From Sea to Source
Three inflatable catamarans, powered by Yamaha 50hp outboards, have helped an international team of explorers achieve their goal of ascending the River Nile from sea to source, including crossing Lake Victoria, the second largest freshwater lake in the world.

Starting from Cairo, Egypt, the expedition travelled 6,700 kilometres (4,163 miles) in 80 days, encountering adverse climatic conditions, massive rapids, crocodile charges and horrendous logistics. New Zealander Cam McLeay, one of the expedition leaders, speaking after the event summed up the performance of the Yamaha outboards and the part they played: “I would find it extremely difficult to choose any engine other than a Yamaha. We challenged our outboards in the most extreme circumstances and they started easily and ran against all odds. We turned them upside down in the Nile, we even covered them in mud (including the inside of the carburettors) and they still started.”
Yamaha outboards were chosen for use on the Nile after pre-expedition trials and technical advice from Yamaha Motor (UK).

Cam and fellow team member, UK adventurer, Neil McGrigor along with another team member, New Zealander Garth MacIntyre, are now certain they have ascertained the true length of the River Nile, at least 107km longer than previously thought with its source inside the Nyungwe Forest of Rwanda.

For more on the expedition, which was completed in May 2006,
visit: www.ascendthenile.com

March 2007