General Chat

I was chatting to the donkeys Sheila lol Anna :-)

So, it's all Anna's fault lol

We are up early today. Breakfast is at 6am and we will be leaving camp at 7. It’s the hardest day today as we are going to climb the 300m dune (Chgaga). We all think that is going to be really tough but actually it’s quite steady going. We climb gradually and it’s relatively cool as it is early. We go up in single file with the slowest walkers at the front. Tracey is the leader – bless her, her feet are just covered with blisters. I am full of admiration for her – the way she just plods on without complaining. Clare, Susie and I are the back 3. Because we are going slow it is easy and we laugh and chatter on the way up. Andy is in front of me and I try to stand in his footprints to try and stop my feet from sinking. Not that it matters as I have on long trousers and gaitors. At the top the views are spectacular. The desert may be harsh but it is certainly beautiful at times. We hold up Diana’s banners and pose for photo’s. Then we take a few ourselves and have a few minutes to reflect. I think of Mum and I think of Diana. I am so proud to be here and proud to have raised so much money for such a good cause. I’m also having a really good time! Now it is time to descend. Boy does it look steep from up here. I feel excited. I can feel the adrenalin pumping as I ask Ken how we get down. “However you like” is his reply. Boom, boom, boom –my heart is beating fast. For a moment I wonder how on earth I’m going to get down, then I’m off. I opt for sitting on my bum and sliding down using my trekking poles like ski sticks. IT’S ABSOLUTELY BRILL! Waahooo. Susie B suddenly flies past – she’s rolled down – sand and trekking poles all over – she’s mad!!! Most of the group slide down on their bum’s like me, some walk and a couple run. I stand up and run the last bit – I can’t stop. Yipppeeee! It’s exhilarating – we all feel fantastic. Once we get to the bottom we have 5 minutes to chill. I need a wee as do 3 others. We set off to go around the corner out of sight – bugger – there is no around the corner just a pile of sand. At this stage in the week we just think sod it and we crouch down in a row and pee together then have a communal bonfire for our loo roll. With all our dignity now gone (not that we care!) we get ready to be on our way. We walk through sand for about 3 hours. It’s a lot tougher walking on the sand (especially in 38 degrees!). We stop for another good lunch and a chance to get our boots off and get some air to our hot feet. It’s the best lunch so far. It’s hot veg (cauliflower, green peppers, carrots, potatoes, courgettes) in a spicy sauce. Yummy yummy. A few of us have seconds. Fresh fruit follows then it’s time to fill up our platypus’ and we’re off. The afternoon walking is tough. We walk a long way and through the sand. It’s very hot (40o) and it’s windy again. We are covered in sand from head to toe. We seem to walk for ages before we see camp in the distance. Yeah – what a sight. It gives us the energy burst we need and off we go. We decide that tonight is going to be the night for sleeping under the stars, which are so beautiful here. It seems that there are millions more than what we see from home. We also decide to crack open a ‘few’ bottles of red wine. Dinner is pasta with a vegetable sauce and cheese to top (after the usual soup starter of course!). There is freshly baked bread, still warm – it’s delicious and I want to take the chef home with me! After dinner the crew light a fire where we sit and chat while they entertain us by singing and playing the drums. We (well 7 of us) continue drinking wine and the crew get us playing the drums and dancing and singing along (heya heya heya wa). I notice that the time is flying by and I know I should be having some sleep but we are having such a good time. We teach the crew the conga (well sort of lol) and drink more wine (even though I think the bar of Ken shut a while ago Susie keeps going back for more which we are only too happy to drink). We have a line where we massage each other’s shoulders. We eventually get our sleeping bags around midnight and it doesn’t take us long to drop off (wine or fresh air? Probably the wine lol). One of the Mohammeds (Okey Kokey) is on patrol (after consuming red wine and helping Paul with his Southern Comfort!). He waves to me as I get up to go for a wee. I wave back still half asleep. I fall back to sleep almost the second I get back in my sleeping bag but the morning comes around so quickly. Amazingly I don’t feel hungover (probably due to making sure I drunk a lot of water with the wine). It turns out we had about 2 bottles of wine each – we look forward to the bar bill!

Day 5 The walking was good today Jack, Clare and I were at the front today as had been on most days and thought it was a good walk we always seemed to get a great momentum going and finding our landmarks would march for them full steam ahead!!, only today we were all bursting for the toilet towards the end and just wanted to get there!! Clare started running so I started, Lahcen too, and before I knew it like a right fanny I went head over heels and fell to the ground slightly grazed my hands, it appeared I fell over my nuisance trekking poles! I had hurt my pride more than anything else!! I arrive back at camp and greet all the Berber's which I have become acustom to doing everyday it is a simple thing that brings a smile to their faces and even more so that I know each one by his name that they appear to lap up!!! I go and sit in the mess tent and crash, I am really wanting to just sit and chat as usual so I join Tor(Dr) & Ken(Leader) and talk about home, so far it has been a pleasurable experience for me, I sit and watch Lahcen & a few of the Berber's play football, I contemplate as to whether I will have a bash at kicking the ball around with them and decide too only after I have roped Paul and Andy into it aswell! After a few minutes I drop out as it is to fast a pace for me and their control is much better with the ball in the mild sandstorm that is going on!....... Someone decides that we should not buy from a lady who is sat with her children so we decide to go and chat with her and offer her some small items for her children, which unbeknown to me, is a big deal to the children as they fuss between themselves and their mother asks them to settle down! Sweet!!! All of them seem very grateful, which brings a warm glow to your heart, just like the young boy who on the day of travelling to our start point asked me for my pen and I first refused!! Then realise how meanial it was to me but meant a great deal to him which was obvious from the huge smile that appeared on his face when I threw it out of the window whilst the minibus was driving off....These people are so humble, yet live quite happily and appreciate the smallest things in life which I have started to aswell! Lahcen & Abdul the landrover driver laugh when I approach them and ask if I can take the landrover for a spin!!!...lol. As I had mentioned to Lahcen a couple of days earlier I was missing not being able to drive! Guess what? I get to drive it!! I jump in and find out straight away that it is a bench seat and I was unable to move the seat forward so I had to sit on the edge !! This has already made me a little nervous!! I stall around 4 times as I am finding it hard to get it to pull off as the sand has built up around the front wheels and the pedals are very spongy not what I am used too at all! Lahcen eventually pushing my foot into the pedal to give it more revs, of which I was scared of doing incase I damage the landrover!!!....Abdul is now looking worried as it is his bread and butter and it's a 'woman' driver....pmsl! I pull off and they are threating already I cannot help but to laugh!!, I drive towards the flat ground we had covered to get into camp and then the sand starts making visibility hard so I am asked to go back to camp only a couple of hundred metres away!! I put my foot on the brake by accident.....oops and Lahcen and Abdul nearly bump their heads on the windscreen!!!! Abdul is really stressed now!!!! but I can't help but have a schoolgirl giggle to myself and Lahcen just grins at me!!! I get back to camp pull back up to the toilets and Abdul realises I have slid the watertank back and him and Lahcen need to drag it to the door of the Lanny again!!....Ooops....sorry!! I stroll away as dignified as I can....lol, and then get told by a couple in the tent they saw my emergency stop!!!!! I am still chuft I drove the Lanny though! I go and have a shower and come out feeling all refreshed again, it may be freezing but it is so nice when you are in those conditions!!, I go to the mess tent after getting myself dressed and have some food! It is nice they did their best which I thought was fantastic for the little kitchen they worked from! A little oven that produced fresh bread everyday and cakes every couple of days! A few of us stay up and chat on the flatulance mats!!!! lol (They will know who they are) we have a giggle an try to think of new board names for eachother related to events and stuff from the trek.....one that comes up is P**** Pants Camel A**!!!! I won't divulge sorry!!! For the privacy of that person!! Anna has her accident as afore mentioned and sits about trying to hide her knickers to Lahcens distress!!!...lol She ends up borrowing his sleeping bag to save him any ear bashings......bless them both!! There are lights approaching camp and we start to wonder who it may be, it is a 4X4 towing a car that has broken down and wondered if we could help them!!!

I will do day 6 tomorrow!!!!....lol Susie xx

pmsl at the flatulence mats Susie.lol. Ok I admit to being sat on them on more than one occasion :-)) Anna

This really is making me smile - I tried to be discreet and not mention Anna's accident PMSL Jack xx

This will save Andy a job but I've asked him to post my other notes as I'm off to New York for a few days! Thursday – Day 6 No need for alarms. Nobody had been able to sleep and we were up at 5.30am muttering vile and unmentionable things about donkeys! Suffice to say that the words “trekking poles”, “shove” and “sun don’t shine” featured largely in this conversation! The little buggers were now just outside our mess tent, grazing quietly and looking as though butter wouldn’t melt! Today was Chgaga day; a day we’d all been dreading. Awaiting us was the 300m climb up a sand dune about an hour’s walk from camp. We strapped on our gaiters and hoped they would keep the sand out of our boots as we progressed through soft, deep dunes. At the base of Chgaga we set off with Ken and Tracey leading the way. This was so that we all climbed at Tracey’s pace and she wouldn’t get despondent at the back. The going was very tough for her as she only had Ken’s footprints to tread in. The rest of us did the same and the footprints became small steps in the sand. We wended our way across the ridge of the dune, zigzagging back and forth, stopping every few steps according to Tracey’s pace. This gave us the opportunity to look back at the view behind us and not just at the task ahead. The view was stunning. We could now see three Bedouin tourist camps and the Chelsea tractors used to ferry the tourists from place to place. We felt very smug that we were doing it “properly” and sorry for them that they weren’t. Within 40 minutes Tracey reached the top and collapsed on the ridge. Just a few minutes later we were all at the summit and sat on the ridge fascinated by the view. It was like the top of the world. To the south were rolling dunes as far as the eye could see and to the north, Hamada and the Jebel Bani. We all sat on the ridge holding the CRUK banner for our team photo. This was a very emotional moment for everyone and we looked at each other, watery eyed, silently saying “We did it.” After several photos, taken by Ken, Lahcen and Tor, we all lined up for the slide down the other side. Expecting to glide effortlessly it was a surprise to find that it required a sort of rowing motion using our trekking poles and the arms and thighs soon started to ache. My left arm was less than happy, following the injury to it over two months ago, so I had to continue using just my right arm which wasn’t terribly effective. About 20 metres from the bottom I stood up and ran the rest of the way, momentum almost toppling me headfirst into the sand dune! I lay there laughing and turned to watch the others coming down. “Take photos”, they yelled, so I took several although it was hard to tell who was who. Everyone started shaking the sand out of their boots, socks, pockets etc except Tor and I who had knee length gaiters and had not so much as a grain of sand in our boots! We set off for the remainder of the morning’s walk and the heat was immense with very little breeze to compensate. We looked behind us for one last view of Chgaga and saw our footprints in the ridges of the dunes. We continued to walk across more dunes and vast expanses of vegetation but it was hard to appreciate as the heat was so extreme. A glance at Cliff’s thermometer proved what we suspected - 43C and rising. The final hour before lunch was interminably long and hot and I started to feel quite miserable and had a slight tummy ache. At one point I was dive bombed by something resembling a very large moth and to my horror I realised it was a locust! Ugh! Thankfully there were no more. Ken realised that everyone was finding this tough and we had a couple of unscheduled breaks for energy bars and water. I could hardly bear to sit down or take off my backpack in case I couldn’t get started again and Tracey was in agony. Finally we rounded a bend and saw the lunch camp just ahead under some trees. Expecting a stop of around 2-3 hours we all dropped and started loosening our boots. Then Ken told us we had under an hour and a half. We thought he was joking but no such luck. After lunch most of us tried to doze but before long the wind started to pick up as usual and Ken told us we had to set off as there was another 4 hours’ walk ahead of us. We were all stunned. Tracey looked strangely calm and then we discovered that Tor had taken the decision out of her hands, given her painkillers akin to morphine and was sending her on to camp in the jeep. We waved her off then wrapped ourselves up and set off across more dunes. The walk was hard but satisfying and the final hour took us across a dried up river bed dotted with acacia trees. Suddenly camp was in sight. Showers again! This time I was first in. A short while later as I returned to my tent I passed Tracey who seemed disoriented and was babbling incoherently. She was fine, Tor assured us, it was just the medication. Plenty of wine was drunk this evening, although not by me! Almost falling asleep in my dinner I went to bed early, around 8pm, but the Berbers lit a fire and several of the others sat around it singing and drinking wine. I dozed on and off although sleep was impossible as they were too noisy, but I didn’t mind. Around 11pm about nine of the trekkers came to collect their sleeping bags having decided to sleep outside. By midnight they were all pretty drunk and dopey and went to sleep quite quickly.

whoops - got the same syndrome as Jack now! Suddenly camp was in sight. Showers again! This time I was first in. A short while later as I returned to my tent I passed Tracey who seemed disoriented and was babbling incoherently. She was fine, Tor assured us, it was just the medication. Plenty of wine was drunk this evening, although not by me! Almost falling asleep in my dinner I went to bed early, around 8pm, but the Berbers lit a fire and several of the others sat around it singing and drinking wine. I dozed on and off although sleep was impossible as they were too noisy, but I didn’t mind. Around 11pm about nine of the trekkers came to collect their sleeping bags having decided to sleep outside. By midnight they were all pretty drunk and dopey and went to sleep quite quickly. Daisy

Thursday day 6 We are up really early again this morning; we decide to start our days earlier, hoping not to get caught in the sandstorms that have been happening in the afternoons! Today is the day we walk up the 300 m dune that is called Chgaga. It doesn’t look too far from our camp, and doesn’t look as scary as I thought it would. It was 20 c this morning at 7 am, and I was shivering! It took us a while to get to the base of the dune. My chest was hurting, and my boots were getting filled with sand with every step I walked. We had a few short rests while everyone caught up, and finally we reach the bottom of the dune. We set of in single file and eventually we make it to the top in 40 minutes. The view from the top of the dune is amazing. There is a tourist camp at the base of Chgaga, and this looks tiny when we are looking down at it. We all have our CRUK or Pink Fund T-shirts on and we have our photos taken at the top with the Cancer Research banners. It is so hot and it isn’t even 9 am yet. Now comes the fun part. We have to get to the bottom of the dune now. It is an almost vertical drop and I was a bit wobbly on the top lol. I don’t really like heights. We can either run down or slide down on our bums. I chose the second option. Suzy B decided to roll down it lol.I used my walking pole like a ski to help me down but it washard work, I had sand in my pants and down my boots so I decided to run down the rest of the dune. When we get to the bottom, we have a chance to have a rest while we wait for everyone else to descend. Then Cliff and Lahcen decide to walk up it again!! We checked the temp on Cliffs thermometer and it is 39c at half nine in the morning. Another hot day then! After lunch, we walk amongst small dunes all afternoon till we reach camp for the evening. We saw some motorbikes or quad bikes? today lol. Walking was ok, just very windy and sandy. We are told we have to get up at 5.30 in the morning so we all had good intentions of going to bed nice and early, but we decided that one bottle of red would do us no harm, so we shared the first bottle between 5 of us I think! Well one bottle led to another and another, and my most vivid memory is of Susie babes creeping into Ken and Victoria’s tent to get bottle after bottle of red wine,til in the end she brought the rest of the box out lol, The Berbers lit a fire and were singing to us. We tried to teach them the conga, but we ended up just staggering drunkenly around the camp. A few of us drunken ones decided to sleep outside, so i got all wrapped up in my sleeping bag and next thing i knew, it was morning lol. Anna

flatulence mats????? i must have missed those ;-))) Day 6 We set of early and its much cooler and easier to walk. As we approach Chgaga we all feel a little apprehensive about climbing it but its so beautiful that you cant help feeling exhilerated. The climb turns out to be not so bad after all and the view from the top makes up for any puffing and panting. We all stand at the top and have our pics taken holding the banner that Diana left for us - we're all really chuffed and it shows. I like quite a few, opted to go down on me bum and its hard work lol. Once at the bottom we have 10 mins to chill and i cant believe it when Cliff announces he wants to go back up and have another go - he's been great the whole trek so far and is game for anything. We set off for the rest of the mornings walk and its starting to get hotter but for some reason i cant seem to drink any water without feeling sick. We reach lunch camp but i really cant be bothered to eat anything but know i should. The afternoon seems very long and tough to me, am i the only one i wonder to myself. Its a great feeling when the camp comes into sight. I flop down in our tent and try to drink as much water as i can because i know i havent had enough today and thats why im probably feeling a bit wobbly. I feel much better after loads of water and a rest and am now ravenous and devour the pasta and sauce as if its the most delicious meal ive had in ages - infact i think it probably was lol. Weve decided to sleep outside tonight and the Berbers have made us a fire which we sit round drinking wine and listening to them sing, we soon join in and everyone is in hysterics laughing. Hokey Cokey Blokey seems a bit drunk and decides that he like the look of my left leg and proceeds to put his hand up my trouser leg (of all the women in the group im the least likely to want a mans hand on my leg lol). He has a grip like iron and im finding it hard to shake him off lol so Paul slaps his hands away and that seems to do the trick. He then decides that Andy looks like a good bet and starts rubbing his shoulders and chest, much to the amusement of the rest of us. By this point Yvette and I are laughing like a pair of drains and cant seem to stop. We decide that we better try and get some sleep as we're up at 5.30 so we settle down and look at the stars for a few minutes before going to sleep. Its been a good day today.

PMSL - That was such a good day! Jack x

this is a really enjoyable read. You all have my admiration and envy, it is great that you had such a good time while raising so much money. veryw ell done all of you. Ann Glos

Oh guys it seems I missed the best bits!! And i'd give anything to have been there!! xx

Are there any photos yet?? The descriptions make you want to see the places. x

Won't be too much longer with the photos, hopefully should have them all sorted out by tonight, and I'll give out the addy either tonight or tomorrow morning, depending on when I get done. Thursday was ace, more so the morning than the afternoon. I'd give anything to go back and descend down the Chgaga sand slide again. I really wish now I'd climbed back up with Cliff and Lahcen (he was a top bloke) and gone down again. :-))

Sheila, Hokey Cokey Blokey 'rubbing' my shoulders is a bit of an understatement, it felt more like ritualistic torture lol.

I'm a bit behind. Day 6 - Thursday Today was D-Day, that is Dune-Day. This was the day that we had talked about the most and in some cases feared due to the fact that we had to climb a 300m dune. Up until now, whilst we had to encounter some dunes on the first afternoon, we hadn't had to walk across large areas of sand over long distances so when we heard that we would be walking across sand all day long then this didn't make the task seem any easier. However, before we faced that encounter, all of us faced a disturbance during the night that I briefly mentioned in Wednesday's entry. I heard this noise during the night but couldn't make out what it was. Not being fully alert, I initially thought it sounded like someone sounding a horn or siren. As time wore on, I could hear the sound in the distance closely followed by the same repeated sound again but much nearer this time, in fact it sounded like it was coming from within the camp. It wasn't until the morning that we found out what it was. Apparently it were donkeys braying in the night and according to someone, one of them had stuck its head round the flap of the tent. I don't think anyone was particularly amused, especially after the occasion when the rucksacks were stolen. We had also decided to leave camp an hour earlier than normal in order to get more walking done in the morning due to the high winds and sandstorms that we had been facing on previous afternoons. Given the donkey situation during the night, I'm not sure whether getting up an hour earlier was a help or a hinderance. I think this morning may have been the morning that the Berbers made some fresh Ciabatta style bread that was absolutely delicious, so much so that I decided to stuff my face with that for breakfast and forego porridge. You had to marvel at the dedication shown by the two chefs who made the most of the minimal cooking facilities at their disposal. We left camp at the earlier time and headed towards Chgaga, the big range of dunes that lay before us. It took about half an hour to get there and we stopped to take photos and take on some more water before the climbing began. As we began climbing, it became more noticeable how we would reach the top of the dune. Until now, we had assumed that the route to the summit would be one long, straight gradient. This was not the case however and the initial climb was very gradual and involved turning a couple of corners. The last part involved a straight climb to the top and for this we first stopped for a quick snack and drink of water then Ken instructed us that we would walk in single file and the slower-paced walkers would be at the front so that we could all reach the summit together instead of say, a handful of walkers getting there way before everyone else. We proceeded to climb in single file, pausing every now and then for those up front who needed to take it in their own time. I found that it helped if I used the footprint left behind by whoever was in front of me, as it was deep enough for it to create a staircase effect, which aided climbing. Then suddenly that was it, we had reached the top and it was far easier than I could have ever anticipated. We took in the views which were magnificent and each had a moment to ourselves as we reflected why it was we wanted to be part of this trek and all that we'd done to get this far - the result of a year's worth of planning, training and fundraising. We also posed for the group photo that we had planned on having, whilst holding the Cancer Research banners. Ken, Victoria & Lahcen took the photos whilst we stood or sat there, wearing also the Pink Fund/Cancer Research t-shirts. The descent from the dune however was to be one of the funniest moments of the week. Ken took us to the edge of the descent. The choice was then up to us, we could run down the slope or slide down on our backsides. Most of us decided on the latter as we made our way down this massive sand slide. It has to be said that it seemed a lot harder work than going up it, as unless you decide to roll down it then gravity doesn't come into it. What I did was use my walking sticks (I had shortened them) and row my way down. This was quite tiring on the arms after a while and in the end decided to use my legs and feet to kick my way down, thus generating a tidal wave of sand between my legs! It was great fun despite accumulating a pile of sand in my boots, which I emptied out. Lahcen & Cliff decided they wanted to go down again, so we waited for them to climb back up and then down again.

Day 6 c'td After a break, we climbed our way out of the more heavy dunes and left Chgaga behind as we descended down into palm groves. We were still quite a way to go until lunch but right now I was feeling completely at ease with my walking and feeling the best I had felt all week. With this in mind, I decided to push on and stride out a bit more and was one of the first ones into camp for lunch with Jack and Clare. It had been tiring work in the heat despite feeling comfortable with my walking, and I collapsed out on the rug whilst getting my breath back. I got in a good breather and I had really enjoyed this morning's walk but a few of the others reported that it had been long and tiring. Lunch was slightly shorter than usual with the need to press on before the wind became a factor, however the plan didn’t really work as the wind did decide to pick up slightly earlier and blow sand across us anyway. If the morning had been enjoyable then the afternoon was understandably anything but. However, although the sand blowing around was a problem as usual, the more irritating aspect was the monotonous route in the direction of evening camp. I felt it offered nothing to aim at in order to motivate us on towards our destination as the bushes and the small undulating sands tended to obscure whatever lay on the horizon. The feeling of having walked on sand all day was beginning to lend itself towards general fatigue as well. However, we reached camp sooner than any of us first thought as it appeared that Ken had decided to get us moving quicker by telling us that it was a 4 hour afternoon walk when it was much shorter than that! Whatever, it was a relief to see camp earlier than was expected. Surprisingly, the shower facilities were back again tonight, having been informed earlier in the week that they would be in camp only on alternate nights. Oddly enough, I turned down the decision to shower, I can only think that I had now reached a sloth-like existence for the evening and the prospect of hopping about in a confined space, whilst trying to put clothes on just did not appeal to me. It wasn’t the most attractive spot that we had camped in all week but the wind had kicked up so much sand that it was like peering through a kind of gauze. Afternoon tea arrived as soon as we were back in camp and dinner followed later on. Earlier in the day, some of us had agreed to camp out under the stars tonight; the trek literature had recommended it as an experience to be savoured, so we agreed to do so. The Berbers asked us whether we would like a fire to be lit and entertainment provided for the evening, we said yes with the intention of going to work on the bottles of wine that Ken had on him. As the singing got underway, I joined the others later on to find the El Vino in full flow. The Berbers tried to get us to play their instruments, whilst we tried to show them the conga; both sides arguably failing miserably to achieve either. Mohammed the truck driver (otherwise known by us as Hokey Cokey Blokey) was even more inebriated and took a particular liking to Paul’s Southern Comfort. Someone suggested a massage, which then turned into a group massage with Mohammed then insisting on massaging everyone – I can only say that his grip felt more akin to acute strangulation! Those that had gone to bed early were probably cursing us, as we carried on until midnight before then fetching our mattresses and sleeping bags outside. I think I was the only one who didn’t get a good night’s sleep and was glad when morning came, even if it was 5.30am. Friday was our final full day’s walking before the return to Ouarzazate, I was beginning to feel a bit sad at the thought of that.

I'm going to wait until I get home to add day 7 in case anyone else has a day 6! Catch ya this evening. Love Jack (who managed to escape Mohammeds clutches!) x