Introduction
Hello!! This is our website, hosted by 1and1.com, documenting our 4x4 overland trip from Stonehenge, UK to Cape Town, South Africa in a Land Rover 110 Defender which we completed from May 2010 to May 2011. The plan was pretty simple, we are gave up our jobs, sold the house, got married and headed South to start a new life in South Africa. We spent 3 months in Europe before we reached Morocco and then 9 months as we headed down the West Coast to Central Africa and on into Southern Africa. Please feel free to get in touch using this email address, we will get back to you as soon as we can: nmdbradshaw [at] gmail [dot] com Apologies for any un-replied emails, our previous email stopped working in May this year (ooooppps)
We are now based in Cape Town and we are always happy to meet up and speak with overlanders who are planning or have just completed similar trips. In the meantime Langebaan Sunset is Tweeting on Twitter.......
Our trip is over!! Have a great 2012 and we hope your travels are safe and wonderful! Vicki has been working for The Muskoka Foundation who help match overland travelers with local charities around the world so that you can Do Good As You Go. Contact them if you want to get involved in projects in Africa.
If you would like to buy prints and images from our trip you can see the best of best at Nick's Photography Website
We have also just uploaded the following data:
- Import process for our 4x4 into South Africa Duty Free
- Our full 1 year budget & medical kit see our prep page for more data.
- Our waypoints, tracks & updated our actual Vs planned route map
- FAQs page has also been updated
- Our NEW photos @ albums
- Our NEW videos @ UTube
- Post trip vehicle modifications read our upgrades article
We have just completed a Podcast about a "look back" at the trip in conjunction with Overland Live's Martin Solms. This will go live soon. In the mean time, listen to our Namibia Podcast @ Overland Live here
Our trip in numbers.........
- Friendly people: 1,000,000s
- Track points logged: 491,709
- Words written: 55,134
- KM covered: 48,361
- Miles covered: 30,226
- Max elevation feet: 10,655
- Photos taken: 10,305
- Litres of fuel: 4,839
- Waypoints logged: 1,893
- Movie clips: 1,754
- Gallons fuel: 1,064
- Days on road: 366
- Sunny blue skies: 263
- Malaria pills each: 241
- GB Memory used for pics & films: 151
- Average miles per day: 83
- Average cost of fuel pence/litre: 75
- Fuel stops: 73
- Litres of oil consumed: 60
- Av humidity %: 58
- Av daily spend Euro: 58
- Original daily budget Euro: 50
- Hottest shade temperature 'C: 48
- Litres oil used: 39.6
- Countries: 33
- Average cab temperature 'C: 32
- Economy mpg: 28
- Average speed mph: 28
- Cheapest fuel pence/litre: 27
- % overspend on planned budget: 19
- Number of passes climbed >6000ft: 18
- Cost per mile (pence): 13
- Oil changes: 6
- No. of arguments that may have used the word "divorce": 3
- Burst shocks: 2
- Most expensive fuel = UK £/litre: 1.22
- Real traffic fines: 1 (Morocco)
- Questionable traffic fines: 1 (B Faso)
- Bribes / proper rip offs: 1 (Rosso Ferry)
- No. stupid decisions: 1 (Rosso Ferry)
- Broken alternators: 1
- Wedding rings lost: 1
- Cheapest fuel = Angola £/litre: 0.28
- Thefts: 0
- Punctures: 0
- Coldest 'C: -2
- Would we do it again - yes
Inspiration and ideas for the trip came from many sources. This trip probably falls into the "grown up gap year" or sabbactical grouping. We have made some great friends since we started looking into this trip and met a lot of people who have a similar outlook be they going to Africa, Oz, Asia or RTW. Its been a chance for us to explore the world and try our hands at a variety of new things. Nick has always wanted to do more with his photography and Vicki is keen on travel in her native Africa. For both of us it was a chance to step outside our normal comfort zones, take time off from the "9 to 5" and happen upon experiences that may well change our lives forever.
Nick - Nick has been a life long amateur photographer and spent 16 years working in the technology sector, mainly in sales. He performed a variety of photographic studies on the trip and mainly shoots in black & white format using Canon 5D MKII & L Series lens kit. "Africa overland proved to be a life changing experience for me and my wife. We will never forget the moments we shared on the road".
- What did you miss the most? Family, a comfortable chair, Walkers Cheese & Onion crisps
- What did you NOT miss? Blackberry, 50 phone calls a day (I actually lost my phone on the trip)
- What did you fear the most? Holes in the mosquito net (turns out we had no major issues)
- 1 secret bit of information about you: Nick now knows what 3 roaring lions next to tent sounds like from 1am-3am wild camping in Botswana
- Why go? I was keen to try something new and see what happens, you never know what's round the corner, who you will meet and what might happen ;-)
- Anything you wished you had done on the trip but did not: Recorded sounds
- Regrets: Wished we could have spent more time in Central Africa
Vicki - Vicki moved to the UK in 2001 and worked at a life & pensions company having previously been a Restaurant Manager in Cape Town. Her interests include travel and wildlife. Vicki met Nick in 2005 and they got married in Feb 2010. Planning to embark on what some might say is a “challenging” honeymoon, a 20,000 km through Africa in an old Land Rover (turns out it was actually 48,361km). "Not most people’s first choice method of travel but it was one hell of an adventure!"
- What did you miss the most? Long hot baths but realised in Africa you don't need a hot bath ;-)
- What did you NOT miss? Telephones
- What did you fear the most? Snakes in the tent and hungry big cats! We came close in Botswana
- 1 secret bit of information about you: I was SA National Champion at Highland Dancing
- Why go? Because if you don't go, you'll never know
- Anything you wished you had done on the trip but did not: Find Nick's wedding ring :-)
- Regrets: Wished we could have spent more time in Central Africa
