This one has been a long time coming and it is only a quicky just to let you know I'm still alive. Cindy and I finally moved to Phuket 4 weeks ago and life is beginning to slow at last. We have already had our first visitors and are off to Bangkok on friday. We head back to Australia for a friends wedding plus Christmas with the folks before heading home again on 7th January. Next year are trips to Laos, Vietnam Sri Lanka & South India.
Keep sending in any treasures you have it make my job that much easier. Cheers Derek |
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| Rob McKay
PS attached are a couple of pics sent by an ex pax of mine - Jonathan Vaudrey on a Hughes Overland (might have been Treasure Treks by then) INTW43 KTM/LON - left KTM in about Feb 1978, We had an overheating problem all the way back to UK. Turned out to be a hairline crack in the plastic header/filler tank (ie not visible to the naked eye!) you can see me (in both cases looking perplexed or more likely pissed off! Happy Days !
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| Sent to John Witchard ex Swagman Driver
Dear John
This contact no doubt comes a complete surprise after decades but I found your details recently through Derek's terrific website - surely a labour of love.
You may remember my wife Barbara and I travelled with you from Feb 74. We then lived in England for 3 years and since returned to Sydney where we have been at Eastwood for the past 22
(The Swagman trip of Feb 1974 from Katmandu took the traditional route but through northern Iran to Turkey and Greece.)
Derek - many thanks for the site. I am interested in purchasing some DVDs and shall follow up.
Cheers David Edmonds
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| Hi derek,
Here are the photos I mentioned in a previous email. I have not been able to match them with anything I've seen on the net.
Can you help? John and Richard were the driver and courier...they look like kids in the doorway!
Regards, Bruce Young
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The Budget Bus Story
Derek
We have at last finished (if there is any such thing) the story of our travels by Budget Bus to India and beyond in 1971, as promised last year!
Writing the story brought it all back and of course and I gradually remembered more as the work progressed. Graham also added his memories but, unfortunately I have not been able to persuade Ian and Tony to contribute to it which is a great shame as we all have different recollections…
Embedded in the text are the photos that we took, such as they are.
Regards Derek Minter
This story is posted on the forum but for those of you who missed it here is a link to the PDF file
A great read, Derek & Graham - Don't miss this one and why not try writing you own story, don't leave it too late!
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Mail Bag
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Recieved this from Carl
Glenmire Travel
Hello Derek,
I was starting to plan a holiday to India next year, with one intension being to try and find someone I met 33 years ago, whilst travelling UK to India overland. I did visit him (in Baroda) where we looked at all his slides from the trip. Unfortunately I didn’t take many photos, and I would love to see them all again, but it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
This prompted me to put “overland to India 1976” into Google, and over the last few days I’ve looked at quite a few interesting sites. I would be more than happy to send any details in the future, but as I said above, hardly any photos. I remember Penn Overland, and have looked at your list of operators. I travelled with a company called Glenmire Travel – does that ring a bell? I remember going to the Indian Tourist Office a few days before setting off, where I met a friend of one of my mothers friends – who just happened to be the head of the tourist office! So I got special treatment, cup of tea and biscuits, and when I told her Glenmire Travel, she hadn’t heard of them!!!
To cut a long story short, we travelled from London to Athens, and there we “changed” bus, and have no idea which company we travelled with! (this was Sept 76, a month after my 18th birthday).
Due to a recent operation, I’m still off work (now 11 weeks), and wish I’d started looking at this a few weeks ago! I intend to re-write my account of the journey, and post it somewhere! Please let me know if you’d like any more info,
Best wishes, Carl Dulling.
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LONDON TO NEW DELHI 1976. d. 28 SEP a. 22 OCT
Bus 1: Ostend to Athens (Budget Bus) Bus 2: Athens to New Delhi (Budget Bus, I think!)
1. Carl Dulling, age 18, Skipton, N.Yorkshire
2. John and Kate, age 25/26, Birmingham (kicked off bus at Istanbul)
3. Bob, age 25, Huddersfield (kicked off bus at Istanbul)
4. Ghanshyam Patel, age 28, Baroda, India (travelling back home)
5. Linda, age 20, Nottingham area (left bus at Amritsar)
6. Griff
7. David, UK, (Pink Floyd fan)
8. Marco (“junkie”)
9. Captain (kicked off bus at Istanbul)
10. Dutch guy (Herke?)
11. Joan, early 20s, Newcastle, UK
12. Ronnie, (American) (left bus at Kabul)
13. Winifred (age 60/70), UK
14. Eric (Dutch) and Margie (Australian)
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15. Daniel (French)
16. Jim (New Zealand)
17. Jenny
18. Liam
19. Alan Rose (Australian)
20. Bill (left bus at Amritsar)
21. Carol (left bus at Amritsar)
22. Les (left bus at Amritsar)
23. Kim (left bus at Amritsar)
24. Esther? (Dutch?)
25. Eulalia and young son (American)
(left bus at Amritsar)
Drivers: Cor (Dutch) and Ab (?)
Crew (?): ? , brother of Timothy Davey
(14 yr old caught with drugs in Turkey 1972)
Please contact Carl at
Karnataka@karnataka.karoo.co.uk if you were on this bus!
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This from Tony
Hi there
I have only very recently found your most interesting website and would be pleased if there had been, or if there is, any further information on the Sundowner trips in the early 70’s
I am currently forming a small booklet on the trip from Kathmandu to London that Sundowners ran in the spring of 72 on which my late wife travelled. I have dozens of photos of the trip and a detailed day to day diary which my wife filled in each day of the trip and would be pleased to make contact with any of the passengers on that bus.
I did meet four of the Australian passengers after they had arrived in the UK but regretfully have lost contact with them
The coach left Kathmandu on 4 April 72 and reached London on 10 July 72.
Somewhere I am sure I have a passenger list so will search and if you could publish it it might assist me.
Regards Tony Harrison, Leyland, Lancs.
PS enjoyed your website very much.
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| This from Marilyn
Dear Derek,
I was on The Overlanders trip from London to Katmandu in 1977. I would love to be in touch with the driver, Jim Allen, and the courier, "Robo" or more likely Robert Rowe. If you have information, please let me know.
It was an amazing journey, life changing, and one I will never forget! A long long time ago! Unforgettable!
Thanks,
Marilyn Haner
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| from Stuart Varney
I left England on April 22nd. 1972, with Encounter Overland. Europe,Turkey,Iran,
Afghanistan,Pakistan and then 4 months in India, plus time is Sri Lanka and Nepal. Driver was Andrew Robertson....passengers included a married English couple with the last name of White I think...he was an optician and her name was Margaret. Another passenger was Barbara McCormick, a South African. A married Australian couple who were academics at McQuarry University.
My name is Stuart Varney....I travelled for a couple more years, mostly around Australia and Hong Kong, then settled in America...worked for CNN and now Fox News....I would love to make contact with anyone I met on the road all those years ago...
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Hi Derek,
Allan Maher, ex Capricorn here. Ref Will Roberts article, The driver Peter Swarbick, returned home to Perth, not long after he ran that trip. Used to drive Local Busses. Sadly he was involved in a motor vehicle accident and he and his niece were killed sometime in the early eighties.He was a bloody good bloke.The courier Ray Compton ( a pom) emigrated to Sydney and was last heard of running a very successful waste disposal business ( bit like the overland really!!!). In answer to Rowena,s query re her trip. The driver. Brendon Reid is alive , unchanged and well, living in Queensland, still does some trips for a mob called Journeys Worldwide in Brisbane, which is owned by Capricorns former owner, Dick Cijffers. No news of the Whereabouts of that Trips courier, Laurie Mockler. Hope That helps
Regards To All. Allan M.
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Hi Derek,
Re the comment from Patrick Farrell below:
Hi Derek,
My name is Patrick Farrell. I was a paying customer with a June to September 1973 Encounter Overland trip. we were in Afghanistan just in time for the overthrow of the King. Lots of funny stories there. I'm interested in any photos and would like to reconnect with my fellow travellers. The group leader was Peter Web. His girlfriends name Nicky Grant. I have a friend here in Nanaimo B.C. Canada, Dennis Cornell, who was a leader/driver in the 80's. ring a bell? thanks in advance
I drove with EO in the 80s and trained and drove with Dennis - top bloke as they say. Do you have Patrick's email address as I would love to say Hi to Dennis? Have fun in Thailand and don't steal the beer mats!
Regards, Spiny
(patrick's email address supplied so lets hope that's another reunion)
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| If you have info re any of the above or would like to contact anyone please drop me an email and I will pass it on. |
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For those of you looking forward to a cold winter
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| This is view from our new home in Phuket - we'll turn the fan up a notch and have a cold beer for you |
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| Sunset over the Andaman Sea with Poo Island in foreground. |
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