Overland Africa

The adventure

Overlanding Africa means swapping hotels for a tent, timetables for dirt roads and the view from a plane window for a continent unrolling outside a converted truck. Days start before sunrise with a camp breakfast, then hours of driving past baobabs, villages and roadside markets, with everyone pitching in to cook, wash up and push when the truck gets stuck.

On the classic route from Cape Town to Nairobi, you climb the red dunes of Sossusvlei at dawn, watch elephants at waterholes in Etosha, glide through the Okavango Delta in a dugout mokoro and feel the spray of Victoria Falls. Then come the beaches of Lake Malawi, the plains of the Serengeti and, for those who add them, the mountain gorillas of Uganda or Rwanda. Further west, routes cross the Sahara and follow the coasts of West Africa. The weeks blur together, and by the end the group feels like family.

Why it’s epic

• Sunrise climbs on the giant red dunes of Sossusvlei in Namibia.
• Gliding through the Okavango Delta in a dugout mokoro.
• Game drives in Etosha and the Serengeti, plus Victoria Falls.
• Optional mountain gorilla trekking in Uganda or Rwanda.

What it is

Overlanding means travelling by truck across Africa, camping along the way.

How to do it

Overland companies run routes such as Cape Town to Nairobi or the West Africa loop, with set departures.

Top tip

Plan visas carefully; some must be obtained in advance.

Need to know

• Visa rules vary by country, and some must be arranged before you travel while others are issued at the border.
• See a travel clinic well before you go about vaccinations and malaria tablets, and carry proof of yellow fever vaccination where required.
• Overland trucks are participation trips, so expect to help with cooking, cleaning and putting up camp.
• Insurance should cover remote travel and medical evacuation.

Do it yourself

• Tours and ticketsGetYourGuide

What I packed

Six months on a truck through West Africa, camping almost every night. Here's what earned its place. The full list is in my packing post.

• The North Face Base Camp DuffelAmazonLives in a truck locker for months and shrugs off rain and dust.
• Compression packing cubesAmazonTurns one big bag into a set of drawers.
• Folding camp bedAmazonOff the ground, away from rocks and creepy crawlies.
• Rugged solar power bankAmazonSits on the dashboard and charges while you drive.
• Rechargeable head torchAmazonYou'll use it every single night.
• 50% DEET insect repellentAmazonWest African mosquitoes carry malaria. Take it seriously.
• Filter water bottleAmazonDrink tap and stream water without buying plastic bottles.

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My experience

Ticked off, but the full story is still to be written up.