Down to Kribi

Douala traffic

Doula from the river

The next morning they woke up too early for breakfast, so they packed and then the guy on duty made an effort to have some breakfast for them and they were on the road. There they were met by the G4S people who guided they through Douala on the way to Kribi.

Cameroon can seem a bit like a huge rain forest but you certainly see signs of big plantations. On this leg we saw bananas and oil palm, a little cassava and maize. Even though they seem to have offshore oil, they have so far maintained their agriculture but there is still great poverty in the place, lack of food security and lots of banditry.

View from Tara Plage

They were told that the place where they wanted to camp is close to the presidential week-end home and that the man himself was there that week-end. So they were advised to go to the Tara Plage, a small, simple inn at the end of a beach overlooking some oil rigs and the Gulf of Cameroon.

Tara Plage

Beach view

They chose a room seeing that the rains were threatening. The others settled under some trees outside. The room was simple enough, with cold water, a shower and fan, rather flattened mattress but the bed has a mosquito net! Of course there is electricity but this is an oil producing country and the power cut later on.

Settling camp at Tara Plage

They had shrimp fritters with tartare sauce for lunch and then went for a nap. It started pouring rain when they thought they should start dinner. Since there was not wind, she settled to cook some couscous and meatballs under the veranda. She tried the dish with red palm oil this time and it came out nicely.

Sunset on the Gulf

It was nice to settle for sleep with the sounds of waves crashing and night insects. Later it started to rain in earnest.

Waterfall into the sea

The morning activities had to do with vehicle maintenance while enjoying the sounds and view of the sea. Quick shopping, tyre repair etc in a rather slow, 


sleepy town where internet was not working and then a visit to the Lobe falls, rapids that come down into the sea, a quite spectacular and rare sight.

Beach kitchen

Fisherman's resto

Later, they went to a small fishermen’s cove to eat at a place set up on the beach: basic benches and table and the guy is cooking the fish right there at the beach. It was delicious fresh baby barracuda with bread fruit accompanied with a hand crushed chilli sauce of local invention.

A good nap, vehicle management and then dinner of braai bread and steak on the veranda of the Tara plage auberge followed by sleep in the dry comfort of the room. It poured that evening again and it was very pleasant and peaceful.

Bridge on the logging route

Activity along the logging route

In the morning they were up with a cup of coffee and biscuits and were on the road south and then east. It is a logging road and it is in the state it is because of the loggers. They managed to do only about 30km/hour on this road and they got to the tar only after noon.

They took the decision to find some place to stay in Ambam town, not far from the border instead of crossing that same day. They found Résidence Hotelliere du Monde, a small place that allowed the camping cars to park provided they took a room to shower etc and ate at the restaurant. This small unpretentious place is clean, serves good generous food that they had prepared for them from scratch.