The Challenge
To drive from the UK to Cameroon in a 1 litre, left-hand drive car...in 5 weeks.
We are taking part in the second Adventurists' Africa Rally. In July 2008 42 teams set off on the first Rally, but only 28 managed to arrive at the finishing line in time for the party 6 weeks later, raising £75000 for charity in the process.
The Rally is taking place over the Christmas and New Year period this time, and we have 5 weeks to make it from Dunsfold Park, just south of Guildford (the Top Gear test track), to Limbé in Cameroon in time for the finishing party on the 16th of January.
Our means of transport for this journey is a 23 year old French Renault 5 (called 'Rene'), which will be auctioned at the end of the rally to raise further money for charity.
We are planning on taking the coastal route through Morocco, Mauritania and Senegal as far as the Gambia, before heading east into Mali and Burkina Faso. From here we'll head back to the coast in Ghana and along the coast road through Togo and Benin to Nigeria before finally reaching Cameroon.
The sharper among you will by now have realised that there is a small flaw in this plan - once the car is auctioned we will be left transportless in Cameroon. Luckily, thanks to the gift of flight, Air Afrique will be bringing us back to London via Tripoli.
Assuming we reach Cameroon, that is.