Fuel Odyssey

All right you guys. We got up at the crack of dawn from our uplanned stay in Bafoussam and headed over to Ngaoundere through perfectly smooth air. Then the fun began. After being charged and exorbitant amount that equaled all other operating fees in Africa combined so far, we learned the airport had no fuel. We had checked the internet and called ahead and were guaranteed that fuel was here, but, sure enough, once on the ground, we found out the big JETA1 tanks on the field were empty and had been for five years. Our next stop, Libreville, was one hundred fifty gallons away and we only had one hundred gallons left. Luckily, Randy and I were met when we landed by the most resourceful and connected missionary in Cameroon who informed us we could truck in two drims of jet fuel. No problem, right? Wrong. After checking with the local fuel depot and being told they had JetA1 there but we couldn't legally have any, we set off down the highway to the next city to load our oil drums at two P.M. The highway was lined with people, livestock, hut complexes, overtuned trucks, abandoned cargo crates, burning grass, and tasty little sugarless doughnuts that we snacked on with grilled beef. Four hours after setting off down that potholed, narrow highway we arrived at the fuel depot. Four guys came out to clean and fill the drums. We ate dinner and set off in the dark back home. This time there were no people and only a few trucks but we were viewing the landscape like daylight in flahses as we approached a huge series of thunderstorms. As soon as we got close, it started raining sideways and so thick it looked like mist. We made it though, and fell asleep dead at two in the morning. Now we have to somehow get it in the plane.