Day 175
Sleeping location: Behind palms 3.985N 35.848E, Kenya
Distance (km today/total): 24 / 12410
Estimated climb (m today/total): 0 / 91200
Time spent separated: 4hrs
Distance (km today/total): 24 / 12410
Estimated climb (m today/total): 0 / 91200
Time spent separated: 4hrs
Day in three words: Going cross country
Sven and Anna were the saviours of breakfast today, supplying us with Swedish rye bread and marmalade (such luxuries!) after it transpired that our remaining eggs were also all bad. After they headed off in the direction of Addis we packed up in a relaxed fashion and didn’t leave until 11am. As the “roads” were so bad we decided cut across country and ride/push across open ground, navigating with a combination of maps, gps and the sun. The initial stages were difficult as we had to climb in and out of several dry river beds, and around here we managed to get separated after I stormed ahead a bit too far. I decided it would be easiest to find each other back on the main “road” and navigated myself down some difficult sandy tracks to a small village which I figured Rebecca would also pass through, then sat under some shade to wait. Lots of locals came to watch but they are less invasive than Ethiopians so it was mostly ok, plus some English is spoken which helps. A woman brought me a chair to sit on and I watched a tiny boy run around pretending to be a motorbike, with all the appropriate noises.
After more than an hour I was getting a bit worried and went to the other two potential places in the village that she might be at, but she wasn’t. After two hours I decided she must have somehow come out south of the village and decided to carry on. Before too long I picked up her tracks in the sand, which was a relief, then shortly afterwards found her mending a puncture by the side of the road*. She had gone properly cross country, eschewing any tracks and crossing multiple river beds, and as a result had popped out just south of the village. Such an explorer.
We carried on together for a couple more hours; it was of course still painstakingly slow and difficult, and of course still absolutely baking hot. Around sunset we decided to wild camp for the first time in ages and found a good spot behind some big bushy palms. Whilst I set up camp** Rebecca went into a nearby village to pick up water and food as we were pretty low on both. Sadly the village was tiny and had no shop, and she had to settle for 3 litres of water from a woman’s house. It soon transpired that one of these bottles was in fact filled with some kind of foul home brew alcohol, so now we were really low on water. Dinner was loads of spaghetti with nowhere near enough “beef stock and tomato purée” sauce. Times are hard.
*After 7,000km with none, she picked up two in 5km of riding across the deadly thorns of Africa
**I added this detail because it sounds like Rebecca always goes to get things whilst I sit on my arse
Sven and Anna were the saviours of breakfast today, supplying us with Swedish rye bread and marmalade (such luxuries!) after it transpired that our remaining eggs were also all bad. After they headed off in the direction of Addis we packed up in a relaxed fashion and didn’t leave until 11am. As the “roads” were so bad we decided cut across country and ride/push across open ground, navigating with a combination of maps, gps and the sun. The initial stages were difficult as we had to climb in and out of several dry river beds, and around here we managed to get separated after I stormed ahead a bit too far. I decided it would be easiest to find each other back on the main “road” and navigated myself down some difficult sandy tracks to a small village which I figured Rebecca would also pass through, then sat under some shade to wait. Lots of locals came to watch but they are less invasive than Ethiopians so it was mostly ok, plus some English is spoken which helps. A woman brought me a chair to sit on and I watched a tiny boy run around pretending to be a motorbike, with all the appropriate noises.
After more than an hour I was getting a bit worried and went to the other two potential places in the village that she might be at, but she wasn’t. After two hours I decided she must have somehow come out south of the village and decided to carry on. Before too long I picked up her tracks in the sand, which was a relief, then shortly afterwards found her mending a puncture by the side of the road*. She had gone properly cross country, eschewing any tracks and crossing multiple river beds, and as a result had popped out just south of the village. Such an explorer.
We carried on together for a couple more hours; it was of course still painstakingly slow and difficult, and of course still absolutely baking hot. Around sunset we decided to wild camp for the first time in ages and found a good spot behind some big bushy palms. Whilst I set up camp** Rebecca went into a nearby village to pick up water and food as we were pretty low on both. Sadly the village was tiny and had no shop, and she had to settle for 3 litres of water from a woman’s house. It soon transpired that one of these bottles was in fact filled with some kind of foul home brew alcohol, so now we were really low on water. Dinner was loads of spaghetti with nowhere near enough “beef stock and tomato purée” sauce. Times are hard.
*After 7,000km with none, she picked up two in 5km of riding across the deadly thorns of Africa
**I added this detail because it sounds like Rebecca always goes to get things whilst I sit on my arse
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