less towering ancient Egyptian ru-
ins, reading the hieroglyphics and
to tread where the Pharaohs once
walked is something else. We took a
Felucca ride and enjoyed the sights of
the legendary Nile River.
The group, at this stage, was start-
ing to bond and appreciate the adven-
ture we had all signed up for. From
Aswan we joined a convoy to take us
down to the legendary UNESCO list-
ed temples of Abu Simbel, built by
Ramesses II in 13BC.
The days riding south through the
stark yet beautiful Nubian Desert was
very challenging due to the heat, but
also very rewarding, we were only
a handful of bikers to have ever rid-
den in this country. Visiting the 8th
Century BC pyramids of Meroe was
amazing, it was hard to believe we
were standing where Nero and his
Centurions stood all those centuries
ago.
We were challenged by difficult
sand riding required to get to the pyr-
amids, thankfully it didn’t last long.
Khartoum was a pleasant surprise,
made all the better by staying at the
famous Acropole Hotel. Upon our ar-
rival, we were greeted by the Minister
for Tourism and the local television
network. They saw the benefits of the
travelling motorcycle riders. A city
tour saw us stop off to see the
confluence of the Blue
and White Niles.
We finished
t h e