4x4 TransAfrica Offroad Expedition Go West through Africa

We continue south towards Dakar, the namesake city of the probably legendary rally of the world. We cross the border into Senegal on a small river ferry that hopefully won't sink during our crossing, and pass the charming colonial city of Saint-Louis, where the Senegal River flows into the Atlantic Ocean. Now we are in the Sahel zone - a transition area between the Sahara in the north and the dry savannah in the south, and we will be able to enjoy the tastiest dinner under palm trees at a cool camp by the sea ;-) Dakar, legendary due to the Paris Dakar rally, which first started in 1979 and for decades led across Europe and North Africa, with the final finish line on the beach of Dakar, not far from Lac Rose, where the salty water shimmers pink in the evening sun and we raise our glasses to our stage destination. A mix of perfectly built highways out of Dakar into the vastness of the Sahel zone and choking dusty tracks takes our off-road vehicle expedition through open savannah landscapes today.

Let’s go Voodoo, we cross Togo, the birthplace of the Voodoo religion. In Porto-Novo, the capital of Benin, we pass the Parliament building and soon arrive in Cotonou. There, a legendary lodge awaits us right by the South Atlantic. With excellent food and good wine, we enjoy the evening by the sea. As usual, we discuss the upcoming route and special features of the next country at sunset and treat ourselves to a jump in the sea before making the jump into the chaos tomorrow.

In the morning, the barrier opens to Cameroon, and we enter a country that does not issue entry stamps at this border station. The "after-road" stage from the previous day still weighs heavy in our bones: mile by mile, we fought our way through challenging terrain - today continues in the same way. It will be hot, it will be humid, and we are in for a spectacular off-road passage through the largely deforested jungle in northern Cameroon. On the way to Yaoundé, we will spend one more night outdoors and use up the last supplies from the expedition kitchen. After sunrise, we continue "on the road" towards the capital. Upon arriving in Yaoundé, we treat ourselves to a shower and a bit of rest in a "comfortable" four-star hotel after days full of dust, sweat, and dirt. Fred from France is already waiting for the 4x4 expedition participants - ready with a wrench and hammer in hand to do what needs to be done. Depending on the extent of the repairs, we plan to take a rest day here to maintain the vehicles and recover. The next two daily stages will take us through wild, hard-to-access off-road tracks across the Cameroonian jungle - a region currently being massively deforested and developed by Chinese investors. It is hard to believe: massive trucks with up to six huge tree trunks are making their way through the dense rainforest - relics that are partly over a hundred years old. The last and toughest overnight stop of this stage awaits us just before the border to the Republic of Congo (Brazzaville). But we will withstand this night too - true to our motto: "No comfort, no compromise!"

On the opposite side of the Congo River lies Kinshasa, which is also referred to as the "City of Hell" on the tour. From here, the HIV pathogen was spread around the world. We cross the Congo on a direct route through the Democratic Republic of Congo and reach the border to Angola after two days.