Got a very quick but informative call this morning, they had left Layoun and headed into the Western Sahara travelling with two Australian bikers. They are stopped fairly regularly by military check points but all is well and they've had no problems with the locals! The car started rattling and they had got sand in the air inlet, so with a pair of tights securely in place they were off again and are now heading towards Dakhla only a few miles north of the Tropic of Cancer. The weather has got hot and even at night they it's mild (not that they know as it seems the lure of hotels is winning over the camping plans!).
Steph