Cameroon – Feb 13-March 1, 2017
Nigerian/Cameroon Border. The border crossing is at Mfum, Nigeria over the very pretty Mfum River. It took 2 hours and two forms. Each of us had to be present at immigration.
The town on the Cameroon side is Ekok and immigration required another 2 hours. An immigration officer came up into the truck and rifled through every locker. Two minutes down the road, a police check took 30 minutes as all passports and visas were checked.
WESTERN CAMEROON
Western Cameroon is the country’s economic heart in Douala, and from here it’s a short hop to beach towns like Limbe and the savannah-carpeted slopes of the Mountain of Thunder – Mt Cameroon. The Anglophone northwest has green hills, secret societies, traditional chiefdoms and some of the country’s best arts and crafts, particularly the wooden masks that are so often associated with Africa.
The general look out the window of the truck has changed since crossing into Cameroon. The houses in the larger towns we passed through are nicer – plastered, nice verandahs, many painted, and with cute little patches of grass in front of many homes. The homes in more rural areas are all mud brick construction. The forest is much more lush with dense forest and many more large trees. Most are large oil palms and banana in a backdrop of low mountains. Restaurants have outside seating.
The highway is great with no potholes, shoulders, guardrails, concrete drainage ditches and well painted lines. The people have a slightly different appearance – more heavyset with rounder faces. In the rural areas, their clothes are not clean. All signs in this part of Cameroon are in English. Cameroon is only one of two English/French bilingual countries in the world, Canada is the other – and they are next to each other alphabetically. People use wicker baskets with tump lines to carry produce on their backs.
It was a big climb up onto the plateau where Bamenda sits, The ridges are much more deforested up here. Maize is the major crop.
At one of the police checks, four police were in the back of the truck and looked in all the storage areas under the floor boards. They also checked all passports for their visa stamps.
The Northwest state and the entire west of the country are again embroiled in political turmoil with the federal government against these English speaking portions of the country. A teacher’s strike has been ongoing since November and shows no signs of ending. Despite paying their share of taxes, electricity and water is intermittent. A general strike was planned for February 20-21 with all public transport cancelled.
For the last month, the federal government has halted all internet access in this part of the country – not only wi-fi but all 3G access to data. It is presumed as a way to prevent communication between the dissenting groups.
We had good Internet in Foumban, it is a French city.
BAMENDA
The capital of Northwest Province is a dusty sprawl that tumbles down a hill at an altitude of more than 1000m; you’ll see some impressive views of the town as you descend the hill coming from Douala. With a decent range of hotels and restaurants, it’s a good jumping-off point for exploring the Ring Road circuit. It’s also a centre of political opposition to President Biya, with political debate and riots in 1990 and 1995. This is the main English-speaking portion of the country and the people feel alienated and neglected by the majority French part of the country.
It is divided into two towns – the administrative section perched high on the steep escarpment known as the Up Station to the east (with the German red-brick fortress now the Provincial Education Authority, the German/British colonial cemetery and the favoured residential area) and connected by a tortuous road down to downtown Bamenda, a sprawling conglomerate of small businesses, neighbourhoods, workshops and blasting stereos. The main market, behind Ideal Park Hotel, has good deals. The Tourist Office, 250m west of City Chemist Roundabout, has travel advice but not much more.
We arrived in Bamenda at noon and changed money – a great rate for euros at 655 and poor for US$ at 550 at Express Exchange but 600 at the Main Market. Large bills did better than small bills. They wouldn’t even look at 10 and 5$ notes. It all took a couple of hours leaving limited time for us to deal with the transportation necessary for the trip. We stayed at the Presbyterian Mission in Bamenda, several in rooms and the rest camping.
We visited several travel agencies east of Chemists Circle and one referred us to a place that rented vehicles. We eventually arranged for a Toyota 4-Runner for 60,000 CFA per day for five days including the driver. We were responsible for gas and accommodation and food for our driver.
Please refer to the following post “The Ring Road” for details of the trip.
Summary of the Ring Road. We took five days with side trips to Oku and Foumban. We avoided the part of the Ring Road between Lake Nyos and Nkmabe as we understood that it was difficult 4×4, but the road was now in good shape in January 2017. The highlights were the Bafut Palace, and Oku – the Museum and meeting the Fon of Oku (and treating him in the hospital). The skies were filled with smoke so views of the mountains and valleys were all obscured. I think I would have enjoyed it much more with good views, so doing the trip in the early rainy season (March – June) would have been better. The lush green growth is also apparently very nice. But one would have to deal with potential rain and what it does to the roads.
FOUMBAN
Foumban has a deep tradition of homegrown arts and the traditional monarchy centred on a sultan, who resides in a palace. The town is plopped architecturally and conceptually between West and North Africa, as if the Sahel and its sharp music, bright robes and Islam – this is the city with most Muslims in the south – were slowly creeping into the eastern corner of West Province.
The Grand Marché is a warren of narrow stalls and alleys, which are great fun to explore; the paths eventually lead to where the Grande Mosquée faces the palace.
Palais Royal. The must-see attraction of Foumban is the sultan’s palace, currently home to the 19th sultan of the Bamoun dynasty. It has a fascinating and well-organised museum containing previous sultans’ possessions and great historical insight into the region – assuming you know French. You’ll find the palace opposite the market and main mosque, the minaret of which can be climbed as part of the palace tour.
Village des Artisans. South of town, the Village des Artisans seems to produce more handicrafts than the rest of Cameroon combined.
The road from Foumban was initially good and then deteriorated to the potholed pavement for the last 100kms or so. It took us over three hours to drive. Initially dry savannah/bush, the landscape turned into the lush forest around Bamenda. At one place, we went through an amazing agricultural area in rolling hills. Every field was planted with vegetables that were shipped all over West Africa.
We left Bamenda at 5am on Feb 20th to get to Buea in the early afternoon to allow all the people climbing Mt Cameroon the opportunity to prepare for the climb. It was cold in the initial drive and everyone was wrapped up in their sleeping bags. We basically returned the same way we had come from Nigeria towards Ekok as the road was so good. 31kms from Ekok, we turned south onto another newly paved highway. Breakfast was on the truck while we traveled.
The good pavement didn’t last long and we on a newly constructed dirt road bed alternating with bits of rough side road. The road is being built by the Chinese to a high standard A large rock became stuck between the right rear dual tires and the tire had to be removed to get it out. We eventually hit good pavement again, passed through Kumba and reached Buea in the late afternoon. Mufi arrived from Lagos later that evening and Anders/Alice appeared the next day. They had had long rides on public transport.
BUEA
Basically built into the side of Mt Cameroon, Buea (pronounced boy-ah) has a hill station’s coolness, especially compared to sticky Limbe. If you’re going up the mountain, you’re inevitably coming here. Before town, we saw the first “true” banana plantation where the ripening bananas were in vented plastic bags.
Hiking Mount Cameroon
Most hikes to the summit of West Africa’s highest peak take two or three days, but it’s no stroll in the park. The difficulty stems not only from its height (4095m), but from the fact that you start from near sea level, making a big change in altitude in a relatively short distance. November to April is the main climbing season, and although it’s possible to climb the mountain year-round, you won’t get much in the way of views during the rainy season. Warm clothes and waterproofs are a must. A popular ascent is a two-night, three-day hike via the Mann Spring route and descending via the Guinness Route.
Hikes are arranged in Buea through the Mt Cameroon Ecotourism Organisation (mountceo@yahoo.uk; Buea Market). The organisation works closely with the 12 villages around the mountain, employing many villagers as guides and porters. All hikers pay a flat ‘stakeholder fee’ of CFA3000, which goes into a village development fund and is used for community projects, such as improving electricity and water supply. Guides, well versed in the local flora and fauna, cost CFA112,000 for the 3-day trip + 12,000 for food. One-day trips cost 32,000 for the guide.
We had 11 people on the trip climb Mt Cameroon – 8 doing the 3-day trip up the Guiness Route, descending to Mann Springs and the Elephant forest, and 3 doing the one-day trip (Mark and Toby left at 4am and returned at 6pm for a 14-hour day and Anders did it on the 22nd in 12 hours). Three supplied their own water saving 5,000 and their own food. Price included 2 guides acting as porters and a porter carrying 20kg for each person. They were to leave at 9am on Tuesday, Feb 21. It was kind of a zoo, they finally left at 9:50 with packs having tremendous amounts of stuff dangling off the back. One guy carried a big pack on his head and another had a huge nylon sack tied with twine on his head. That left 2 porters and stuff for three so they waited about 3 hours for another porter. Apparently the guides and porters lagged significantly behind the hikers (they were smoking significant ganga) – the route was easy to follow as the Mt Cameroon run scheduled for the weekend was marked with white paint on the stones. The going was slow as they waited for everyone to catch up several times. Food supplied by the company was minimal – cans of sardines and bread. The top was remarkable with high wind and a rolling volcanic landscape. On the way down, there were no elephants in the Elephant Forest. After everyone was down, the truck left for Limbe and they camped a 6 Mile Beach, staying for three nights.
I didn’t climb Mt Cameroon. I thought I would have trouble climbing 3000m over the two days. It is basically a slog and the mountain was totally obscured by cloud and smoke. I was looking forward to having 3 days off with a potential early departure for Limbe.
Steve continues his cheap ways. I not infrequently ask for certain things when I’m on cook duty. In Buea, I asked for a pineapple to make my favourite meal, sweet and sour. He didn’t bother so I bought one in the market about 15 minutes from the mission. When I told him that it cost 800 CFA, he whined that I had paid too much. I eventually ate the cost. The truck ran out of pepper months ago and I had purchased the last replenishment. He refuses to buy pepper now and we haven’t had it for weeks again. I don’t think anyone else is buying food for the truck out of personal funds. I tell him that I don’t want meat (it is tough unless cooked for hours in the pressure cooker and takes a long time to trim out all the fat and gristle), but he buys it anyway. Go figure.
Steve refunds the camping fee if we get a room when available where we are staying. He didn’t realize I had gotten a room in Buea and refused to reimburse me the 2000 CFA. He is Oasis’s best friend, although what he is skimping on is our local payment. I wonder if left over money will be returned to us once we reach Cape Town.
LIMBE
Limbe is a charming place, blessed with a fabulous natural position between the rainforest-swathed foothills of Mt Cameroon and the dramatic Atlantic coastline. Popular with both foreign and Cameroonian tourists, this is a great spot to chill out on the beach for a few days before heading on elsewhere.
Limbe Wildlife Centre. Many zoos in Africa are depressing places, but the Limbe Wildlife Centre is a shining exception. Jointly run by the Ministry of the Environment and the primate charity Pandrillus, it contains rescued chimpanzees, gorillas, drills and other primates, all housed in large enclosures, with lots of interesting information about local conservation issues. Staff are well informed, and are heavily involved in community education. In fact, there are at least 12 species of monkeys and primates, all rescued animals: chimpanzees, several gorillas in two large enclosures, drills, mandrills (a cousin with a striped face), olive baboons, agile mangabies, red capped mangabie, mona monkeys, mustachioed guenon, red flanked patty nosed guenon, eastern guenon, tananlas, and priess monkey.
Botanical Gardens. The second-oldest botanical gardens in Africa are the home of, among others, cinnamon, nutmeg, mango, ancient cycads and an unnamed tree locals describe as ‘African Viagra’. There’s a small visitor centre and an area with Commonwealth War Graves. Guides (CFA1000) aren’t required but are recommended as labelling is minimal. Bring bug spray.
Beaches. The best of Limbe’s beaches are north of town and known by their distance from Limbe. Mile 6 and Mile 11 beaches are popular, but our favourite is at the village of Batoké at Mile 8, from where the lava flows of one of Mt Cameroon’s eruptions are still visible.
Bimbia Rainforest & Mangrove Trail. Located about an hour south of Limbe and running through the only coastal lowland rainforest remaining between Douala and Limbe. An experienced guide will take you on day tours through some rather lovely submerged woods, birdwatching areas and old slave-trading sites. You’ll have to pay CFA5000 for the local development fee, which goes towards the village of Bimbia and mangrove preservation, CFA3000 for a guide, and CFA15,000 for a taxi brousse (bush taxi) from Limbe, making this a trip best done in a group. To arrange tours talk to the guys who hang around the botanic gardens, arrange a trip through the Fako Tourist Board or contact Bimbia Rainforest and Mangrove Trail.
I went into LImbe to stay for two nights, staying at the Airport Bevista Hotel for 10,000 CFA/night with luscious air-con and good food in the restaurant. It is basically a block from the Wildlife Sanctuary that is just west of the Botanical Garden.
I left Buea with a Spanish woman working for MSF in the Central African Republic. She had been with them for 2 years working as a logistical officer – looking after setting up camps. MSF is the first agency involved in any place in the world with strife. She was with an emergency response team of a doctor, nurse, security and a driver in an SUV that responded to any situation they were called to. Only after they had stabilized the situation would agencies like the UN and UNESCO would come. Nobody has anything good to say about the UN; they are virtually useless and stay in their compounds looking out. French UN soldiers had recently been charged with sexual abuse in the CAR. I talked to her a great deal about the application process and think I may give it a go for this fall. Pay is poor, hours long and freedom minimal (they are not allowed to eat street food or travel separately at any time), but they go to all the most dangerous places in the world. As I no longer have a medical license, I would also apply as a logistical officer, but hope I would be of some medical help.
In Limbe, I had my white, two-month beard shaved off and my hair trimmed. I lost 10 years. I also had two excellent dinners of much-craved Western food: an excellent breaded chicken, fries and vegetables at the Birdwatchers Restaurant near the Botanical Gardens and a great cheeseburger and fries at Arnies inside the Wildlife Sanctuary.
Six Mile Beach was my favourite swimming beach so far in West Africa. It had gorgeous fine black sand that extends shallowly out for a long ways producing easy surf and waves and no undertow. I could stay out for a long time. I picked up a lot of garbage from the beach. There were several cold-water showers next to the beach and a bar where you could buy beer. Amazingly, there were no mosquitoes.
The blackout of the internet continued in Limbe but wifi appeared on the way to Douala, the French-speaking part of the country.
One afternoon a group from the Christian Evangelical Baptist Church from Dortmund, Germany came to Six Mile Beach. We talked to the leader who had been stationed in their mission at Kumba for six months. Groups of about 15 from their church came from Germany for two-week periods. Deeply religious, he expressed much disaffection with Cameroonians as they drank and smoked and this wasn’t very “Christian” – 100% of your life had to lived in a Christian way. They were major proselytizers and I’m sure counted converts in their statistics. Even though West Africans are very religious, they are much more attracted to the other evangelical churches with their singing, music and basic hallelujah/amen messages. They came to church to hear the sermons but it sounded like few converted because of the church’s strict ethics.
Born again Christians, they believed in the bible literally including creationism and all those 15th century beliefs. All he wanted the locals to do was repent for their sins and live a life with Jesus. It was interesting to see the group dynamics. The five women, dressed in ankle length dresses, marched in a tight group down the beach while the guys eventually all went in for a swim. Some people in our group tried to talk to them, but they were so full of religion, it was impossible.
On Saturday, the Cameroon football team that had won the African Cup of Nations was to come to Limbe with the trophy. Slated to start at 10am, a huge crowd assembled in the large field downtown. Two bands provided entertainment. Hundreds of army and police all kitted out in full body armour provided security. Long lines of flag bearers formed. It was all anticlimactic when at 1pm, only one player dressed in normal clothes arrived with an obvious facsimile of the real cup. The crowd went wild.
Steve replaced one of the rear springs as one of the leaves had fractured. The driver must also be a full-on mechanic on these trips. He is constantly maintaining the truck and does all the oil changes (20 litres) and greases.
It rained all three days we were at Six Mile (twice during the night and once just as we were leaving at 6:30am), our first rain since El Mina and before that Rabat. We are just entering the rainy season under way in the southern hemisphere.
Other overlanders. So far on the trip, we have met several others doing our trip, Morocco to Cape Town, most in camperized SUVs. Their main challenge was also visas. Some of them were a Swedish couple with two kids, a German couple in a huge overland vehicle, a Swiss couple, the 5 motorcyclists from Holland, the American couple on motorcycles driven from Alaska, a Hungarian couple (needed a Namibian visa obtained in the home country even though their was no embassy there), a South African/British couple, the hot-air balloonists form England, and at Six Mile an Australian (still with no Angola visa) and a German couple traveling together in separate vehicles.
Police checks were troublesome. Just outside Buea and Douala we had to all disembark and each passport was checked for visas and stamps. Bribes were not requested at either of these. At the second check before Douala, we saw the most number of the most common bird we have seen in West Africa, the weaver bird. These bright yellow birds with black markings had hundreds of huge nests in one moderate sized tree.
DOUALA (pop 2 million)
Sticky, icky and frenetic, Douala isn’t as bad as some say, but it’s not likely to be your first choice for a honeymoon, either. By any measure but political power this is Cameroon’s main city: its primary air hub, biggest port and leading business centre, and the result is a chaotic hodgepodge. There are few charms, but you can set your finger here to gauge Cameroon’s pulse.
We left Six Mile to drive through Douala and Yaoundé on a Sunday when there was little traffic. Douala was not a pretty place – large, confused markets lining he highway, dirty buildings, a new freeway with a massive new bridge under construction and a large port.
It rained hard in the mid-afternoon on the way to Yaoundé and we had to drive with the windows up first the first time in months. It was hot and muggy in the truck. Yaoundé will signal a change in the general direction of travel – we have been going generally east since Cote d’Ivoire (Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria and western Cameroon) and now we will be going south (eastern Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, DRC, Angola, Namibia and South Africa).
It seems that we are entering the rainy season ongoing in the southern hemisphere – we cross the equator in Gabon.
YAOUNDÉ (pop1.8 million)
Let’s be brutally honest: West Africa is famous for many things, but pleasant cities – especially capitals – are not among them. Then Yaoundé comes along: green and spread over seven hills, though not exactly a garden city, it’s planned, thoughtfully laid out and self-contained. While it is nowhere near as vibrant (or chaotic) as its coastal rival Douala, it enjoys a temperate climate, relatively clean and well-maintained streets and even boasts a host of 1970s government buildings in various exuberant styles that will keep architecture fans happy. Located in the centre of the country, Yaoundé makes a fine stop for getting a visa or before heading off into the rest of Cameroon.
Musée d’Art Camerounais. At the Benedictine monastery on Mt Fébé, north of the city centre, the Musée d’Art Camerounais has an impressive collection of masks, bronze- and woodwork and other examples of Cameroonian art. The chapel is also worth a look.
Mvog-Betsi Zoo. This is one of the better zoos in West Africa, co-run by the Cameroon Wildlife Aid Fund (www.cwaf.org), with a sizeable collection of native primates, rescued from poachers and the bushmeat trade.
On Sunday, February 25, we left Six Mile Beach for Yaoundé. It rained very heavily in the afternoon on the way.
We stayed at ? with beautiful grounds and grass. But none of these places have internet and it has been impossible to get connected to wi-fi. Two hotels freely gave their passwords but connections were not possible, just like in English-speaking Cameroon. I bought data for my phone but it couldn’t connect either. So internet access has been impossible since February 7th when in Abuja, Nigeria and for 1 day in Foumban, Cameroon on February 20th.
We found an internet cafe on Tuesday, the morning we were to leave and head for Gabon.
Two guys had the two-piece outfits (long pants and loose top) of matching bright African patterns made – 2000 CFA for the sewing and 7000 CFA for the material. One had them made for each of four friends in England. These are commonly worn by men from Ghana and especially Togo and look great on black men in their culture. But back in England would look hopelessly out of place. It’s good that we are all individuals and don’t necessarily think the same.
The trip did not go to any of the following parts of Cameroon and I am including them only for the sake of completeness.
SOUTHERN CAMEROON
Southern Cameroon is largely taken up by thick jungle, and there are few large towns or other population centres here. However, the coastline here is by far Cameroon’s best: head to Kribi for great scenery and a relaxed vibe, and continue further down the coast to indulge in a spot of beach exploration and ecotourism in Parc National de Campo-Ma’an.
Kribi is home to Cameroon’s best beaches: the sand is fine, the water crystal clear, fresh fish is on the menu and cold beer on tap.
The Chutes de la Lobé, 8km south of town), are an impressive set of waterfalls that empty directly into the sea – it’s a beautiful sight.”
Ebolowa, capital of Ntem district, is a bustling place and a possible stopping point en route between Yaoundé and Equatorial Guinea or Gabon. Its main attraction is the artificial Municipal Lake in the centre of town.
Campo is the last town before the Equatorial Guinea border. Taking the road here is half the attraction – it’s a hard but rewarding slog through immense rainforest past pygmy villages with views out to the ocean and fire-spouting petrol platforms shimmering in the west.
For travellers, Campo mainly serves as a jumping-off point for visiting Parc National de Campo Ma’an and Ebodjé.
Parc National de Campo-Ma’an, comprising 2608 sq km, protects rainforest, many plants and various animals, including buffalo, elephants and mandrills. The park is being developed by WWF as an ecotourism destination, with newly constructed canopy walks and river trips available.
Ebodjé, a small fishing village 25km north of Campo, is home to a sea turtle conservation project and ecotourism site run by KUDU Cameroun. Visitors are taken out at night to spot egg-laying turtles. Even if you don’t see any turtles, the beach is gorgeous, pristine and better than anything in Kribi.”
NORTHERN CAMEROON
The north of Cameroon is the fringe of the world’s greatest dry zone. This is the Sahel, a red and ochre and yellow and brown rolling sea of dust, dirt and strange, utterly beautiful hills and pinnacles of rock, crisscrossed by the dry wind, the thin strides of Fulani people and the broad steps of their long-horned cattle.
N’Gaoundéré is the terminus of the railway line and beginning of the great bus and truck routes to the far north and Chad. The sense of adventure imparted upon reaching the Sahel is helped by the sight of government soldiers – there’s a major training facility nearby – striding through the desert lanes with AK-47s strapped to their backs and extra banana clips taped to the stocks of their guns.
Maroua. Cameroon’s northernmost major town and its best base for exploring the extreme North Province, particularly the Mandara Mountains, as well as a good place to plan border crossings into Nigeria and Chad. Red and brown streets of sand run like dry riverbeds between rounded beige buildings while a cast of Fulani and Chadians in robes of sky blue, electric purple and blood red populate the chaos.
Mandara Mountains. Basalt cliffs dot a volcanic plain, dust storms conceived on the Nigerian border sweep out of the sunset onto thorn trees, red rock cairns and herds of brindle cattle across this awesome, evocative landscape. The Mandara Mountains run west from Maroua to the Nigerian border and have become very popular – justifiably so – with Africa hikers.
The villages that dot these ranges are as captivating as the vistas they are built on, including Rhumsiki, with its striking mountain scenery; Djingliya and Koza, set against steep terraced hillsides; Tourou, known for the calabash hats worn by local women; and Maga, with its domed houses made entirely of clay. Mora has a particularly notable weekly market. Hiking between villages is one of the best ways to appreciate the scenery and culture alike.
Rhumsiki is the main entrance point for visitors to the Mandara Mountains, and is the one place where there’s a tangible feel of a tourist scene (although in Cameroon this is a relative term).
Parc Natioal du Waza. The most accessible of Cameroon’s national parks, Parc National du Waza (admission CFA5000, vehicle CFA2000, camera CFA2000; 6am-6pm 15 November-15 May) is also the best for viewing wildlife. While it can’t compare with East African parks, you’re likely to see elephants, hippos, giraffes, antelopes and – with luck – lions. Late March to April is the best time for viewing, as the animals congregate at water holes before the rains. Waza is also notable for its particularly rich birdlife. The park is closed during the rainy season.
A guide (CFA5000) is obligatory in each vehicle. Walking isn’t permitted.
Unless you have your own vehicle, the best way to visit is to hire a vehicle in Maroua (about CFA30,000 per day plus petrol). A 4WD vehicle is recommended.
Accessing the park by public transport is difficult; any bus between Maroua and Kousséri should be able to drop you off at the park turn-off, but after that you’ll be reliant on hitching a lift into the park itself, which is likely to involve a long wait.
EASTERN CAMEROON
Cameroon’s remote east is wild and untamed. Seldom visited by travellers, it’s very much a destination for those with ” “plenty of time and the stamina to back up an appetite for adventure. There’s little infrastructure and travel throughout is slow and rugged, with dense green forest and red laterite earth roads. The rainforest national parks are the main attraction, along with routes into the Central African Republic and Congo.
Bertoua. The capital of East Province, Bertoua is a genuine boomtown, born of logging and mining. Here you’ll find all the facilities lacking elsewhere in the region, including banks and sealed roads.
Buses to Yaoundé (CFA5000, seven hours), Bélabo (for the train; CFA1000, one hour) and Garoua-Boulaï leave from the gare routière near the market.
“along with routes into the Central African Republic and Congo.
Garoua-Boulaï. If you’re looking for a rough African frontier town, Garoua-Boulaï is it. On the Central African Republic border, it’s a place of bars, trucks and prostitutes.
There’s a bus to N’Gaoundéré (CFA4000, 12 hours, one daily) during the dry season and year-round service to Bertoua; both roads are just tolerable. The Central African Republic border crossing is on the edge of Garoua-Boulaï next to the motor park.