October 12 2025 - Crossing the Desert: From Nouadhibou to Nouakchott

📍 Location:

Nouakchott, Mauritania

📝 Episode Notes:

October 12, 2025 — Today I set out from Nouadhibou on my way to Nouakchott, the capital of Mauritania. The distance between the two cities is close to 500 kilometers, and I wasn’t sure what to expect along the way. The road turned out to be surprisingly good for the most part—some rough patches, but mostly paved and smooth enough to cruise comfortably around 70 to 80 km/h.

The first stretch took me back along the familiar peninsula I’d driven before, but this time in daylight, and it was incredible to finally see the vast, desolate beauty of the Sahara spread out before me. Early on, I caught sight of the famous iron ore train coming into Nouadhibou—an endless line of cars, with a few adventurous souls perched on top of the ore ...