• The Torch is Passed It’s A New Era for Morrison

    Taking the keys to a legend is a heavy responsibility. When a vehicle has crossed the Sahara, navigated the Skeleton Coast, and clocked over 25 years of history, it stops being just a collection of metal and rubber. It becomes an archive of memories.

    We are Jason and Ochi, and we are the new custodians of Morrison.

    Description

    First and foremost, we want to send a massive thank you to Rory and Lucy. For a quarter of a century, they didn’t just drive this custom Iglehaut beast; they gave it a life. They proved that this van was built for the extraordinary, pushing it through revolutions, deserts, and 18 countries on a single run. We wish them nothing but fair winds and open roads in their future adventures. They have set a high bar for stewardship, and we intend to honour that legacy.

    But every great adventurer needs a moment to catch their breath, and Morrison has been resting for a little while.

    While the bones of this machine, the permanent 4-wheel drive, the diff locks, and that indomitable off-road suspension, are as solid as ever, the world of overlanding has evolved, and so too must the van. Our immediate goal isn’t just to drive it, but to recondition and retrofit it.

    The next few months on this blog won’t be about travel destinations, but about transformation. We are stripping things back to ensure Morrison is robust, reliable, and ready for the modern era. We plan to modernise the systems and inject a new level of comfort into the living quarters, ensuring that when the wheels finally turn in anger again, this van is ready for any corner of the globe we point it toward.

    We might be the ones holding the steering wheel and turning the wrenches, but this story belongs to the van. We are just here to make sure it’s ready for the next 100,000 miles.

    The tools are out. The work begins now.

    Watch this space.

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  • The next chapter of the Vanplan will start in a few days!

    The van has been sold and after a bit of TLC and some reconfiguration to cary a couple of bikes she will be off again.. watch this space to follow the next adventure.

  • The time has come to sell the van!

    Well after over 25 years of fun and adventure Morrison (the van ..get it… Van Morrison!) is for sale.The full specs are on the about the van page. We had a reconditioned engine and turbo after our second crossing of the Sahara (about 10,000 miles ago).

    This vehicle is a custom made Iglehaut specialist off road vehicle
    Permanent 4 wheel drive
    High and low ratio gearbox
    front, center and rear diffs
    Off road suspension (lateral leaf springs)

    All the usual kit inside:
    Proper 4 burner hob and grill
    2 fridges, one with small freezer
    loo
    2 showers (one inside and one outside)
    Large roof mounted solar panel
    240 volt inverter, power throughout
    swivel seats
    pull out double bed with storage under.
    large awning
    Water purifying system.

    hydraulic winch
    some spares.

  • After a few years of local UK trips and the odd European adventure we are planning a new trip.

    Turkey this Autumn, the plan is to drive through France,Germany.Austria,Slovenia, Bosnia and down the Adriatic Coast to cross into Turkey at the Canakkale Bridge. We will then drive to Datca leave the van there and fly home. Restarting in January 2024.

  • Shes on the move again!

    New engine, beefed up hydraulic winch and a bit of TLC, We decided to leave the dents….. we don’t want any “mutton dressed as lamb” jokes.
    We are off to live in Africa and will be based in Nairobi.

  • Just picked up the van

    Well what an adventure…despite a bit of random thievery on the boat on the way back and extensive use of our vans facility’s by the crew, the van is now safely back in England. MOT’d, Serviced, Repaired where necessary and ready to roll on the next stage of the plan.
    We have decided that the next trip wont be another 12 month-er so Summer 2012 to Turkey and East is on the cards giving us time to gather our strength

  • End of the road for the moment… 27,000 miles, 14 months on the road, 18 countries and 3 revolutions

    Well, after Cape Town we went on to Cape Agulhas the southern most point in Africa, over 27,000 miles from our start point in Frome, Somerset.



    The van had performed spectacularly with only a few problems and nothing that stopped us in our tracks. Lucy’s inspiration with a coat hanger when the gearstick came off in Tanzania was the only real drama, with everything else we were able to limp on.
    We spent the last week with an old school friend Roddy and Nicola his wife, in Somerset West and then drove on the beautiful route 62 through the Klein Karoo, which is Afrikaans for Little Karoo with its mass of flowers and Ostrich farms. We went on to Storms River Mouth to meet our friends Larry and Sharon who we had met in Addis Ababa they were heading north on their BMW motor bikes when we first met them

    and we were heading south. We went up in their microlights…now that’s something to do when you get older instead of golf!



    and stayed with their friend Johan who runs an amazing hunting business….. Hunt Africa
    We have now put the van on a boat home from Port Elizabeth.
    Next stop California for Christmas

  • Capetown at last.

    11 months, 18 countries and 3 revolutions later we have finally made it to Cape Town.
    We had a lovely few days with Tom and Victoria in Constantia, Toms company
    Avoova makes the most wonderful Ostrich Egg accessories and furniture…think everything from tables for an Oligarch’s yacht to gorgeous picture frames.
    We spent time in Stellanbosch drinking wine and eating far too much and then wound our way down the coast to Cape Point. We stayed with friends Connor and his daughter Slaney in Camps Bay and had our first “English… (oops Irish) dinner party” for 11 months


  • Okonjima and on to South Africa

    After the luxury of Okonjima we returned to Windhoek to stay in a backpacker hotel called the Cardboard Box…all of us in a family room but we did splurge on a meal at the famous Joe’s Beer House!

    After dropping the children off at the airport Lucy and I set off towards South Africa we stopped at Duwisib an extraordinary pseudo medieval castle in the middle of nowhere built in the 1900’s by a mad German aristocrat who went off to fight in the Great War and was killed at the Somme two weeks after joining up. He only lived in the castle for a couple of years and his wife never returned after he was killed.


    We also stopped off at the hot springs at Ey Eis where we bumped into Charley Boorman and his team on their way to Vic Falls. Lots of motorbikes but I think some of them were jealous of the van.
    Then on to South Africa and the fabulous flowers in Namaqualand which stretch for miles and miles




    and of course the beautiful town of Darling and its vineyards.
    for those that dont know Darling is Lucy’s maiden name so it was a must do!

    a small family business!

  • Okonjima

    George,Fergus and Pippa all arrived with their luggage (unlike Tangier) on Saturday morning and we set off north towards Okonjima, home of the Afrikat Foundation
    We are lucky enough to be staying at the most wonderful house Grand African Villa what a wonderful climax to our trip, thank you James and Sam for sharing your lovely home with us.



    We had the most wonderful game drives with AJ and saw Cheetah




    Leopard


    and Lion

    and of course a huge variety of Antelope, as well as the Giraffe, Warthog, and Zebra.




    We climbed to view points and drank G&T looking over the plains, enjoyed the pool and the animals by the waterhole and saw some of the work of the foundation and the rehabilitation process.
    Martin, Johanna and Maria looked after us in the Villa like royalty…..and we ate and drank like Hollywood celebs!