>Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator
(>Pictures at the bottom!)
…and stranded again!
Our stay at home was short; our middle son’s civil wedding in Dornach/SO, cleaning our Jeep and making some minor repairs, and a short stay in Oy-Mittelberg/Allgäu, where a few more repairs were made to our Jeep. The many dirt roads in Morocco had taken their toll on our vehicle.
Soon it was time to say goodbye again. When we left, we had no idea that we would be stranded again after such a short time; but more on that later. First, we headed back to the Allgäu, where a spare part from the USA had finally arrived and needed to be installed. Due to customs paperwork, we had to make another detour to Switzerland before continuing north towards Belgium for our church wedding.
Since our group trip to South America, we have got to know a few long-distance travellers in Germany, and this was an opportunity for us to stop off at various places and say hello. These encounters were always wonderful meetings between like-minded people. There was more than enough to talk about and we could have stayed longer everywhere. We would never have been bored. We would like to thank our hosts once again for their hospitality; we had a wonderful time every time.
Later, we criss-crossed the Rhine and the Palatinate. We drove through Luxembourg towards the southern tip of Belgium. This time, we wanted to drive along the western border of Belgium towards the sea. After the rural landscape, we were once again very surprised by the Belgian hinterland, where the rolling hills of the Ardennes offer wonderful areas that invite you to stay longer.
We cruised leisurely through dense forests and wide open spaces, some of which are more or less intensively farmed, towards the greater Lille area (France). The border is so unclear in places that we sometimes didn’t know whether we were in France or Belgium; the European Union has merged this area and in some places it was only the different traffic signs that told us where we were.
In the meantime, our Jeep made some strange noises when we set off in the morning, but they disappeared over time. Occasionally, there were creaking and squeaking noises coming from somewhere. The morning noises came from the alternator, which I would have liked to replace, but the garage advised against it as it was still working. We attributed the other metallic noises throughout the day to the alternator. As alternators are not immediately available from the official dealer in Belgium, I ordered the spare part to be sent to our son’s parents-in-law in Antwerp. The daily crackling increased steadily and we – Chantal and I – were suddenly no longer sure whether it was just coming from the alternator.
Despite the crackling and rattling, we continued our tour and soon reached the Belgian Riviera, where there is virtually one high-rise building after another from the French border to Oostende, giving the coastline a distinctive appearance. Despite it being early in the season, there were already many people at the Riviera. With spring-like temperatures, the beach was already well populated with sun-seekers and there was a lot of leisure traffic on the beach road.
Since returning from Spain, I had been longing to enjoy ‘moules et frites’ and in Oostende, this dream finally came true. Although they were overpriced for tourists, they were really delicious. Finally, I (Tom) was able to enjoy this delicacy, which is considered a Belgian national dish. We also learned that ‘frites’ did not originally come from France, but are a Belgian invention. Regardless of whether they are French or Belgian, the Belgians know how to prepare their ‘frites’ very well.
After Zeebrugge, we reached the Dutch coast for a short stretch and were soon confronted with a total failure of our internal power supply – i.e. a defective alternator. Thanks to the additional on-board battery, we were able to continue our journey without risking an immediate power failure. It’s crazy that even a diesel engine doesn’t work without an internal power supply these days! In addition to the alternator failure, a cracking noise from the rear axle was becoming increasingly audible.
It was immediately clear to us that we would drive as quickly as possible to the location of the upcoming church wedding so that, if all else failed, we would at least already be there. We recharged the batteries a little using our solar panel and made sure to keep power consumption as low as possible during the off-peak hours and at night. In the meantime, the new alternator had arrived in Antwerp and our eldest son, who was visiting from England with his family, was tasked with picking it up on his way to the delivery location. Thanks to modern technology and connectivity, many things have become much easier these days. 🙂
For the time before and after the wedding, we – the Kaisers – rented a wonderful Airbnb accommodation where we had a home together. The rental houses are nestled in a forest clearing and are very luxuriously furnished. The car park is also right next to the houses, surrounded by large coniferous and deciduous trees. No sooner had we parked our Jeep than a dry branch crashed down from high above onto our windscreen; there was a loud bang and cracks spread across the entire windscreen like a spider’s web! We had to replace the windscreen – it was the third one we’d had fitted – here in Belgium, which was a real hassle, but better that than personal injury.
Instead of being able to take part in the first wedding ceremony, I (Tom) replaced the alternator and was once again amazed at what car manufacturers put into an engine compartment. There are hoses and pipes everywhere, cable harnesses and all kinds of units whose function I can only guess at. Whether these are for comfort or because of emissions regulations, I don’t know. Despite the cramped conditions, the defective part was soon removed and the new alternator was put in the right place. Of course, a test drive was essential. The internal power supply worked perfectly straight away, although I had been worried that the new component would need to be ‘taught’ to the control system. However, the other crack was soon located; it was coming from the left side of the rear axle.
During this time, Chantal was able to spend a wonderful day at the ‘Gemeinde’ (free church), where a wedding celebration was being organised.
In addition to the appointment to have the windscreen replaced, we also quickly made an appointment at the nearest Jeep repair shop.
The main reason for our trip to Belgium was the church wedding of our second son. Looking back, it was an international wedding celebration unlike anything Chantal and I had ever experienced before. Our son has been very active in a free church for a few years now, and this was reflected in the church wedding. We had never experienced such warmth and love as we did that afternoon and evening. May this feeling accompany the bride and groom on their journey through life.
Good things usually come to an end quickly, and soon we were back in our daily routine, or in other words: worries. We went to the garage where our Jeep was to be repaired. To our, or rather my (Tom’s), annoyance, the garage dismantled the rear axle to make sure that my diagnosis was correct. The fact that the bearing noise was even louder after reassembly didn’t seem to matter. We were sent on our way with the instruction not to drive any long distances. But what does ‘long’ mean? The rattling and creaking got worse and worse, and the distance to our destination campsite was probably too much; a deafening crack was the end of the bearing. We drove the Jeep at walking pace to our assigned spot and now we had a long wait ahead of us.
It was also a time when I (Tom) thought about what the garage bosses in Tucson (USA) and Hasselt (B) had said and did some research on the internet. And lo and behold: they were right, our car is overloaded on the rear axle and this inevitably leads to such damage. Perhaps the 1,000 and one tracks in Morocco were a bit too much for the undersized roller bearing on the rear axle? Although the car had been upgraded, the inner workings of the axle had not been reinforced accordingly! It’s actually crazy what they sell to customers, which can ultimately lead to consequential damage. Somewhat angry, I (Tom) put the documents aside and hope that the problem can be solved for the time being next Wednesday. Somehow we have to get home.
Or to England for the time being? Our grandchildren are waiting for us. 🙂
>Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator