24 days and counting

25/09/12    24 days to go and counting. 
A bit about our remarkable van.  An Iveco Daily van, just about the size of a Ford transit. These vehicles are quite sought after by overland travellers. Ours was the Police control vehicle for Coventry Airport. As there have been no crashes at Coventry, it has not had much use. We are so lucky as it has done only 20,000 very gentle miles. Now converted to our home, it has 4 wheel drive, low range gearbox and locking front and back axels, with extra high ground clearance and armour plating on the underside it is well protected from damage in the most difficult terrain. We derive a great deal of confidence from having such a great van.

The van is ready - well sort of !
Deadlines have been and gone, we are still making lists of lists of lists of things to 'accomplish' and so on, The best preparation so far was a day out spent off road training. Learning to drive under really difficult conditions on truly bad roads. This remarkable day was spent in the company of the good natured instructor, Kevin, who gave us the confidence to drive through gullys and craters constantly reminding us not to use the clutch in difficult terrain; he taught us how to use our winch and all the other shiny bits of equipment that Noel has proudly installed on the van. We are feeling sort of prepared! but not quite sure how prepared.

As we reach the point of departure Ping is getting very excited and Noel has shifted from blythly talking about the adventures in store , pointing out the route on the map to anyone who shows and interest; to experiencing abject fear!  'Are we really driving through The Congo?'
Make no mistake we are both so aware of how fortunate we are to be able to  embark on such an experience.

So here goes!

Driving through mud - in deepest Surrey!