Jeff's Relive
Sunday, March 31, 2024
Day 79 Saturday March 30 Moorings Campsite to Ruze Chalets
by Henry
155 km, 755 m total ascent, 32°C maximum. We had roughly 50% crosswind and 50% tailwind today.
Not an uncommon sight; combination of trash and brush burning at the roadside. Very unpleasant to ride through the smoke.
We also saw four dogs today that had been killed by cars. Very unusual; dogs are survivors here. We are grateful that none of the dogs we encounter have been aggressive to bikers.
Since leaving Lusaka two days ago, Zambia’s landscape has flattened out and is quite generic; not scenic or exciting.
Custom-crafted chicken coops.
Annual agricultural thanksgiving ceremony of the Tonga tribe.
We passed a section of the road today where handmade artifacts were attractively displayed.
Vases and containers of varying shapes and sizes.
Lunch was at 87 km. We stopped for a sundae with chocolate syrup and a diet Pepsi at the Hungry Lion at 112 km.
At 90 km, a man groped the thighs of at least three women bikers, and was heard to exclaim “sexy!”. He may have been drunk, be mentally ill, or both. This type of incident hasn’t happened before during our tour.
I only wanted to take a picture of the sign, but he emerged instantly to photobomb my shot. I don’t think he’s the bicycle repairman . . .
Ruze Chalets Camping site is very rustic, and like so many other places, is well past its heyday. The toilets don’t have seats, nor do they flush. We have to pour buckets of water to manually flush. There was no running water for the showers, so we reverted to blue bucket showers inside the original shower stalls. The “ruse” is that this is a bush camp in disguise.
Tomorrow we reach Livingstone, our terminus in Zambia, where we will have 3 rest days, as there are many tourist activities available. Victoria Falls is the centerpiece.
Saturday, March 30, 2024
Message from Tim
Tim sent this to me while he was on his way home. I will pick him up at the Spokane airport late in the evening today. As I write this, Tim's flight from Dubai has landed in LA. Just one more flight from LA to Spokane—Priscilla
From Tim:
I am currently flying home on a 36 hour air tour from Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, to Spokane. I have a lovely business class ticket on Emirates as a painful posterior is the issue sending me home.
I completed 2800 miles from Egypt through Malawi feeling strong and comfortable in the saddle. On March 18th after a gorgeous 85 mile day with 5800 feet of climbing I developed some discomfort. The next day I made it 35 miles before calling it quits.I had somehow developed a deep tissue abscess that medical staff determined would not heal without minor surgery and time.
I spent about a week painfully bouncing along in the luggage truck conflicted with one foot headed home and the other still hopeful of riding. The daily challenges of camping and keeping oneself clean (a relative term) are less tolerable without the adventure of the ride. Not having the common experience of the day's ride and very challenging cellular connectivity in Malawi messes with your mind. As we approached a March 28th rest day in Lusaka, Zambia and getting back on a bike was still weeks away, Priscilla booked me a flight home. With both feet now headed the same direction, others noticed a more upbeat Tim as I packed for travel home.
I of course would have loved to complete the tour. As is, I had a great 2800 miles exploring a new part of the world and met an amazing group of strong riders from many countries. I return home for a low drama reason but don’t have the extended hospitalizations that went with our tour's more interesting fails.
Day 78 Friday March 29 Lusaka to Moorings Campsite
by Henry
168 km traveled, 900 m total elevation gain, 33° C maximum.
168 km traveled, 900 m total elevation gain, 33° C maximum.
The road leaving Lusaka was predictably busy, but far from the worst we have seen. There was a tailwind to help propel us out of the city.
The road surface sometimes had a good shoulder, and sometimes not. We were accosted by many rumble strips and speed bumps.
For at least the first half of the day, dozens of trucks like this passed us. We were riding through a copper mining region, and these trucks were all carrying heavy copper plates of varying thicknesses. They could not be stacked any higher, as the trucks could barely get up the hills with this amount of copper.
Lunch was at 92 km, further than we usually have to ride for our midday meal.
20 km after lunch, we stopped at this café, which was highly recommended by the Tour d’Afrique riders from last year. It was Good Friday, and holiday travelers on the busy road had decimated the pastry case, so we settled for a cappuccino and some ice cream. We sat on the veranda, and were happy for a short break from the heat.
Another 30 km down the road, we took a break at this Coke stop, which was more of a bar. The only soft drink they had to sell was orange Fanta, which is a little bit too sickeningly sweet, so we just drank water and snacked. There were two dozen young men playing billiards and just hanging out there.
For at least the last 50 km, we had a tailwind to help speed us along. It turned from sunny to overcast, which dissipated the heat.
Thatched hut neighborhood.
Our destination was The Moorings Campsite, which was relatively humble, but at least there was hot water in the showers. It was both Kenny’s and Aussie Richard’s birthdays, so we were plied with cake after dinner.
Friday, March 29, 2024
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Day 77 Thursday March 28 Rest Day in Lusaka
by Henry
Rest day. Luxurious to wake up at 5:45 AM, with it already getting light. Usually at this time of day, we have to be all packed and delivering our bags to the truck.
Casual morning at camp.
The grassy area at this camp was expansive and spacious, so we could spread out.
The 4 Spokanites walked to the Mint Lounge about 2 km away and enjoyed a very relaxing breakfast to include cappuccinos and mango-banana smoothies.
Later in the day, hunger pangs struck again, so we rode our bikes about 2 km in the other direction and ordered a couple pieces of fried chicken and sundaes here as the first course for lunch. This is East Africa’s version of KFC.
The progressive lunch continued here, another half kilometer down the road. The sign was too enticing to pass up.
We shared a steak and kidney pie; quite tasty.
Next stop was a grocery store to pick up a few snacks. This was the first freezer stocked with bags of ice that we have seen in all of Africa.
At the resort, we were informed that electricity would be turned off for eight hours per day, except for “essential” needs. “Load shedding.”
Cute chalets were available at the resort, in addition to campsites.
Many farewell pictures were taken before Tim left for the airport today. This is with Andy and Bird (Anna) from England.
This is just before Tim got into his 5 PM airport taxi. His flight is scheduled to leave tonight at 9 PM.
We went back to Sandy’s Restaurant for dinner tonight. It was quite unsettling to not have Tim with us.
We also learned that Joanne (from the oxcart injury) has a total of eight rib fractures, a small pneumothorax, a small hemothorax, and she is still admitted to a Lusaka hospital for observation. She probably won’t receive clearance to fly back to the USA for another 2 to 3 weeks. Once she is discharged from the hospital, she will be staying in a hotel here in Lusaka, while we pedal onwards. All rather disquieting.
Wednesday, March 27, 2024
Day 76 Wednesday March 27 Mukonka School to Lusaka
by Henry
132 km, 1013 m total ascent, 29°C. Tailwind most of the day.
Brightly visible moon on our early morning departure from camp. The shoulder quality is now greatly deteriorated, and we had to be on high alert all day for poor quality shoulders, deep potholes, and increasingly dense traffic as we approached the capital city with 1.7 million inhabitants.
Passing through a market village. I know I wouldn’t be able to sit very comfortably in the wheelbarrow for long.
Wheels and watermelons for sale in the same village.
Chickens and the charcoal to cook them with also for sale. One stop shopping.
Arrived at Eureka camp in Lusaka, Zambia‘s capital. Entering the city, we took the usual labyrinth of back roads to get to our campsite. This time, it was over 30 km once we crossed the city limits before reaching camp. We have a rest day here.
After getting into the city limits, we stopped at a Shoprite to dose ourselves with ice cream. Because electrical power is either nonexistent, (or very unreliable) in the villages and countryside, there is no ice cream available except for in the major cities.
The camp is a sanctuary for some animals, so there are a few zebra and giraffes wandering around. Also, the usual pesky vervet monkeys are present.
Went to Sandy’s Restaurant across the road from camp for a farewell dinner for Tim. Everyone on the Tour is genuinely fond of Tim.
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
Day 75 Tuesday March 26 Luangwa Bridge to Mukonka School
by Henry
124 km, 1853 m total climbing, 28°C high temperature.
124 km, 1853 m total climbing, 28°C high temperature.
Another challenging day, piggybacked on two consecutive days of 170+ km.
Early morning view of the Luangwa River, clearly at a relative low point now.
We had a challenging morning climb. We basically went up and down continuously for 50 km, gaining 700 m in geographic elevation, but our total ascent was over 1100 m by that point. Hill after hill after hill. 
The road quality was generally good, but there was definitely some deterioration of the Great East Road on today’s ride. Many potholes, and I got a rear flat when I hit one after taking my eyes off the road for a split second to put my water bottle away.
Granite peak in the distance.
After lunch, we had many more ups and downs, but a gentle tailwind assist moved us along.
Today’s ride was in more desolate countryside than we have experienced for most of Africa. There were a few villages, but very limited in the number of people along the road, so it was quite peaceful as we pedaled. 
Our bush camp tonight was at Mukonka Primary School, again on the soccer field. We occupied half of it, but that did not stop the kids from kicking around the ball on the other half of the pitch.
Tim and Joanne were transported by TDA staff directly to Lusaka (our destination for tomorrow) this morning. Joanne will need to go to another clinic and get some additional studies done there. We will meet up with them again tomorrow afternoon when we arrive by bicycle in Lusaka.
We also learned that Eero’s fractured fibula has healed with clean Finnish living, and he will be rejoining our group in Livingstone, ready to ride again.
Day 74 Monday March 25 Petauke to Luangwa Bridge
Jeff's Relive
https://www.relive.cc/view/v26MjZGWg3q
Tim will no longer be riding due to a medical issue. Coming back to Spokane March 29.
Monday, March 25, 2024
Day 74 Monday March 25 Petauke to Luangwa Bridge
by Henry
172 km, 1534 m total ascent, 34°C maximum. About the same distance as yesterday, but given the increased climbing, and hotter temperature, today is going to be more difficult.
172 km, 1534 m total ascent, 34°C maximum. About the same distance as yesterday, but given the increased climbing, and hotter temperature, today is going to be more difficult.
Joanne had an accident with an oxcart this morning in a village just a few kilometers after leaving camp. She was looking down and T-boned (not trying to be funny; just using common parlance!) the cow pulling the cart. After she fell, the beast then toppled over on top of her. She said she could feel her ribs cracking. She was diagnosed at the clinic with several rib fractures, and will not be able to continue the tour.
From other signs, I know that the last figure is for 800 kwacha.
We haven’t seen any toll roads since Egypt. US $1 is about 26 Zambian kwacha (K).
Coke stop at 120 km. Generally, we are lucky to get cool Cokes. Very rare to get an ice cold soda. 
Tailwind in the afternoon provided a gentle push. It was forecast to be overcast, but it turned out to be partly cloudy, yet quite sunny and hot for the afternoon. The heat adds a distinct element of difficulty. The shoulder also became narrower. 
It is now autumn in the southern hemisphere, and we can see early fall colors in the distance. 
Small community by the roadside. What I learned to appreciate is that these communities extend deeper away from the road for a good distance, and there are more people living here than might be expected.
A baobab tree. 
Destination today is Luangwa Bridge Camp, along the Luangwa River. Mozambique is on the other shore.
Potatoes on the grill for dinner.
It was warm enough that two of the last riders arrived at camp with mild heat exhaustion, but the medics attended to them expertly.
The other major news is that Tim has made the very difficult decision to leave the Tour early. The entire group was very saddened to hear this. We will all miss him. He will post more details about this after he gets home.
Day 73 Sunday March 24 Chipata to Petauke
by Henry
176 km, 1190 m total ascent, 30°C. This is the first of two days in a row where we ride over 170 km each day.
We are riding along the Great East Road, leading from Lilongwe to Livingstone.
Charcoal is still widely used for cooking, and these bags of charcoal are sold everywhere.
These bags are routinely transported by bicycle in both Malawi and Zambia.
Our dinner truck (seen ahead) often stops by roadside stands and in the villages to procure food for the day’s dinner. They purchased potatoes at this stop.
Today was Palm Sunday. Linda is in the middle of the throng, and the local priest is personally making a cross for her.
Linda with the finished product.
Road quality was good all day. The landscape was flattening out, with hills more in the distance.
Neighborhoods in Zambian villages have a different look than in the other countries we have visited.
All day long, we were greeted by hundreds of children all chanting “How are you? How are you? How are you?“ at a very high volume. They don’t seem to have been taught the simple “hi” or “hello”. It’s hard to ignore people who are welcoming us, but we have to by necessity at times because we are often focused on the road for safety.
Probably the most modern hospital we have ridden by.
Lunch was at 81 km, which left 95 km for the second half of the day. I experienced a rear flat tire from a thorn in the road in the afternoon, and we didn’t get to camp until about 4:15 PM as a result. However, we had the benefit of a reasonable tailwind for the afternoon, which was a great help.
Our destination today was Petauke Chimwemwe Lodge. We had bratwursts and mashed potatoes for dinner. Margot’s mom traveled from Belgium to visit her in Lilongwe, and she kindly bought a horde of Belgian chocolates, which we shared appreciatively for dessert.
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By Henry Because we were sleeping at elevation, everyone woke up from a cold night. The riders clamored for their coffee immediately upon aw...
