It’s done.
After 42 days, 13 countries, 3 mountain ranges, a couple of deserts, a bout of dysentery, 8500km, 800 litres of diesel, countless beers and a good few vodkas, 3 breakdowns, 2 recoveries, no punctures, no crashes but a few accidents, a plethora of sausages, more changes of plan than we ever thought possible and a frightening amount of low quality humour, Bernard has been delivered to SWORDE-Teppa in good working order and full of the potential to really make a difference.
Mission Accomplished.
Where to begin the thanks? Firstly, to all our corporate sponsors – CfBT, Ring Automotive, Really Useful Boxes, Signs Express, Guardian Fire, CS Components, Ribena – it would not have possible (or at least considerably more expensive) without you. Secondly to those who have made donations through our justgiving sites or directly to the Team, you are helping to keep Bernard running and working to help the people of Tajikistan. Thirdly, to everyone else who has supported us in whatever way, whether putting up with incessant talk in the lead up, allowing us to go in the first place, supporting the mad idea right from the beginning, etc; however you have helped, thank you. Finally, to all the family, friends and other supporters, it’s been fun knowing that we have had an audience to play to, and this also helped us attract the sponsors so you have also contributed, unwittingly or not.
A summary of the last week of the trip: having gone to Dushanbe unnecessarily (if information is valuable; correct information must be priceless) we had some fun, made plans and headed back out to the mountains. As you probably know, Tajikistan has quite a few to choose from. However, having only limited time and already being way over budget, we decided to spend a couple of days in the Fan Mountains, as these were close and we had been told of a great trek that was within the capabilities of any well-equipped reasonably fit person. Hmmm. It turns out that 6 weeks of sitting behind (or next to) a steering wheel is actually not the best preparation for serious trekking. It doesn’t help when you don’t have the right equipment and everything you need is improvised, adapted or borrowed.
The map indicated that the start of the trek was about 30km from the main road, showing 10km of road and 20km of track. Needless to say they could not be told apart. The going was extremely tough and my limited 4x4 driving skills were severely tested. It was also a serious test for Bernard, given that he had just driven whoknowshowmany kilometres and was still fully laden. He coped admirably with everything thrown at him: the rough roads, river crossings, fields, tiny tracks clinging to the side of mountains, terrifying bridges and the various wildlife we met on the way. (This is probably not the time to mention the calf whose footing was not as sure as Bernard’s so I won’t.) But everything else went like a dream. And when the shiny new Japanese 4x4 turned up, Bernard kept the side up very well indeed.
The mountains themselves were stunning. Higher than anything in Europe, and relatively undiscovered, it made the long journey and hard trekking thoroughly worthwhile. Admittedly our first night’s camping did not bring much sleep due to the nocturnal antics of the donkeys that we named – for obvious reasons – Stampy, Farty and Honkey. But it did mean that we were up very early the next day and reached our destination before the day got properly hot. The vistas were amazing; the mountains jagged, snowy and awe-inspiring, the valleys deep, the lakes crystal clear and the sky mostly blue. Excellent trekking, I will be going back there (when I am a bit fitter).
The trek done, we returned to Dushanbe for a last night of craziness, a last day of not doing very much and a fairly subdued last supper; then Ed was sent home to prepare for a holiday to recover from the trip. The plan was that Bernard and I would do the last stage on our own, but as hitchhiking is the norm in Tajikistan, and as we hadn’t picked up any all trip, it seemed now or never. So I agreed to give Obid a lift from Dushanbe to Kurgan-Tyube. He seemed very nice, but as he spoke no English and I spoke no Tajik, Russian or Uzbek, the conversation dried up quite rapidly. I did understand when he wanted to stop to chat to a friend at the side of the road and he understood when my destination was sooner than his. He was grateful though and that was clear.
Having arrived at SWORDE-Teppa, the hand-over was swift and enthusiastic. Umed, one of the directors of ST and a proper car fanatic, was overjoyed and immediately began the cleaning process – something that would ultimately take two days to complete! Paul, the other director was equally pleased. They had both been following the progress via the website and, probably like many of us, had had their concerns at times.
Now, although the Tajik registration process is ongoing, Bernard is part of SWORDE-Teppa and has already been put to use driving various people to various places. This will continue extensively over the next few years, gradually increasing in distance as ST now have the capability to expand their sphere of operations.
I will keep you updated on his progress, and as promised, I will get more pictures up the website soon, as well as various other things including stats and other geeky matters.
The final thing I wanted to mention is the CD competition. Although the number of entrants was slightly disappointing, the quality was (mostly) very high. Special mention needs to go to Grant for the sheer number of CDs he made us – it was life-saving at times to have a real choice of real music. Also, a special prize needs to go to Lewis and Claudia, merely for the introduction on their combined effort: the line from Back to the Future, “Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads...” However, there can only be one winner. And the way I ultimately decided that was which CD I wanted to listen to most on the final leg as I made my way from Dushanbe to Kurgan-Tyube. So, ignoring any cries of favouritism, I have to say the CD that got the last listen on Bernard’s Big Trip was made by Lewis. Good work, your prize is on its way (just don’t hold your breath.)
Thanks again to everyone, and one more beg for donations from anyone who has not donated: www.justgiving.com/bernardsbigtrip. You will really be making a difference.
Cheers.
G.
Wednesday, 19 August 2009
Thursday, 13 August 2009
In Tajikistan!
(from 10 August 2009)
Hello from Tajikistan.
Yes. We have made it. Not all according to plan, but where would the fun be in that?
First of all, apologies for the lack of communication; internet access has not been very easy to find in recent weeks.
Next, Bernard news: he is still going strong. Whatever the Germans did, they did well. Indeed, since Germany, the only serious problem has been the collapse of the roofrack, something that we had seen coming for some time and smartly decided not to address until it was too late. However, they possess in Tajikistan the skills required to keep things functioning, so a welder was found irrespective of the time of day (just after 7am last Sunday morning), the roofrack was repaired and it is now stronger than ever. There have been other niggles - a slight stutter cleared up with some fuel additive, the hazard lights developed a short circuit, there is dust everywhere - but nothing that has come close to being serious.
The adventures have continued and the experiences have been memorable - mostly for the right reasons. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Russia; it was made more fun by their persistent refusal to endure the hassle and paperwork of giving us the penalties our traffic offences warranted. And of course the vodka.
Kazakhstan was brief, but in vast contrast to my previous visit, the roads were shiny and smooth. The difficulties of registering with the visa police were contrasted with the assistance and kindness of random strangers. The wild camping was dusty yet incredible. This also gave Bernard his first taste of off-roading, and he seemed to love it.
Leaving Kazakhstan and entering Uzbekistan at the wildest, dustiest, most remote border crossing ever was an experience too: pure comedy when one of the guards opened Emma's passport allowing her immigration card to blow away, leading to a Laurel and Hardy-style chase across the sandy wasteland. This came after we had had a brief wait while the customs guys finished their game of football on their PlayStation! The road subsequently leading away from the Uzbek border was straight: 125km until the first corner. Then through the craziest sandstorm I've ever encountered, a range of different road surfaces, hundreds of miles of barren nothingness rounded off with a night drinking vodka with the mafia. All in all a pretty fun first day in Uzbekistan.
The rest of Uzbekistan was generally great too, unfortunately marred only by health problems: Emma deciding to go home and Ed being struck down with dysentry which necessitated the calling of a doctor at midnight. Fortunately, we had chosen the best hotel in town and the health care Ed received was first class. I got to make the most of the sights while Ed was being ill, and I have to say the two towns of Bukhara and Samarkand have plenty to offer those with an interest in history and culture; fascinating places.
Visa miscalculations meant we did not have time to do the Krygyzstan/Pamir Highway route into Tajikistan; instead we went from Samarkand, crossing into Tajikistan at another relatively little used border. Our first day here was also pretty memorable. It seemed as if the whole landscape changed immediately after entering the country: gone was the flat steppe that seemed to be most of Uzbekistan, instead the high mountains and dramatic valleys that Tajikistan is known for. Our plan to camp wild was interrupted by a local farmer, a man with little to his name but vast, humbling even, amounts of hospitality and goodwill. He insisted that we went to his humble dwelling, a mud-built house with no water, electricity or gas but with spectacular views over the valley, and proceeded to offer us dinner and vegetables from his garden. In the morning, he refused to take money from us and so he has become the first recipient of a souvenir tea-spoon we brought from home. While it was bought with tongue in cheek, it was given in all seriousness: here was something he could use or keep, even if just to show his neighbours; how else could we thank him?
Yesterday, we came through the mountains and over the Anzob pass to Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan. This was an emotional journey: at times terrifying as the roads disappeared and huge trucks dominated the way; at times joyous when brand new tarmac cut through the spectacular gorges and the traffic disappeared; at times heart-stoppingly beautiful, particularly when after miles and miles of climbing we reached the top of the pass and the endless ranges of enourmous snow-peaked mountains came into view. This is something I will never forget.
And so the trip is drawing to a close. We are about to head back into the mountains for a couple of days trekking, then Ed returns to the UK and I will drive the last 100km to deliver Bernard to SWORDE-Teppa. I will update you again once Bernard has been handed over, but in the meantime, thanks to all of our sponsors and those who have donated to keep Bernard working now he is here. If you haven't donated yet, please do: www.justgiving.com/bernardsbigtrip. Internet connectivity is not quite good enough to allow the website to be updated, but I will get more pictures up in due course.
Thanks again.
G.
Hello from Tajikistan.
Yes. We have made it. Not all according to plan, but where would the fun be in that?
First of all, apologies for the lack of communication; internet access has not been very easy to find in recent weeks.
Next, Bernard news: he is still going strong. Whatever the Germans did, they did well. Indeed, since Germany, the only serious problem has been the collapse of the roofrack, something that we had seen coming for some time and smartly decided not to address until it was too late. However, they possess in Tajikistan the skills required to keep things functioning, so a welder was found irrespective of the time of day (just after 7am last Sunday morning), the roofrack was repaired and it is now stronger than ever. There have been other niggles - a slight stutter cleared up with some fuel additive, the hazard lights developed a short circuit, there is dust everywhere - but nothing that has come close to being serious.
The adventures have continued and the experiences have been memorable - mostly for the right reasons. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Russia; it was made more fun by their persistent refusal to endure the hassle and paperwork of giving us the penalties our traffic offences warranted. And of course the vodka.
Kazakhstan was brief, but in vast contrast to my previous visit, the roads were shiny and smooth. The difficulties of registering with the visa police were contrasted with the assistance and kindness of random strangers. The wild camping was dusty yet incredible. This also gave Bernard his first taste of off-roading, and he seemed to love it.
Leaving Kazakhstan and entering Uzbekistan at the wildest, dustiest, most remote border crossing ever was an experience too: pure comedy when one of the guards opened Emma's passport allowing her immigration card to blow away, leading to a Laurel and Hardy-style chase across the sandy wasteland. This came after we had had a brief wait while the customs guys finished their game of football on their PlayStation! The road subsequently leading away from the Uzbek border was straight: 125km until the first corner. Then through the craziest sandstorm I've ever encountered, a range of different road surfaces, hundreds of miles of barren nothingness rounded off with a night drinking vodka with the mafia. All in all a pretty fun first day in Uzbekistan.
The rest of Uzbekistan was generally great too, unfortunately marred only by health problems: Emma deciding to go home and Ed being struck down with dysentry which necessitated the calling of a doctor at midnight. Fortunately, we had chosen the best hotel in town and the health care Ed received was first class. I got to make the most of the sights while Ed was being ill, and I have to say the two towns of Bukhara and Samarkand have plenty to offer those with an interest in history and culture; fascinating places.
Visa miscalculations meant we did not have time to do the Krygyzstan/Pamir Highway route into Tajikistan; instead we went from Samarkand, crossing into Tajikistan at another relatively little used border. Our first day here was also pretty memorable. It seemed as if the whole landscape changed immediately after entering the country: gone was the flat steppe that seemed to be most of Uzbekistan, instead the high mountains and dramatic valleys that Tajikistan is known for. Our plan to camp wild was interrupted by a local farmer, a man with little to his name but vast, humbling even, amounts of hospitality and goodwill. He insisted that we went to his humble dwelling, a mud-built house with no water, electricity or gas but with spectacular views over the valley, and proceeded to offer us dinner and vegetables from his garden. In the morning, he refused to take money from us and so he has become the first recipient of a souvenir tea-spoon we brought from home. While it was bought with tongue in cheek, it was given in all seriousness: here was something he could use or keep, even if just to show his neighbours; how else could we thank him?
Yesterday, we came through the mountains and over the Anzob pass to Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan. This was an emotional journey: at times terrifying as the roads disappeared and huge trucks dominated the way; at times joyous when brand new tarmac cut through the spectacular gorges and the traffic disappeared; at times heart-stoppingly beautiful, particularly when after miles and miles of climbing we reached the top of the pass and the endless ranges of enourmous snow-peaked mountains came into view. This is something I will never forget.
And so the trip is drawing to a close. We are about to head back into the mountains for a couple of days trekking, then Ed returns to the UK and I will drive the last 100km to deliver Bernard to SWORDE-Teppa. I will update you again once Bernard has been handed over, but in the meantime, thanks to all of our sponsors and those who have donated to keep Bernard working now he is here. If you haven't donated yet, please do: www.justgiving.com/bernardsbigtrip. Internet connectivity is not quite good enough to allow the website to be updated, but I will get more pictures up in due course.
Thanks again.
G.
Tashkent calling
(from 1 August 2009)
Yes, finally an update I hear you cry. Communication is a little haphazard in these parts but hopefully you have been getting daily updates and information about our progress from the website www.bernardsbigtrip.com, which Graham has been twittering on, I am told on a daily basis, or should that be tweeting?
After 25 days, on and off the road we are resting, which is very welcome to all and more necessary to some than others. The road has not always been smoothe, as those of you who know the tragic tails of breakdowns in Zurich and Rosenheim and border crossings in Moldova and Ukraine will already know. It's reassuring to know, however, that Bernard is so strong (according to the lovely Florian at the Rosenheim Landrover Garage - a prince among mechanics) he is the only car ever to have been driven with a broken upper cam shaft. I hear the gasps of appreciation at my technical knowledge there, for those of you that don't know; the cam shaft lives under the shiney silver metal thing with bolts on in the middle of the engine and holds very important other metal bits in place.
However, since the Germans saved us in Rosenheim, touching Wood, things have gone very well mechanically. Bernard has even managed to survive several hundred kilometres of my kack handed driving - Graham assured me that diesels are practically impossible to stall and I think we've safely laid that myth to rest. My driving can't have been that bad however as unlike Graham the police don't stop me. Which has been lucky so far as there is first class stamp stuck over the big L on my provisional license. My plan is to say that this is an acknowledgement from Her Majesty that I passed my test first time - the irony.
We've been through some pretty remarkable places and as you will see from the updated route, not all of them planned. Romania was amazing and beautiful, we like to think we camped very close to Dracula's castle, and indeed we all lost a significant amount of blood to vampire mosquitos - though the schnapps we drank meant they probably woke up with hangovers. Crossing the border from Romania to Ukraine was interesting as we ended up in Moldova not Ukraine - bit of a suprise. The following journey throught the swamps of the Danube delta and thick clouds of mosquitoes, to a place called Izmail (we nick-named the village of the damned), in pitch dark however was pretty scary. I think Izmail is badly in need of a sherif. And Bernard looked like fly paper afterwards.
Ukaine and Russia were fun, lots of port cities, vodka, beers and mixing with the locals. You can still really see the communist past in the country side and rundown towns of Ukraine. Volgograd was pretty impressive too - monumental, full of old communist monuments and buildings and of course lots of references to the Battle. However there is absolutely nothing left that refers to Stalin. When you see or speak to him please ask Graham about Dogmash.
Kazakhstan and the steppe where a completely different landscape and I immediately felt the bridge from west to east had been crossed. The topography did not really change until we arrived in Tashkent although we passed from a number of different terrains. Kazakhstan brought some interesting camping oppotunitities and our first (and only) camp cooked meal. Uzbekistan brought a more open and friendly local population who where only too happy to assist us in drinking our vodka, all our vodka.
Unfortunately Uzbekistan also brought us the one thing that we were dreading, though sort of expecting, the shits. For me, this developed into accute gastro enteritis, and penchant for wearing nappies. Fortunately I was saved by the full force of former Soviet medicine in the form of a visitation from Dr Svetlana, her grandson translator and her needle whielding nurse. She pumped me full of some stockpile of drugs and antibiotics, probably from from post nuclear stockpile, that has got me back on my feet. Though i know have faint glow like the Readybreak Boy.
Hoping to complete some visa paperwork now and enjoy the fleshpots of Tashkent, as long as they have toilets.
All the best and love to you all
E x
Yes, finally an update I hear you cry. Communication is a little haphazard in these parts but hopefully you have been getting daily updates and information about our progress from the website www.bernardsbigtrip.com, which Graham has been twittering on, I am told on a daily basis, or should that be tweeting?
After 25 days, on and off the road we are resting, which is very welcome to all and more necessary to some than others. The road has not always been smoothe, as those of you who know the tragic tails of breakdowns in Zurich and Rosenheim and border crossings in Moldova and Ukraine will already know. It's reassuring to know, however, that Bernard is so strong (according to the lovely Florian at the Rosenheim Landrover Garage - a prince among mechanics) he is the only car ever to have been driven with a broken upper cam shaft. I hear the gasps of appreciation at my technical knowledge there, for those of you that don't know; the cam shaft lives under the shiney silver metal thing with bolts on in the middle of the engine and holds very important other metal bits in place.
However, since the Germans saved us in Rosenheim, touching Wood, things have gone very well mechanically. Bernard has even managed to survive several hundred kilometres of my kack handed driving - Graham assured me that diesels are practically impossible to stall and I think we've safely laid that myth to rest. My driving can't have been that bad however as unlike Graham the police don't stop me. Which has been lucky so far as there is first class stamp stuck over the big L on my provisional license. My plan is to say that this is an acknowledgement from Her Majesty that I passed my test first time - the irony.
We've been through some pretty remarkable places and as you will see from the updated route, not all of them planned. Romania was amazing and beautiful, we like to think we camped very close to Dracula's castle, and indeed we all lost a significant amount of blood to vampire mosquitos - though the schnapps we drank meant they probably woke up with hangovers. Crossing the border from Romania to Ukraine was interesting as we ended up in Moldova not Ukraine - bit of a suprise. The following journey throught the swamps of the Danube delta and thick clouds of mosquitoes, to a place called Izmail (we nick-named the village of the damned), in pitch dark however was pretty scary. I think Izmail is badly in need of a sherif. And Bernard looked like fly paper afterwards.
Ukaine and Russia were fun, lots of port cities, vodka, beers and mixing with the locals. You can still really see the communist past in the country side and rundown towns of Ukraine. Volgograd was pretty impressive too - monumental, full of old communist monuments and buildings and of course lots of references to the Battle. However there is absolutely nothing left that refers to Stalin. When you see or speak to him please ask Graham about Dogmash.
Kazakhstan and the steppe where a completely different landscape and I immediately felt the bridge from west to east had been crossed. The topography did not really change until we arrived in Tashkent although we passed from a number of different terrains. Kazakhstan brought some interesting camping oppotunitities and our first (and only) camp cooked meal. Uzbekistan brought a more open and friendly local population who where only too happy to assist us in drinking our vodka, all our vodka.
Unfortunately Uzbekistan also brought us the one thing that we were dreading, though sort of expecting, the shits. For me, this developed into accute gastro enteritis, and penchant for wearing nappies. Fortunately I was saved by the full force of former Soviet medicine in the form of a visitation from Dr Svetlana, her grandson translator and her needle whielding nurse. She pumped me full of some stockpile of drugs and antibiotics, probably from from post nuclear stockpile, that has got me back on my feet. Though i know have faint glow like the Readybreak Boy.
Hoping to complete some visa paperwork now and enjoy the fleshpots of Tashkent, as long as they have toilets.
All the best and love to you all
E x
Progress
(from 19 July 2009)
Hello Europe, this is Ukraine calling.
And a changing place it is too. Most of our experience has been of the roads, but if they are representative of the population, then they must be half slow, half mad, half old and decrepit, and half very beautiful.
But before I get carried away, an update on Bernard: since the Germans worked their magic, he has been just like the Bernard of old. He still struggles going up steep hills, but he always did, and he was never a laden as he is now. I learned early in Romania, once we started experiencing properly hot weather, that Land Rover fitted fans to their engines for a reason. The fan that I removed while Bernard was living in the UK, was replaced at the top of a particularly big hill and that this was one of the nicest views I have ever been distracted by while working on him. Since then, he’s showing no signs at all of getting too hot.
The roads since Hungary have gradually deteriorated in quality, but we are still making good progress. Now, however, it requires more interesting overtaking manoeuvres, some exhilarating, some terrifying, some both. So far though we have witnessed rather than participated in the most crazy overtakes.
As I said, we are now in Ukraine so you will have realised that we are not going via Turkey. This was a tough decision, but ultimately, we think, the right one having lost over a week with the car trouble. We spent most of our last day in Germany investigating the frequency and reliability of ferries from Turkey to Russia. The clear conclusion was that nothing was clear. And furthermore, being remote while trying to get confirmation of anything just added to the confusion. Given that we need to be out of Russia by 25th July because of our visas, we decided that the risk was too great to go through Turkey and wait for a ferry. We might have been lucky, but we might have had to wait 4 days. Due to other commitments, extending the Russia visa was not possible, so we are going the northern route.
Romania was a great country: we were rescued from a rubbish campsite by a friendly passerby, taken to the best campsite ever, joined in a birthday party, saw the most beautiful lake, experienced some great roads with no traffic (Lewis will not believe this but it’s true). Furthermore, we can say that we have slept in a hilltop forest in Transylvania without getting bitten. How many people can say that?
We left Romania, and tried to enter Moldova (although at the time, we didn’t know which border we were approaching having got lost in the last town in Romania and not knowing which road we were on.) Our plan is to cross Ukraine – and Moldova if necessary just to get to Ukraine.
The Moldovans made it difficult. Unfortunately we don’t have a green card because my insurance company told me I didn’t need one, so I had to buy insurance for Moldova. For some reason, they put the office selling insurance, 1km away from the border, so I had to walk there to buy the insurance to then return to the border before they would let the car in. Strange, but ok. This was a curious experience because they kept my passport at the border, so for 30 minutes I was in Moldova without a passport, car, or anything. Finally, we get everything approved, stamped, stamped again, the right bits of paper were stamped and transported from one office to another, the right number of grumpy people appeased, and we were allowed to enter. This took about 1hr 30mins. We started driving and after 1mile (1.6km), we came to the Ukranian border. At this point, we either had to laugh or cry. They had made us jump through that many hoops just to drive 1 mile to get to Ukraine! Well, good thing I had got that insurance, given that there was 1 other car on that stretch of road...
So far, our impressions of Ukraine are good, but there’s still a long way to go. Certainly they are much better having seen the place during the day. On Friday night we didn’t get into the country until 9pm, and then had to drive 70km to the nearest town, and a large part of this was through a swamp. I have never seen so many mosquitoes in one place in all my life. And never want to again. Naturally they were attracted to the lights, so it became a weird experience driving through the clouds of them – at times it looked like rain, there were so many. I like to think I have done my bit for mankind driving there last night, though. The car the following morning was a veritable mosquito graveyard.
Unfortunately the trip has become a drive with not much time for much else because of having to get to where we need to in time for visas. We hope that we can relax a little once we are in Russia, and that should be by Monday.
I will try to send an update then. In the meantime, a quick reminder that this is a charity project, and we are looking for money to fund SWORDE-Teppa once they receive Bernard. If you haven’t donated, or if you have and want to again, please do so at justgiving.com/bernardsbigtrip.com.
More anon.
G.
Hello Europe, this is Ukraine calling.
And a changing place it is too. Most of our experience has been of the roads, but if they are representative of the population, then they must be half slow, half mad, half old and decrepit, and half very beautiful.
But before I get carried away, an update on Bernard: since the Germans worked their magic, he has been just like the Bernard of old. He still struggles going up steep hills, but he always did, and he was never a laden as he is now. I learned early in Romania, once we started experiencing properly hot weather, that Land Rover fitted fans to their engines for a reason. The fan that I removed while Bernard was living in the UK, was replaced at the top of a particularly big hill and that this was one of the nicest views I have ever been distracted by while working on him. Since then, he’s showing no signs at all of getting too hot.
The roads since Hungary have gradually deteriorated in quality, but we are still making good progress. Now, however, it requires more interesting overtaking manoeuvres, some exhilarating, some terrifying, some both. So far though we have witnessed rather than participated in the most crazy overtakes.
As I said, we are now in Ukraine so you will have realised that we are not going via Turkey. This was a tough decision, but ultimately, we think, the right one having lost over a week with the car trouble. We spent most of our last day in Germany investigating the frequency and reliability of ferries from Turkey to Russia. The clear conclusion was that nothing was clear. And furthermore, being remote while trying to get confirmation of anything just added to the confusion. Given that we need to be out of Russia by 25th July because of our visas, we decided that the risk was too great to go through Turkey and wait for a ferry. We might have been lucky, but we might have had to wait 4 days. Due to other commitments, extending the Russia visa was not possible, so we are going the northern route.
Romania was a great country: we were rescued from a rubbish campsite by a friendly passerby, taken to the best campsite ever, joined in a birthday party, saw the most beautiful lake, experienced some great roads with no traffic (Lewis will not believe this but it’s true). Furthermore, we can say that we have slept in a hilltop forest in Transylvania without getting bitten. How many people can say that?
We left Romania, and tried to enter Moldova (although at the time, we didn’t know which border we were approaching having got lost in the last town in Romania and not knowing which road we were on.) Our plan is to cross Ukraine – and Moldova if necessary just to get to Ukraine.
The Moldovans made it difficult. Unfortunately we don’t have a green card because my insurance company told me I didn’t need one, so I had to buy insurance for Moldova. For some reason, they put the office selling insurance, 1km away from the border, so I had to walk there to buy the insurance to then return to the border before they would let the car in. Strange, but ok. This was a curious experience because they kept my passport at the border, so for 30 minutes I was in Moldova without a passport, car, or anything. Finally, we get everything approved, stamped, stamped again, the right bits of paper were stamped and transported from one office to another, the right number of grumpy people appeased, and we were allowed to enter. This took about 1hr 30mins. We started driving and after 1mile (1.6km), we came to the Ukranian border. At this point, we either had to laugh or cry. They had made us jump through that many hoops just to drive 1 mile to get to Ukraine! Well, good thing I had got that insurance, given that there was 1 other car on that stretch of road...
So far, our impressions of Ukraine are good, but there’s still a long way to go. Certainly they are much better having seen the place during the day. On Friday night we didn’t get into the country until 9pm, and then had to drive 70km to the nearest town, and a large part of this was through a swamp. I have never seen so many mosquitoes in one place in all my life. And never want to again. Naturally they were attracted to the lights, so it became a weird experience driving through the clouds of them – at times it looked like rain, there were so many. I like to think I have done my bit for mankind driving there last night, though. The car the following morning was a veritable mosquito graveyard.
Unfortunately the trip has become a drive with not much time for much else because of having to get to where we need to in time for visas. We hope that we can relax a little once we are in Russia, and that should be by Monday.
I will try to send an update then. In the meantime, a quick reminder that this is a charity project, and we are looking for money to fund SWORDE-Teppa once they receive Bernard. If you haven’t donated, or if you have and want to again, please do so at justgiving.com/bernardsbigtrip.com.
More anon.
G.
Monday, 13 July 2009
Trouble
An interesting ten days. And we're only in Germany.
To begin with, we did not actually leave on Saturday as planned; Bernard and I were not ready. We picked Ed up and went to Greenwich for the launch of the Roof of the World rally and to meet Emma. This was also the first time that Ed and Emma met each other, and the first time both of them met Bernard. All got on well, although Emma was a little concerned by the lack of space.
Having seen off the other teams, we then returned to Ed’s place for some further preparation – including putting some bits of Bernard back together and repacking more efficiently. This took most of the afternoon but was time very well spent for it made Sunday’s actual departure and the subsequent days on the road much better.
We got to Dover and found that our two pop-up tents were missing. Ed and I remembered not being happy with how secure they were when leaving, but then we forgot to retie them. Whoops. They are probably somewhere alongside the motorway, and we hope that they did not cause a major accident when they left us.
The next few days went well and we were well into Switzerland before the first problem. Cruising down the motorway when there was a loud clunk that we all heard and felt, we lost power and glided to a standstill on an exit slip-road. After some activity, we diagnosed a broken timing belt – a serious problem and clearly not one we could fix ourselves. Ed and I both have breakdown cover, but neither of us have European cover. Whoops. We managed to find a Land Rover dealer very close to where we were (on the edge of Zurich) so we had the car transported there and they had a look.
It was indeed a broken timing belt. This was particularly curious given that I had had the timing belt changed the week before departure to avoid an expensive and potentially trip-threatening situation should it break. And here we were in the middle of an expensive and potentially trip-threatening situation. I am going to have some very interesting conversations with a few people when I get back.
Fortunately, however, the garage appeared to know what they were doing and so ordered the new parts and set about repairing the damage. It gave us a few days to get to know Zurich, a city that we found to be fun, friendly, attractive with plenty to offer.
We finally got Bernard back and he seemed to be running well, so we set off, camping that night at Innsbruck in Austria. The journey went well but the following day it went wrong: black smoke, horrible noise and loss of power. Once again, we glided to a halt at the side of the motorway. I will not recount any of the language used at the time, but I think you can imagine what was going through our minds.
Initial diagnosis identified a bolt that was no longer binding – directly where the Swiss garage had been working. Another interesting conversation is on the way. In the meantime, however, we had to get somewhere to have the problem fixed and, fortunately, another Land Rover dealer was close by, so we headed there on the back on another rescue lorry. This was Saturday, and we were told nothing would be done before Monday, so we abandoned Bernard at the recovery firm and headed off to Munich, another city that we had not planned to visit but were now having the chance to discover.
We have had a lot of conversations about what to do; worst case scenarios discussed and back up action plans have been prepared. It all depends on how quickly the Germans can get us going again. Today we spoke to the garage and the problem was identified: the upper camshaft is broken in two places. The German garage were reluctant to directly blame the Swiss garage, but it’s clearly no coincidence.
They also told us we may have the car back as soon as tomorrow and be back on the road. Time is marching on and we are a long way behind schedule, so some places will be skipped and the next week will mean more driving than we would like. The real pressure is with our Russian visas – we have to be out of Russia by 25th July or extend the visas. The next few days will decide which option we take.
The irony has not escaped me that all of these problems on the trip are directly due to the work I had done in advance of our departure to avoid problems on the trip. Bernard was running so smoothly beforehand, and so I hope he will be the same again. We have had to endure significant delay and considerable expense. I am worried now that SWORDE-Teppa may not be getting the car I promised them, and worst of all is my loss of confidence in Bernard.
However, all is not gloom and doom: morale is still high; we have got to know Zurich and Munich – both great places; we have had some adventures, a lot of laughs and met some great people; we have also had experiences that we would not have had if all had gone according to plan. And experience was the point of the trip almost as much as delivering Bernard. So, fingers and toes are crossed that we can continue to make it a successful trip.
There are some pictures on the website, and others will be added as we go on.
More in due course.
To begin with, we did not actually leave on Saturday as planned; Bernard and I were not ready. We picked Ed up and went to Greenwich for the launch of the Roof of the World rally and to meet Emma. This was also the first time that Ed and Emma met each other, and the first time both of them met Bernard. All got on well, although Emma was a little concerned by the lack of space.
Having seen off the other teams, we then returned to Ed’s place for some further preparation – including putting some bits of Bernard back together and repacking more efficiently. This took most of the afternoon but was time very well spent for it made Sunday’s actual departure and the subsequent days on the road much better.
We got to Dover and found that our two pop-up tents were missing. Ed and I remembered not being happy with how secure they were when leaving, but then we forgot to retie them. Whoops. They are probably somewhere alongside the motorway, and we hope that they did not cause a major accident when they left us.
The next few days went well and we were well into Switzerland before the first problem. Cruising down the motorway when there was a loud clunk that we all heard and felt, we lost power and glided to a standstill on an exit slip-road. After some activity, we diagnosed a broken timing belt – a serious problem and clearly not one we could fix ourselves. Ed and I both have breakdown cover, but neither of us have European cover. Whoops. We managed to find a Land Rover dealer very close to where we were (on the edge of Zurich) so we had the car transported there and they had a look.
It was indeed a broken timing belt. This was particularly curious given that I had had the timing belt changed the week before departure to avoid an expensive and potentially trip-threatening situation should it break. And here we were in the middle of an expensive and potentially trip-threatening situation. I am going to have some very interesting conversations with a few people when I get back.
Fortunately, however, the garage appeared to know what they were doing and so ordered the new parts and set about repairing the damage. It gave us a few days to get to know Zurich, a city that we found to be fun, friendly, attractive with plenty to offer.
We finally got Bernard back and he seemed to be running well, so we set off, camping that night at Innsbruck in Austria. The journey went well but the following day it went wrong: black smoke, horrible noise and loss of power. Once again, we glided to a halt at the side of the motorway. I will not recount any of the language used at the time, but I think you can imagine what was going through our minds.
Initial diagnosis identified a bolt that was no longer binding – directly where the Swiss garage had been working. Another interesting conversation is on the way. In the meantime, however, we had to get somewhere to have the problem fixed and, fortunately, another Land Rover dealer was close by, so we headed there on the back on another rescue lorry. This was Saturday, and we were told nothing would be done before Monday, so we abandoned Bernard at the recovery firm and headed off to Munich, another city that we had not planned to visit but were now having the chance to discover.
We have had a lot of conversations about what to do; worst case scenarios discussed and back up action plans have been prepared. It all depends on how quickly the Germans can get us going again. Today we spoke to the garage and the problem was identified: the upper camshaft is broken in two places. The German garage were reluctant to directly blame the Swiss garage, but it’s clearly no coincidence.
They also told us we may have the car back as soon as tomorrow and be back on the road. Time is marching on and we are a long way behind schedule, so some places will be skipped and the next week will mean more driving than we would like. The real pressure is with our Russian visas – we have to be out of Russia by 25th July or extend the visas. The next few days will decide which option we take.
The irony has not escaped me that all of these problems on the trip are directly due to the work I had done in advance of our departure to avoid problems on the trip. Bernard was running so smoothly beforehand, and so I hope he will be the same again. We have had to endure significant delay and considerable expense. I am worried now that SWORDE-Teppa may not be getting the car I promised them, and worst of all is my loss of confidence in Bernard.
However, all is not gloom and doom: morale is still high; we have got to know Zurich and Munich – both great places; we have had some adventures, a lot of laughs and met some great people; we have also had experiences that we would not have had if all had gone according to plan. And experience was the point of the trip almost as much as delivering Bernard. So, fingers and toes are crossed that we can continue to make it a successful trip.
There are some pictures on the website, and others will be added as we go on.
More in due course.
Wednesday, 3 June 2009
Boats and Planes
Dhows and Sky diving: thanks to everyone for your support
On Thursday 21st May, a desert contingent came up to
That price was paid on the next day, when my colleague Steve 
Crowley, his sister Susan and I travelled up to Umm al Qwain to the UAQ Aero Club to sky dive. The nerves of steel that were displayed in the car on the way, remained in tact right up until we got out of the car. An hour or so of watching other fool hardy folk survive did, however, help to dispel visions of impending doom.
Before not too long it was time to get prepared ourselves and go through the rigorous 30 second training programme. Strapped up in a harness, it was time to get into the incredibly small plane and begin the 20 min flight up to 9,000ft above the coast line of Umm al Qwain.
There’s something decidedly ridiculous, and quite terrifying, about opening an aeroplane door at 9,000 feet, hearing the roar and rush of air fill the cabin, then watching a travelling companion fall out and then another follow with a wave. It was leaving the aircraft that was the most difficult and exhilarating part of the the whole experience. Shuffling closer and closer to the open door with an adrenaline junkie strapped to your back. Eventually to stop, sitting, staring into the void, legs dangling into nothingness. I have to confess as the instructor I was strapped to began to rock us to launch us out into space, my mind went blank and I closed my eyes.
Suddenly we were falling and I had a voice ringing in my ears ‘open you eyes’, fighting back the fear of what I might see hurtling towards me, I managed to mentally prise my eyes open, and then things weren’t so bad. Marcus the instructor tapped me on the shoulder which was the signal for me to hold out my arms so we could make a few manoeuvres: spins and turns etc.
Then with a suddenness that must be like being hit by a bus, the parachute opened and the falling changed to floating. By this point I was beginning to enjoy myself, Marcus clearly sensed this and, asking for my hands, suddenly ratcheted up the fear factor again by putting me in charge of the parachute and starting a roller-coasting journey of loops and spins which was like someone playing football with my stomach.
Too soon it was time to prepare for landing which in the winds of late afternoon was no mean feat – as a result rather than the soft green grass we took a spill in the sand.
Thanks to all those who supported the dhow trip which made a total of AED 1820 for SWORDE-Teppa and all those who have sponsored me to jump which so far has raised £750, you can still support the cause by making a donation on the Justgiving page: www.justgiving.com/bernardsbigtrip and if you get the chance get up to Umm al Qwain for a sky dive – you won’t regret it.
Wednesday, 27 May 2009
The Wessex100 - pain on a stick
We should have known. Really. We’ve been in this situation many a time before. But do we learn? Rarely.
On Saturday morning, after an excellent dinner and a good night’s sleep hosted by our favourite aunt, my youngest and craziest brother Lewis and myself approached the start of the Wessex100. The aim of the event was to walk 100 miles in 48 hours – although we thought that would be too easy so our own target was 36 hours. After all, that’s only 3 miles an hour and over two hours for rest – how hard can it be?
Very is the short answer, but more on that in due course.
As we approached the start line, our worst fears were realised: the vast majority of the other participants were members of the LDWA (The Long Distance Walkers Association; think the Ramblers – Extreme Edition). They were experienced, generally considerably older, well prepared, carrying small bags, and looking like they do this kind of thing for fun – not for the challenge & fund-raising that we were in it for. Last minute repacking (read: ditching non-essentials) meant we actually missed the start, but we were not concerned; after all, we had 100 miles to catch them up. 
The route was very well planned, and the route description generally excellent. Taking in public footpaths, bridleways, country roads and the odd stretch through small villages, we were treated to some of the south of England’s finest scenery: green fields, woods and hill paths. We often went several miles without seeing a road – what a joy. The weather did its part too – some cloud cover and a gentle breeze prevented us totally overheating.
The going was not easy however. Lewis and I are both experienced walkers and will happily clock up 10 – 15 miles in a day while climbing in Scotland. This was different. This was relentless, on very dry and unforgiving terrain. After 20 miles, we were feeling it – mostly in our feet. At the 35 mile mark, a significant stop was taken for major foot-repair procedures. We were both expecting the half way point to signify the overcoming of a major psychological barrier. In reality, it wasn’t quite like that. It came at about 4am, shortly before we saw the eastern horizon lightening. It was a relief, but with the sun dawned a realisation that we had to do what we had just done all over again.
Both of us were suffering seriously with foot problems. We were both very tired, the previous day’s heat and the sheer length of time on our feet were taking their toll. I was having stomach problems too. The rapidly warming day didn’t bode for a fast pace, meaning we would have to go well into, if not right through, the second night of walking. While we both arguably could have continued, the mutual feeling was that the effort required to do so would only do more damage to ourselves, and significantly lengthen the recovery period.
It was a tough decision. We didn’t want to let anyone down. We didn’t want to quit. But in the end, I decided that enough was enough. At checkpoint 9, the breakfast stop, after 22.5 hours of walking, and having covered 61 miles, we retired. Naturally we are both very disappointed. I hope that over time, that will fade and be replaced by pride in what we achieved: 61miles in less than one day is still quite good going.
This is one escapade from which I will heed the lessons. Should we ever undertake such a challenge again (and neither of us have ruled it out) we will be far better equipped. To be honest, we both seriously underestimated the effort required to do this and were woefully underprepared. In true karmic retribution, our dismissive comments on the beardy-weirdies who do this for fun came back to haunt us. I now take my hat off to every single person who completed the walk. (Incidentally, I would be curious to know just how many completed it. At the time of writing, the results have not been published. I will post an update they are released.)
In summary, the event was very well organised, the countryside awesome and it was great to take part in it. We learnt a little more about ourselves and having had time to recover somewhat, I can reflect on a great achievement. I will definitely learn from this one.
Finally, big thank you to all who supported us. The fund-raising was one of the main reasons we did it, and we have earned over £600 for SWORDE-Teppa. Huge thanks to everyone who contributed.
See you next year???
G.
Monday, 18 May 2009
Disaster. (And we haven't even set off yet.)
It seems our plans may be scuppered.
Hope springs eternal, but the chances of going to Iran are looking disappointingly slim right now as the Iranians, bless them, have decided that two-thirds of Team Bernard will not be issued with a visa.
OK, so I'll try to calm down now and assess the situation dispassionately. We have applied for reference numbers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tehran, an essential prerequisite for the issuing of a visa. Ed's application is coming along nicely. Emma and I have been rejected.
We do still have options:
1. Appeal against the decision - which is utterly useless according to my contact at Shiraz Travel, the agency who were supposed to be getting us the reference numbers.
2. Apply again in one month's time. Which would be less than 3 weeks before departure, and even if we are granted the reference number, it does not leave us enough time to get the Turkmenistan visa, which can only apply for after we have the Iranian visa.
3. Go later in the summer
4. Go anyway and hope we can get the missing visas on route
5. Try to find another way of getting the reference number through other (more helpful/influential) agencies
6. Forget Iran and choose another route
Clearly, only the last two are viable options, and these are where I will be spending most of my waking hours over the next few days. (However, this week I am doing a First Aid course with St John Ambulance. A good course, and naturally I hope I won't need it, but I'd rather have the skills just in case I do. The downside is that visa-nightmare-solving-time is restricted to lunch and evenings. Not what I need right now.)
Fingers crossed that option 5 produces fruit. Otherwise, it's time to re-examine the world map.
Updates will be provided.
G.
Hope springs eternal, but the chances of going to Iran are looking disappointingly slim right now as the Iranians, bless them, have decided that two-thirds of Team Bernard will not be issued with a visa.
OK, so I'll try to calm down now and assess the situation dispassionately. We have applied for reference numbers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tehran, an essential prerequisite for the issuing of a visa. Ed's application is coming along nicely. Emma and I have been rejected.
We do still have options:
1. Appeal against the decision - which is utterly useless according to my contact at Shiraz Travel, the agency who were supposed to be getting us the reference numbers.
2. Apply again in one month's time. Which would be less than 3 weeks before departure, and even if we are granted the reference number, it does not leave us enough time to get the Turkmenistan visa, which can only apply for after we have the Iranian visa.
3. Go later in the summer
4. Go anyway and hope we can get the missing visas on route
5. Try to find another way of getting the reference number through other (more helpful/influential) agencies
6. Forget Iran and choose another route
Clearly, only the last two are viable options, and these are where I will be spending most of my waking hours over the next few days. (However, this week I am doing a First Aid course with St John Ambulance. A good course, and naturally I hope I won't need it, but I'd rather have the skills just in case I do. The downside is that visa-nightmare-solving-time is restricted to lunch and evenings. Not what I need right now.)
Fingers crossed that option 5 produces fruit. Otherwise, it's time to re-examine the world map.
Updates will be provided.
G.
Thursday, 16 April 2009
Getting started.
Well. Things are moving slowly forward. Everything, that is, except the departure date, which seems to be galloping towards us at an alarming rate.
In our minds, though, (well, mine at least) the ideas are formulating, clearing and settling nicely into something that might one day actually resemble a plan.
A rough idea of dates and where in the world we will be when has definitely emerged, the website is now live, and this weekend some serious work is being done on Bernard. Surely that must sound like progress to everyone? I'm not going to deny that we have lots to do in a rapidly reducing time, but, as the proverbial wise man once said, all journeys must begin within a single step. And we have taken that.
Apart from the work on Bernard (more on that in due course), the highest immediate priorities are getting visas sorted and then getting some sponsorship. The idea of the trip is all very nice, but seriously if there is no cash to keep Bernard on the road once he gets to Taj, the whole thing will have been little more than a grand day out. So if any readers can help with sponsorship, or know anyone who can help, please get in touch.
The visa application process for central Asian countries can be convoluted to say the least. The key elements in the whole thing seem to be filling in forms and parting with cash. For some countries we need a letter of invitation (which we have to buy) before we can apply for the visa (which we have to buy). Are you getting the idea?
Of course, if we don't get certain visas, Iran for instance, then the whole thing changes significantly. My idea is to get Uzbekistan first, as it's complicated but not difficult, then Iran for the reason just stated, then Turkmenistan - the daddy of all difficult ones. Krygyzstan and Tajikistan we can worry about once the others are in the bag. So the next few weeks will be slightly worrisome to say the least. And all this is not really helped by the fact that one third of the team is out of the country and unlikely to return before the big departure. Fun and games ensue.... We'll keep you posted.
More anon.
G
In our minds, though, (well, mine at least) the ideas are formulating, clearing and settling nicely into something that might one day actually resemble a plan.
A rough idea of dates and where in the world we will be when has definitely emerged, the website is now live, and this weekend some serious work is being done on Bernard. Surely that must sound like progress to everyone? I'm not going to deny that we have lots to do in a rapidly reducing time, but, as the proverbial wise man once said, all journeys must begin within a single step. And we have taken that.
Apart from the work on Bernard (more on that in due course), the highest immediate priorities are getting visas sorted and then getting some sponsorship. The idea of the trip is all very nice, but seriously if there is no cash to keep Bernard on the road once he gets to Taj, the whole thing will have been little more than a grand day out. So if any readers can help with sponsorship, or know anyone who can help, please get in touch.
The visa application process for central Asian countries can be convoluted to say the least. The key elements in the whole thing seem to be filling in forms and parting with cash. For some countries we need a letter of invitation (which we have to buy) before we can apply for the visa (which we have to buy). Are you getting the idea?
Of course, if we don't get certain visas, Iran for instance, then the whole thing changes significantly. My idea is to get Uzbekistan first, as it's complicated but not difficult, then Iran for the reason just stated, then Turkmenistan - the daddy of all difficult ones. Krygyzstan and Tajikistan we can worry about once the others are in the bag. So the next few weeks will be slightly worrisome to say the least. And all this is not really helped by the fact that one third of the team is out of the country and unlikely to return before the big departure. Fun and games ensue.... We'll keep you posted.
More anon.
G
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