Mad idea/Bad idea

[lozcb]

My longest serving Ugandan worker informed the the other day he will be getting married in December this year, by which time I will be out of here and fully retired low and behold he invited me and my good lady to the wedding Just outside Kampala, Jinga side to be precise , taking into account my good lady has always hated Africa along with its creepy crawlies as she likes to call them , so surprised was I when she mentioned that we really ought to go, in 10 years she has never shown an interest, so im contemplating either bringing the Gransport or the Bentley out to do it in style , ship the car containerised to Mombasa under Carnet and drive it up to Kampala , these days its all tarmac with the odd pothole no worse than what you would get in the UK . After some sight seeing around Murchison falls and Fort Portal return back to Mombasa for some sun and fishing before shipping the car back to UK. Am I mad

 

[highlander]

yes

 

[Tallman]

Apart from shipping out the car (mad) I think it’s a great idea - go see the chimps (very accessible near Murchison) and the gorillas. you might even see a Shoebill! Rather spend the money on renting a Range Rover locally if you could find one although even those are not easy to fix in the bush. A Landcruiser shouldn’t be a problem. There is great white water rafting on the Nile at Jinga (or at least there was) but that might be a bit too much action. Combine it with a short beach holiday in Zanzibar.

 

[zagatoes30]

No more bonkers than some of your other ideas, it would be one **** of a trip

 

[lozcb]

Apart from shipping out the car (mad) I think it’s a great idea - go see the chimps (very accessible near Murchison) and the gorillas. you might even see a Shoebill! Rather spend the money on renting a Range Rover locally if you could find one although even those are not easy to fix in the bush. A Landcruiser shouldn’t be a problem. There is great white water rafting on the Nile at Jinga (or at least there was) but that might be a bit too much action. Combine it with a short beach holiday in Zanzibar.

I have trucks here which may or may not be sold off before i retire fully , and cars i'd have access to friends 4x4's if i wanted ...........its not quite the same as doing it in something you hold so dearly and special with a certain rarity value ..............no safari anticipated I ve done those and the missus has no interest there either , Muchison falls I could semi retire to quite easily which is why I need to get her there to at least see its beauty if im in with the chance of a winter holiday home.

 

[lozcb]

No more bonkers than some of your other ideas, it would be one **** of a trip

Thats kinda what i thought ..........

 

[midlifecrisis]

the difference between Genius and Insanity are very slim...or so i tell my bosses...go for it...Didn't TE Lawrence recce Arabia in a Rolls Royce?



Here's a good read.

Chariots of war: When T.E. Lawrence and his armored Rolls-Royces ruled the Arabian desert

How the Silver Ghost transformed from the finest motorcar in the world into an indispensable fighting machine

www.autoweek.com

 

[lozcb]

Africa has moved on , it really isnt all spears and Colonial types anymore , Kenya has its https://www.aakenya.co.ke/ own AA who can take care of most things similar to our own in UK , apart from being a little different and a bit expensive I see it as an adventure and retirement present for both of us .............i mean we are talking a couple of thousand miles on tarmac .....what can go wrong

 

[Tallman]

Africa has moved on , it really isnt all spears and Colonial types anymore , Kenya has its https://www.aakenya.co.ke/ own AA who can take care of most things similar to our own in UK , apart from being a little different and a bit expensive I see it as an adventure and retirement present for both of us .............i mean we are talking a couple of thousand miles on tarmac .....what can go wrong

Indeed, there is even a one-building border post these days! Between Zambia and Botswana - and extremely efficient too. Mind you that's still an exception, but the days of filling in your particulars ad nauseam in filthy ledger books never to be seen again seem to have gone - at least in most of Southern and Eastern Africa. Surprisingly Botswana and Zambia also no longer charge Visa fees (in US$) for most - Zim still does and the Brits have to shell out nearly double what most have to..I don't know what the Canadians did as they are top of the list with 2.5 times the fee of most others.

Oh and this - people don't realise how large Africa really is thanks to the idiotic map projections we teach our kids. If you fly from Cape Town to Europe it's 8 to 9 hours in a large Jet just to cross the Continent. Putin probably thinks he's quite the man looking at the map

 

[mjheathcote]

Back in 98 we spent a couple of weeks in Zimbabwe visiting a friend. We left Harare in an old Datsun Cherry to her Uncles game reserve (just before things went Pete tong). Turning off the tarmac onto a rough gravel road, for another hour or so, I asked if we had a spare wheel in the boot! No mobile phones, no AA.

 

[DLax69]

Feels like a GranSport kinda trip, to me.

 

[lozcb]

Back in 98 we spent a couple of weeks in Zimbabwe visiting a friend. We left Harare in an old Datsun Cherry to her Uncles game reserve (just before things went Pete tong). Turning off the tarmac onto a rough gravel road, for another hour or so, I asked if we had a spare wheel in the boot! No mobile phones, no AA.

Kinda normal to be honest , its usual for marram roads to be hundreds of miles long ,especially to and from mine sites , but extra fuel , tools , spare wheels/tyres and winch are a must , and thank god for satelite phones in the early days , now most countries have reasonably good coverage and its getting better year on year , Africa without doubt will be the last safe haven of outright logic , the EU/G7/ digital currencies / restriction of movement/ New world order whatever the conspiracy theorists call it will never succeed here ..........

 

[RoaryRati]

We too had a 'different' journey from Nairobi to Mombasa for a friend's wedding about 40 years ago - having to keep a hand on the gear stick to keep it in gear was the easy part and friends were amazed we made it!