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Bikepacking Western Africa

by Brian · Published February 9, 2024 · Updated March 3, 2024

This is the map for the entire route discussed in this post. To Export GPX files, click on the three horizontal bars in the upper right hand corner of the map and select Export selected map data... To see full screen, click here (opens in new window)

I spent 100 days riding from Morocco to Ghana on a full suspension Mountain Bike during the fall of 2023. It was a fantastic trip with a lot of “ups” and just a couple “downs.” I tired hard to comprehend the culture of Western Africa. Opportunities to talk to people were endless because I was solo, people in this part of the world are extremely outgoing, and due to the remote nature of my route, I was kind of a spectacle. I don’t claim to “understand Western Africa” by any means, however there are certain themes that I noticed which set this part of the world apart from anywhere I have ever toured before. This page serves as the “hub” for the daily journals. If you want to read them in order, you can find the first post here. If you want to just see each post categorized by country, click on the BOLD headers below, and you will be taken to all the posts related to your country of choice.

BIKEPACKING MOROCCO

I spent 33 days in Morocco, and would have happily spent the full 90 days allowed to Americans. Would I go back? Yes. For bike touring, it’s a top destination: lots of good scenery, mountains, deserts, and oak woodlands. The people were great – some of the most friendly I’ve encountered anywhere in the world. Drivers were excellent, almost always giving me the entire lane and waiting until it was safe to pass. Even paved roads had very little traffic. Prices are very accessible. For the non diabetic with a more robust gut than me, the food is excellent when prepared for you (though “grocery store” selection is extremely limited). Accommodation is easy to find, though you might need to come with a high level of physical fitness due to the (sometimes) long distances on difficult terrain. A variety of tour styles can be pursued here, including credit card road touring (well, ATM and cash touring). French was useful only at a very basic level: shopping / hotels. The richness of the experience would have been 100 fold better if I knew how to speak Moroccan Arabic (which differs from the Arabic on my phone). Here in Morocco, I got the impression that these conversations were just waiting to happen – because patient people would try to communicate in their limited French. Had I known Moroccan Arabic, 90 days probably wouldn’t have been long enough to ride and REALLY talk to people! I felt my French was better than that of about 85% of the people I met – and my French is crap.

If I were advising a friend, I’d say: Bring a fat bike with at least front suspension. Go from September 15 to December 15st. Go online and look for a list of “top places to go in Morocco” and make sure you avoid the PERIMETERS of ALL those places. The actual touristic centers were OK; I think because there is some education to “not harass the tourists.” The sphere of influence is big, though. I would suggest to spend time in the Anti Atlas. I would recommend Tetouan for the cosmopolitan, Fes was better than expected. Definitely go to Erg Chegaga (fat bike). Ait Mansour for a gorge (instead of Dades/Todra). Explore higher elevations in September (the cold in November made me skip a couple high elevation sections). I might recommend to bring candy, because that might be my only complaint about Morocco – harassment. Even though you would be perpetuating the problem for the next guy, your own life might be better. Luckily, you probably won’t see anyone in actual need of food, just kids trying to bum whatever they can off of you because it is a “fun game”.

BIKEPACKING MAURITANIA

I spent two weeks in December riding my bike through Mauritania. I liked the country as a whole, though I found that Morocco was “easier” with amenities.Mauritania is definitely worth a visit because it is a unique destination that does not get a lot of tourism. If I had more time to bikepack Mauritania, I might have done the out-and-back ride to the “Eye of the Sahara”… but that is a pretty big ask on a bicycle… and I would only have done it with a fat bike with full suspension. Even then, there are probably better things you could do with your time.

The highlight for me was the relatively un-scouted section from Terjit to Tidjikja. The road was fully paved (which might be good for some of you, bad for others). The reason I liked it is because this section was untainted by tourism = meaning the people were genuine and friendly – but not because they wanted something from you. It was also extremely difficult due to sand storms and a persistent wind from the East. It is a very difficult section under those circumstances.

BIKEPACKING SENEGAL

Senegal Surprised me. While planning, it was just land that I needed to cross to get to the place I wanted to go: The Guinea Highlands. Instead, I found regions of extremely welcoming people who had unending smiles like I have never seen before. From years of bike touring, I know that smiles are important to keep your motivation high… and much of Senegal did just that. It is a country that I would consider returning to. There isn’t much in terms of my favorite scenery (mountains), but the people more than made up for that.

The highlight for me was the section from Ogo to Tambacounda. This section can be ridden on a rigid or hardtail bike, but I was very happy to have my full suspension bikepacking setup with 2.2″ tires. As of this writing, the region was more isolated than other sections I have been to. Cell service is encroaching, but the road (which turns into a maze of single track trails in a few places) probably keeps the masses out. Because of the relative isolation, it was a special treat to greet many of the welcoming villagers.

BIKEPACKING GUINEA

Guinea was the county in West Africa that I was most excited about. The Fouuta Djallon highlands were the part of Africa I was most interested in. The bikepacking quality was excellent. I liked the fact that it was mostly dirt roads and trails. The people in the highlands were good and friendly. The negatives were: Lack of food options (though I think one could handle that for a few weeks), internet blockage by the government (many useful sites and applications are blocked), lack of electricity (which was exacerbated by an explosion in the Conakry fuel depot a few days before my arrival).

Guinea has merit as a stand-alone bikepacking route. You could do a 3 – 4 week loop tour that utilizes my routes and combine it into a loop based in Conakry. I would advise heading straight for the highlands, and using a full suspension MTB with a regular bikepacking setup. If you used a bike touring setup with panniers and racks, you would likely break your racks and panniers… and it would be slow and uncomfortable riding.

BIKEPACKING SIERRA LEONE

I was not planning on visiting Sierra Leone. I went to Freetown to get my Ivory Coast visa as well as ride with the Flames Cycling club in Freetown. I am glad that I went to Sierra Leone, but I do not recommend my route for bikepackers. It is doable if you are wanting to ride across the country, but I believe there are better places to spend your time.

BIKEPACKING THE IVORY COAST

I cannot comment on the Ivory Coast as a whole, but before arriving, I had assumed that the country would have been more touristic than anywhere I had cycled since Morocco. The statistics say that Ivory Coast gets 668,000¹ foreign visitors each year compared to Sierra Leone’s 40,000² or Mauritania’s ~1,500³. The section of the Ivory Coast that I cycled after Man was decidedly un-touristic. This had advantages and disadvantages which are outlined in the daily posts.

This is a glaring generalization, but I felt like I was treated differently in the Ivory Coast than in the neighboring countries. Keep in mind that I’m ONLY referring to my more Northerly route, which culturally has differences from the South (including disagreements)⁴. Unlike Eastern Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Guinea, where people were extremely outgoing, Ivory Coast seemed more shy. Instead of eager conversations, I found myself in a series of “flash mobs” where people would take their selfies with me and then run away. As far as a bikepacking destination, I don’t believe that this portion of the Ivory Coast has enough to offer to warrant it being a “stand-alone bikepacking destination” like Morocco or Guinea. In spite of this, I had some noteworthy experiences and stories that are related in the daily journal.