Cameroun, Gabon and the Taco Taco

We were grateful to enter Cameroun on a bright and sunny morning with the roads still dry. Much of our West Africa timeline had been based on a race to ensure we got through Cameroun and Gabon before the monsoon season, typically in April. We knew that roads could easily become impassable once the potholes were filled with mud. Because of our unexpected visa delays on the way, we opted to pass through Cameroun quickly. Later, the timeline became even more accelerated as we ran into major problems with the truck - the Tacoma started to fold like a taco in Gabon and we had to have repair work done in Libreville. But it is all part of life on the road.

Cameroun

We fully admit we did not do the country justice. But, similar to when our two years driving around in Europe was coming to an end and we had lost our capacity to continue appreciating cathedrals, castles and ancient druid sites, we were ready for our next phase of African adventures.

West Africa is about enjoying people and culture. There are beautiful landscapes and animals here, but that is not the primary focus. The eastern and southern areas of Africa have vastly more accessible wildlife viewing opportunities. West Africa is alive and vibrant with people gathering at bustling outside community markets. Routes bisect villages with people gathering along the road enjoying each other’s company and watching life go by. The culture is people-oriented and the cultural standards of closeness and staring are very different than what we are used to. It is not unusual for our truck to be surrounded by people wanting to talk, or even just staring to see what we are going to do. There is this fascinating dynamic of how we see the people here and how they see us across racial and cultural divides. We want to take pictures of people carrying loads on their head, (endlessly and beautifully intriguing for us to watch this graceful practice) or gathered at a riverbank doing laundry. We refrain because it feels rude and definitely not the cultural norm here. The people here want to watch us setting up camp, preparing food and see inside the truck. Sometimes they will sit and watch us read our kindles. It is both unnerving and strangely touching. We have had children open the door after we have retired for the night because they want to keep watching us.

Being the introverted types that we are, the constant attention and curiousity from people has started wearing us down. We have been driving on the highly populated coastal route as opposed to passing inland through countries with greater security concerns (Mali, Chad, Burkina Faso). Heat was also an ongoing battle for us and our bodies reacted differently. Andy found himself soaked through with sweat on a daily basis and Dawn’s face would turn bright red. Finding sites with some cooling breeze and without people gathering around was a constant challenge.

Humidity, relentless sun, challenging dirt roads, constant police and military stops, and navigating crowded markets to negotiate for food are all part of the West African experience and we had accepted the challenge joyfully for the first four months. But the newness and excitement from the constant sensory overload was wearing off. We were feeling a little exhausted and looking for the next experience to inspire and re-motivate us. Travelers must be content. All this to say, we chose to pass through Cameroun and Gabon fairly quickly with a goal of getting to the mountainous regions of Angola and then on to the National Parks of Namibia that we were excited to experience.

*Unpaved road after crossing the Nigerian border into Cameroun*

*Arriving at the official border into Cameroun*

We had learned how to take border crossings in stride, working our way from one official to the next, sitting on wooden benches as our information was painstakingly entered by hand into huge logbooks. But our vigilance was a little down in Cameroun and we ended up paying $12 for a vehicle permit that should have been free. The amount sounded reasonable and we were tired so we just handed over the money. Oops. We were also re-entering a French speaking country and once again language-challenged.

*First water crossing, but still mostly dry roads*

*Our first night in Cameroun - peaceful and cool wild spot with mountain views, and no people!!!*

*Men gathering at the Sultan’s Palace in Foumban*

We stopped off in Foumban on our way south, reputed to be an arts and culture center. There is a large history museum (shaped like a spider) which is not open yet. The Sultan’s Palace was closed because of an official ceremony and the arts village was a dusty shell (probably a Covid casualty) so all around a bust. The final straw was as we were waiting to see if the ceremony at the palace would end and we could enter, a man came up to Dawn and yelled at her in French. It took a while for us to understand but apparently he was telling her she was not allowed to sit with her legs crossed. We have no idea why, she was wearing a long dress that came down to her ankles. It made us feel uncomfortable so we continued south to Yaounde.

We worked our way south, noticing the country became less tradtionally Muslim as we did. Clothing styles changed and instead of mosques, we would see churches. The scenery was lush and green, covered in rainforest. We spent our last two nights in Yaounde, securing our DRC visas. The city felt relatively prosperous and modern but lacking in obvious cultural sites. Onwards.

Gabon

Entry into Gabon was uneventful. We were back on guard now so when the immigration officer asked us for $25 to process our passports we reminded him it was free and he just waved us on.

Our first impressions of Gabon were huge rainforests, lots of active logging and a surprising number of military and police checkpoints. They actually felt as frequent as Nigeria and more serious as they were actively blocking the road and asking to check passports. We also noticed that people were not dressed in the bright fabrics of Benin and Togo. Women carried their wares in large baskets on their backs instead of on their heads. Homes were built in more contemporary styles, mostly square with tin rooves.

*Lots of active logging - huge trees. Andy, a lifelong forester, was saddened not to see any signs of replanting*

*Entering the long bumpy road to Lopé National Park*

*Still grateful for dry roads! But something is going on, all of a sudden the truck is clanking weirdly when we go over bumps. We cautiously continue.*

*Appreciating the views along the river*

*We can see why the road gets impassable in the wet season*

But the strange noises are getting worse and we decide not to continue on a remote road with minimal infrastructure. So we turn around and head for Libreville.

*On a close inspection at dusk, we can see the truck is folding up in the middle and the top of the camper is almost resting on the cab (normally there is a 5” gap).*

*On the road to Libreville, metal drums signify something for sale, much of it a variety of bush meat*

The Taco Tacos

After the bone-jolting roads of Taraba state in Nigeria and the truck-swallowing potholes of the rough 4x4 track crossing into Cameroun, we had put our overweight truck through its paces. As we continued on our way and hit our next rough track in Gabon, we knew by the noises we heard something was wrong. Our fairing that is attached to the overhang of the camper started to hit the top of the cab. Andy removed it. Next, the smaller cylinder that holds our mosquito netting started to hit. Finally we noticed the gas filling pipe that sits between the camper and the cab on the driver’s side starting to hit the side of the cab.

*Gap between the top of the cab and the camper shrunk from 5” to 2”*

Not sure what was going on, but sure it was not good, we made the nerve-wracking 200 km drive to Libreville. Not sure if the truck was going to break in two on us, we creeped along at minimal speed.

When we stopped for the night, Andy did a more thorough inspection and figured out what had happened. Thinking that the truck’s frame was breaking, Andy discovered the problem. There are six mounting brackets that connect the flatbed and camper to the truck frame. The welds on the front two brackets had broken.

*Andy’s fingers between the mounting bracket and the black truck frame. Flatbed is the bright aluminum above*

*Found an Airbnb while we researched and dealt with the problem - kitchen window view.*

Our first stop was the Toyota dealer in town and they were awesome. Despite a huge language barrier (our French is atrocious), they immediately understood the problem and assigned someone to help. He took Andy to a local automotive shop that specializes in 4x4 trucks and they agreed to work on it the next day.

*First step removing weeks of heavy red mud. The truck had never been so clean.*

The folks at Cartech in Libreville were fantastic. They made time to jump on the problem and carefully worked through it with us.

*Side view showing how the bracket is no longer attached to the frame on the driver’s side.*

*Passenger side bracket, weld is broken but bracket still resting in place*

Our first challenge was that we thought we would have to find someone to remove the camper and flatbed with a forklift in order to re-weld the brackets.

*At the time of starting the repairs, the camper had sagged onto the cab so the shop used a jack to lift it into place.*

Once the camper was lifted into place with a jack, they realized that the brackets to be welded could actually be accessed by removing the flatbed lock boxes so no need to find a forklift - phew!

*Once the lockbox was removed, the failed Toyota welds were clearly visible*

*Mounting bracket and lockbox removed from frame*

*Second jack precisely aligning camper and flatbed back to correct position before re-welding*

*Finished weld on passenger side mounting bracket*

*Before repair, Andy can barely fit his hand between the top of the cab and the bottom of the camper*

*Thank you to the crew at Cartech - they came in on a Saturday to get us back on the road*

There is a lot of discussion in travel and overland forums about the wisdom of placing a camper setup like ours on a midsize truck. We knew that we were taking a risk with weight but felt it was worth it given the Tacoma’s proven ruggedness and because it was the standard size we wanted for world travel. We found the weak spot! The original Toyota welds gave way, but the welding was limited to the inside of the bracket. When we had the repairs done, the welds were completed again on the inside but in addition on the complete outer circumference of the bracket, stronger and better suited for the weight we have on them.

We are also impressed with the robustness of the flatbed itself and are glad we made the investment in Norweld. When the front brackets gave way, it put stress on the remaining brackets and the flatbed frame itself that was overhanging with no support. In the end, the flatbed frame did not have any damage or warping. The other takeaway is for Andy to slow down more on the many big bumps.

Gabon Part 2

Feeling strong and confident again with our truck back up to speed, we decided to re-attempt the road to Lopé National Park. The rains had come, but it was still very driveable.

*The truck had been clean for a grand total of 24 hours*

We had tried to research Lopé National Park in advance but it was difficult to find information. Because of our inability to speak French we never like to try to call in advance - phone calls are excrutiatingly awkward. So we decided to just show up at the main park lodge where we heard they organized tours and see if we could arrange something. Naturally, the road was a little longer than we had planned so we were pulling into town at almost dusk. And the lodge was closed. So using iOverlander, we drove by a couple of other lodges/areas to camp - also closed. On our last attempt, we drove by a hotel and were greeted by Musa who came out of his home and agreed to let us camp on the grounds for a fee. There were no other guests. He also agreed to call a guide for us - what a bonus!

Donald, the only English speaking guide in the park, showed up an hour later and we made our plan for the next day. He explained that the train that connects the town and park to Libreville had been broken down for several months so no one was coming. That explained why it felt so shut down and deserted. People were struggling without the visitors coming and without easy transportation to work. A country like Gabon has so little transportation infrastructure that when it breaks down, the consequences are harsh for people. The fallback is minivan taxis, typically crowded with passengers bumping along the challenging roads

We had a super morning with Donald in the park, a lot of excitement when we were tracking an elephant in the forest, but we never spotted him. We had seen elephants from our vehicle in the past, but it is a different feeling following one on foot in the forest. The park and surrounding area was stunning, a beautiful mix of savannah and forest.

*Our first new wildlife sighting - African Forest Buffalo*

And then we got back in our truck to (very carefully) travel the rest of the muddy road and prepare to enter the Congo.

Another mixed bag of adventures. We were feeling confident about the integrity of the truck and this shook us a little. On the upside, maybe we found the weak spot and all is good. Or, when feeling pessimistic, we think this could be the first sign of a series of stress problems. We hope not. Either way, we are ready for what comes ahead. Thank you for reading and next up, the Republic of Congo - hoping for gorillas!

Cameroun, Gabon and the Taco Taco

Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo

Nigeria