My name is Dan Grec, I previously drove a TJ 40,000 miles from the top of Alaska to the bottom of Argentina. (Summary and details of the trip on my website: The Road Chose Me)
It's been a long time in the making, and I'm bursting with excitement to announce my next Overland adventure:
Two years circumnavigating the African continent in my 2007 JKUR with custom diesel conversion, camper setup and more.
The Jeep build and all the details for preparation will be covered exclusively at JPFreek Adventure Magazine.
So, as far south as you are now, is it summer there. Or I guess, towards the end of summer. You didn't mention it being hot, and by the look of some of those pictures, it gets rather warm there.
Stay safe and don't worry about getting too close to the wild animals, they'll let you know where close enough is.
After all that it was time for a change of pace so I visited a Cheetah Conservation place.
I will never, ever forget patting a cheetah while he purrs loudly:
Details here: Otjitotongwe Cheetah Guest Farm | The Road Chose Me
And then it was time for a visit to Etosha National Park. I have been told no visit to Namibia is complete without a stop.
I enjoyed it, though I think I prefer the completely wild animals. I have been spoiled already
Tons of photos here: Etosha National Park | The Road Chose Me
Namibia continues to impress. I love this place as much as I always thought I would!
Inspiring...read through your separate blog posts from diesel disaster to today. Your patience at the border crossings is amazing. And if a pic is worth a thousand words....your's speak volumes.
Don't change a thing, other than more frequent updates! Continued luck to you.
I made a stop at the The Ju/’Hoansi Living San Museum where locals are the museum pieces, showing how their ancestors lived on the land for generations.
This fascinating man told me through a translator he actually hunted giraffe with his dad with this bow and arrow when he was a boy.
The elephants got a little agitated when I moved the Jeep (because it's so big, I think), but they don't mind me on foot so much. I was extremely careful to keep the Jeep between me and them, and even so it was probably stupid to get out of the Jeep.
Absolutely there are videos! I have thousands of hours of HD video so far, I'm uploading it all to YouTube here: http://youtube.com/c/theroadchoseme
After 3,538 miles in Namibia, it's time to wave goodbye to this magical country and say hello to Botswana, African country number 19!
I have been told many, many great things about Bots, so I'm really looking forward to exploring the remote corners.
I'm also filming a YouTube series as I move around. I'm a little behind editing the thousands of hours of HD video I have, so the latest to go live is showing my time in Cameroon a few months back.
My YT channel is here: http://youtube.com/c/theroadchoseme
The Cameroon video is here:
In Overland Travel Essentials: West Africa – Myths, Misconceptions and Misnomers I debunk the most commonly-held myths about traveling the West Coast of Africa in your own 4x4 vehicle.
I did it - you can too!
As well as de-bunking the most commonly-held myths I also give real-world practical advice and suggestions, and list a bunch of must-see places in West Africa.
Finally, the price of gasoline and diesel is listed for every single country, and also the price and where to apply for and obtain every single visa for the entire coast line!
I think you had an awesome adventure and I liked following your thread.
I also think that if you want to sell your memoirs here you should get a yellow star.
I have been checking out the spectacular wildlife Botswana has to offer.
Each of the links below has a ton more photos, or click any photo to see more.
I'm a bit behind editing the thousands of hours of HD footage I have filmed on the West Coast.
My latest YouTube video just went up, it's about my time exploring Gabon - possibly my favorite country on the West Coast.
I can't believe more people don't explore there!
I vow to get one online every couple of weeks now to catch up with the backlog!
Some of you must be wondering what it would be like to ride along with me in the Jeep for 10 days, or even do what I'm doing full time.
The Editor of JPFreek Adventure Magazine flew out to Africa and did exactly that, and you can read all of his thoughts on what I'm doing with my life in the latest FREE edition of the magazine.
Checkout this story in the magazine to get an outsiders perspective on what I'm doing with my life:
So you're still seeing signs of a Chinese foot print there? Seems they are everywhere on the continent. They're not there to help the people and you never hear or read anything about it.
Yep, the Chinese are everywhere on this continent. Building roads and railways to strip resources.
I think the smart countries have negotiated deals where they at least get something out of it. The others the president just pockets a ton of money.
No wildlife at all in Lesotho. I suspect it was all eaten a long time ago (but I'm not sure)
Thank you for keeping us updated on your trip around Africa. I've been following your YouTube channel and your videos are excellent snippets into your journey. What's next for you after Africa?
I'm concentrating and working so hard on this, I really have no idea. I'll have absolutely zero money, so as much as I would like to keep going, I will be forced to return to some kind of job or other.
I'm planning on shipping the Jeep back to North America and I will live in Northern Canada again.
But still a solid year to go here, so that's what I concentrating on!
Thank you for keeping us updated on your trip around Africa. I've been following your YouTube channel and your videos are excellent snippets into your journey. What's next for you after Africa?
From there, I dropped down the super-famous Sani Pass into South Africa. It's a stunning pass with a few wicked switchbacks, of course the first vehicle to ever drive it was a Jeep!
Those people will be doing the same thing in 100 years and the west will be in chaos. Makes a person wonder who's smarter. Well, maybe the west will be doing the same in 100 years.
You reached a altitude the guy at the bar will never see. What kind of beer did they have?
After 32,000 miles through 21 countries in Africa, I have officially reached the Southern-most tip of Africa, which is the half way point of the expedition.
Already it has been the adventure of my lifetime, and it's only half way done!
From here, it's North through another 15 or so countries on my way to Egypt in the North East. I hope you'll join me for the adventure.
Before setting out to circle Africa, I drove 40,000 miles from Alaska to Argentina on the Pan-Am Highway & finally I have published a book about my adventure:
My first taste of Overland adventures changed my life. This book is a collection of the adventures I had, the people I met and the lessons they taught me. It has taken me many years to write because it took many years for the lessons to sink in!
I hope it will inspire you to get out there and live adventures of your own!
AVAILABLE NOW: Grab a print or digital copy on Amazon, or (very soon) apple iBooks.
I have just posted a new video on YouTube, this one is about the 6 weeks I spent exploring all over Angola.
It's only the second country on the entire continent I have extended my visa in, so you can imagine how much I enjoyed my time there.
Angola really has everything you can imagine, and now the visa is getting easier and easier to get. I hear some nationalities can now get it on arrival at the border. Sweet!
For anyone thinking about it, get yourself to Angola!
-Dan
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