Thousand mile coast road
I’m finally getting my head down and heading South.
The West Coast road between Tan Tan and Sénégal is a formidable ride, it totals somewhere in the region of a thousand miles or around 50 horizons. There are some gems on the way but most of the time it’s head down, lean into the side wind and get the miles done. As I’m travelling somewhere between 50 and 60 mph it’s going to be a long haul.
I woke early again this morning to a wet tent, which was shaded from the sun, and it’s windy too. I wandered over to almost the only Brits I have seen so far and we chatted, they gave me ginger tea, breakfast and lovely coffee. They, in their defender, were turning North today to start their drive home having had a lovely time in Morocco.
We packed up and exchanged details and turned our separate ways, what a lovely couple! So belly full of muesli and coffee I set off looking for fuel. No fuel at the petrol station so I headed South expecting to be able to find it on the road. Here we go again, warning lights flashing and running on fumes again I manage to fill up the tank.
This road is long and mainly straight but I notice changes in the landscape, I’m following the coastline so navigation is pretty simple, sea on my right and sand on my left.
I spot a herd of camels in the road and pull over for a camel selfie, they are pretty chilled and ignore me. Dunes start to appear on the horizon and I also spot an area where they produce salt too, way off in the distance.
Today I am stopped at every police checkpoint and my movements and documents recorded, the first time since entering the country!
They think that the bike is an Acerbis, I explain it’s a Honda and scrape off the mud on the engine to reveal. I can’t remember how many times I was stopped and checked, I lost count. I give them my passport to try and keep things simple, occasionally they ask for the documents for the bike and I sit waiting for them to do their job.
They are all very friendly and wish me safe travels, many even say ‘welcome to Morocco ‘ too. A smile and happy approach works well, I hope it will continue.
As the day and landscape roll by the weather takes a turn for the worse, the wind is really strong and there are spots of rain, I began to get a little chilly so I put my rain coat on to hold in the heat. I would have used the Exotogg but it’s right at the bottom of my pannier and I can’t remember which one!!
I plan to make it to Laayoune tonight but when I arrive I still have plenty of time so I move on and end up here in Boujdour.
There are two massive statues of Ostriches at the entrance to the town and the people here are friendly and welcoming. It’s really windy and a little cooler than I expected, so I go out to eat in my bike gear, I can’t be bothered to change and I’m hungry.
Chicken and chips and yet another persistent cat who reaches up and dabs my elbow asking for a treat. Of course I oblige.
Back to my room, the shower doesn’t work and I can’t lock the door from the inside, I don’t really care as it’s warm and dry and the bike is parked in the restaurant on a Berber carpet!