After the last blog we woke up at our campsite in the middle of a vast empty plain, at exactly 50 degrees and headed east. There’s a fantastic freedom to travelling in Kazakhstan; the horizon stretches out in front of you invitingly, with nothing to stop you going wherever you point your wheels, especially if you’re driving a lend rover! Sadly this also proved our downfall as around mid afternoon, we were in the middle of a game of cards, letting Roxanne navigate her way across more flat empty plains when we ground to a halt. The long grass had concealed a stealth swamp! We dug our way out and two hours later were on our merry wau again with a newfound mistrust of long green grass!

We were just wondering if we would go a whole day without seeing another person when we came across another vehicle at a river crossing. They all got out and approached us, looking a little bemused and brandishing badges, it seemed we had encountered the regional warden. As usual, they’re initial worry/annoyance vanished as we shook hands and smiled a lot and they realised that we were actually just a bunch of crazy foreigners. They scrutinised our documents and maps, then all got lined up for photos with us and Roxanne which we printed out for them. By the time we’d parted company they had given us directions to the best bridge over the next river and a bag full of fresh fish! That night we dined in style on chicken and fish grilled over an open fire.

The next day followed a similar pattern, making good progress eastwards until a slight mishap. We came to a pretty small river, decided on a crossing point and attacked it with confidence dented slightly by the crunching impact into the far bank. This time we were properly stuck! We recognised early on that we would need the winch and concentrated all our efforts on removing the river bank and burying a sand ladder. It worked on the second attempt, but we have given Roxanne her first minor dent (sorry John!).

We found a cracking camp site in the bend of a valley, on a sheltered shelf with a tree-lined lake - perfect for a morning swim we thought. Sadly, eastern Kazakhstan seems to get the wind during the day, and the sun didn’t manage to warm us at all, so the swim was brief and vigorous! We made good progress again today (and no accidents!), making a short stop for diesel and food in a grim industrial town with apparently more derelict buildings than people. Once again we’re camped dead on fifty degrees, surrounded by huge empty space. The foray into town felt quite claustrophobic! We aim to reach the capital, Astana, in two days, which could be a bit of a shock!

David

Playing on the iPod: ‘Hold the Line’ by Toto