thought we’d cracked it, a local guy
would come out and point for us to
move on. Our search for somewhere
went on for hours and just as it
turned completely dark, we found a
garage to pull in to and reassess.
We thought we might be able to
stay at the garage but the guys there
said that wouldn’t be an option either.
At about 8pm we decided we would
just drive off road, in the dark, and
camp where nobody could see us,
then get up early and get out of there.
The only problem was that when we
got on to the sand, we could see tyre
tracks everywhere. Now, we didn’t
know the area at all and the last thing
we wanted to do was setup camp
and have a local guy smash through
our tent in his pickup, at 3am. We
pressed on in to the sand, looking for
somewhere with a bit of protection.
I was driving at this point and
could see what looked like a good
place, so rode down a small mound to
check it out.
Big mistake!
It turned out to be a kind of sand
pit and we were instantly stuck. We
spent an hour trying to push and pull
the outfit out of the sand. To no avail.
Eventually, I decided that I would
take a walk and try to find some wood
or something to get a bit of traction.
I told Reece that I’d be two minutes.
About 30 minutes later, I came over
the top of the mound, riding on the
mud guard of a local guys tractor.
Reece was both relieved and
absolutely furious. I had wanted
to run back and tell him that I had
found a tractor, but I couldn’t because
the farmer didn’t want to help me. I
couldn’t risk letting the farmer go
so I just had to stand and offer him
things for 30 minutes until he’d help.
All the while I left Reece in the desert
wondering where I was. The tractor
easily pulled us out of the sand, we
pitched the tent opposite the garage
and fell asleep, completely worn out.
The next day we went to Khartoum
and couchsurfed for a few nights
TRAVERSE 127