Mauritania/Mali – 15/11/09 and 16/11/09 Kiffa to Chutes de Gouina – 200km day 1

The route today took us along the old smugglers route which eventually crosses the border with Mali. The track was covered by thorny undergrowth which punctures several tyres leaving our group of four cars with no spare tyres between us despite us all carrying two spares. It was a fully off road route and the temperature topped 38 degrees. Some sand added to the challenge but the locals were friendly and would often give us a push if we were stuck. Adjusting the tyre pressures make a big difference but the constant variation of the terrains between sand and rocky tracks mean that much time is spent re-inflating the tyres. Our secret weapon to get us out of the sand is 100% wool Wilton carpet, which amazingly works extremely well to provide the car traction in the sand. In fact several teams have used the carpets and wished they had bought there own. We made good progress despite getting lost over grassy savannah, crossing river beds and fixing a drive shaft on our friend’s car. We covered enough distance of the two day drive to the destination of the waterfall. We wild camped that night as a group of four cars under a massive Bilbao tree with a good camp fire and pasta to eat.