Thursday, April 29, 2010
Goats on a Bike
I posted a photo of a pig on a bike and here's one of a couple of goats on a bike! I just love that bikes in all of Africa are used to carry everything and anything!
Friday, April 23, 2010
Elephant Highway, Botswana
The Botswana section of the Tour d'Afrique is called Elephant Highway - but I haven't seen a single elephant! We have covered over 700km (again!) in 5 days since leaving Livingston, Zambia and I have seen all the tell tale signs of elephants on the road (lots of dung and I mean lots!) but I haven't spotted one yet. Other riders have seen them but not me. I did see a giraffe at one of our bush camps but no elephants. My fingers are crossed that I might see one on the road in the next couple of days before we leave Botswana!
The riding in Botswana has been long and flat and I mean FLAT. There are no hills in this country so it makes for tough riding. One would think that lots of hills and mountains would be harder but my legs have never hurt more on this tour than here in Botswana. The distances have ranged from 136km - 182km each day and when you are in the same riding position for hours at a time - same gear for the most part - it is really hard work. To deal with the tedious flat landscape I have joined a pace line with three or four other riders and we take turns pulling the train for 5 minutes at a time. This helps you rest when you are not at the front of the train and it means that the day goes much faster. We typically travel at speeds of around 33-36km per hour. I always consider myself a lone rider and have dissed the pace lines in other blogs but really I am grateful to have the help for this section and have enjoyed riding with new people.
In two days time we will be leaving Botswana and will be heading to Namibia. We have fewer than 20 riding days left - that is hard to believe! Next week will be another mental challenge with distances ranging from 150km-200km per day. It is so interesting to me that I can find flat roads so very hard to ride but it is true - give me the mountains in Ethiopia any day! In Namibia we will go off road again for the last time before heading into South Africa. We are less than 3 weeks from the end of the tour and I am trying to savour every day here even if the days on the bike are long and hard. What is new really - this is of course the Tour d'Afrique.....when have I ever blogged that the rides are easy?
I will try to get more photos up on my next rest day in one week. This afternoon I am going to fly over the Okavango Delta in a 7 person plane! I am very excited to see Botswana from the air instead of from a bike.
Thanks for following my blog - I am sorry that my entries are so few and far between. I thought it would be easier to access the internet as I travelled further south but that doesn't seem to always be the case.
So until Nambia - be well and I hope you will follow the last few weeks on the TDA.
Jx
The riding in Botswana has been long and flat and I mean FLAT. There are no hills in this country so it makes for tough riding. One would think that lots of hills and mountains would be harder but my legs have never hurt more on this tour than here in Botswana. The distances have ranged from 136km - 182km each day and when you are in the same riding position for hours at a time - same gear for the most part - it is really hard work. To deal with the tedious flat landscape I have joined a pace line with three or four other riders and we take turns pulling the train for 5 minutes at a time. This helps you rest when you are not at the front of the train and it means that the day goes much faster. We typically travel at speeds of around 33-36km per hour. I always consider myself a lone rider and have dissed the pace lines in other blogs but really I am grateful to have the help for this section and have enjoyed riding with new people.
In two days time we will be leaving Botswana and will be heading to Namibia. We have fewer than 20 riding days left - that is hard to believe! Next week will be another mental challenge with distances ranging from 150km-200km per day. It is so interesting to me that I can find flat roads so very hard to ride but it is true - give me the mountains in Ethiopia any day! In Namibia we will go off road again for the last time before heading into South Africa. We are less than 3 weeks from the end of the tour and I am trying to savour every day here even if the days on the bike are long and hard. What is new really - this is of course the Tour d'Afrique.....when have I ever blogged that the rides are easy?
I will try to get more photos up on my next rest day in one week. This afternoon I am going to fly over the Okavango Delta in a 7 person plane! I am very excited to see Botswana from the air instead of from a bike.
Thanks for following my blog - I am sorry that my entries are so few and far between. I thought it would be easier to access the internet as I travelled further south but that doesn't seem to always be the case.
So until Nambia - be well and I hope you will follow the last few weeks on the TDA.
Jx
Victoria Falls, Zambia
We covered lots of ground in Zambia (approx 725 km in 5 days) and rolled into Livingston pretty much exhausted. We had an extra rest day so a group of us reserved rooms for two nights at the amazing Victoria Falls Hotel on the Zimbabwe side (a special thanks to the lovely Jen for making all the arrangements!). We often cross borders on our bikes but this is the first time I have actually walked across an international border. The taxi dropped us at the Zambia border - we got our exit stamps and walked across a long bridge to the Zimbabwe border with the Victoria Falls separating the two countries. It is the end of the rainy season here so the falls are incredible and the spray can be seen for many kilometres.
We arrived at the Vic Falls Hotel and it was just my parents had described - an old colonial hotel with a huge terrace, game heads mounted on the walls, a gorgeous swimming pool and baboons roaming the grounds. I have spent only two other nights in a hotel on this trip (in Addis, Ethiopia) but I was sick so I hardly feel like it was much of a break. This, however, felt like a holiday. There were several TDA riders at the hotel but I spent most of my time with Steph, Dan, Ruben, Erin, Paddy and Rick sitting on the terrace drinking mojitos and swimming in the pool. The luxury of this beautiful hotel was such a treat - big buffet breakfasts, burgers poolside and beers in the afternoon. I had to practically be pushed off the terrace to go walk around the falls - seriously. I did make the trip on the last morning we were at the hotel - after breakfast I walked the 10 minutes from the hotel to the falls and spent an hour peering at the torrent of water rushing over the rocks and standing under the spray which soaks you to the skin. Victoria Falls really is one of the natural wonders of the world and really worth the walk from the hotel. The other riders would not have let me leave without seeing them. How could I ever say that I went to Vic Falls and didn't even see them? Of course, I am glad I made the effort! Pictures to follow in the next week or so.
It was hard to leave the lap of luxury and head back to camp but that's how it goes on this tour - but we are here to ride our bikes not to sit around fancy hotels drinking ice cold cocktails (oh - those mojitos were delicious!) The distances are getting longer now as we head into the last two sections of the tour. Next stop....Botswana. Stay tuned!
We arrived at the Vic Falls Hotel and it was just my parents had described - an old colonial hotel with a huge terrace, game heads mounted on the walls, a gorgeous swimming pool and baboons roaming the grounds. I have spent only two other nights in a hotel on this trip (in Addis, Ethiopia) but I was sick so I hardly feel like it was much of a break. This, however, felt like a holiday. There were several TDA riders at the hotel but I spent most of my time with Steph, Dan, Ruben, Erin, Paddy and Rick sitting on the terrace drinking mojitos and swimming in the pool. The luxury of this beautiful hotel was such a treat - big buffet breakfasts, burgers poolside and beers in the afternoon. I had to practically be pushed off the terrace to go walk around the falls - seriously. I did make the trip on the last morning we were at the hotel - after breakfast I walked the 10 minutes from the hotel to the falls and spent an hour peering at the torrent of water rushing over the rocks and standing under the spray which soaks you to the skin. Victoria Falls really is one of the natural wonders of the world and really worth the walk from the hotel. The other riders would not have let me leave without seeing them. How could I ever say that I went to Vic Falls and didn't even see them? Of course, I am glad I made the effort! Pictures to follow in the next week or so.
It was hard to leave the lap of luxury and head back to camp but that's how it goes on this tour - but we are here to ride our bikes not to sit around fancy hotels drinking ice cold cocktails (oh - those mojitos were delicious!) The distances are getting longer now as we head into the last two sections of the tour. Next stop....Botswana. Stay tuned!
Lake Malawi
This is Lake Malawi and the site we camped at on one of our rest days. I loved the the terrain in Malawi - lush and green with loads of rolling hills - perfect riding for me. It was such a pleasure to camp on a beach - most of us would have liked to stay for a week!
Bike With Firewood
In all of Africa bikes are not only a form of transport but they are used to carry everything from pigs and goats to water and in this case firewood. It wasn't until we arrived in Kenya that I actually saw a woman on a bike. Bikes seem to be for men only in most countries. Often the men will just push their bikes because they are impossible to ride up the hills with such a heavy load. I have, however, seen guys riding their bikes with firewood stacked this high! And I thought it was hard to ride carrying three litres of water in my Camelbak....
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