A shorter riding distance today at 136 km, with 37 km being unpaved. Total ascent will be 540 m. High temperature 28° C.
Panoramic view of sunrise at the Regency Hotel & Resort from my tent site on a small patch of grass next to the pool.
Although it was a Saturday at 6:45 am, some middle and high school students appeared en masse in their uniforms from a local boarding school to play at the lakeshore and jump in the water.
We rode by many more kopjes.
Beehives in Africa are hung in trees.
Many roadside stands were selling honey.
At 92 km, we transitioned to a stretch of unpaved road for 21 km. This was hard pack clay, fairly smooth with only small rocks, not like the boulders we had ridden over elsewhere. After this 21 km, we enjoyed a 7 km interlude of smooth tarmac.
This was followed by a second section of gravel, which was very wide. The last 6 km that led us to camp was on a narrower dirt road with multiple potholes.
We arrived at the first of four consecutive bush campsites, a soccer field in Doroto. Soccer fields with good grass or nets in the goals are a rarity in Africa.
We received a talk about how water is a precious commodity, especially in bush camps. The trucks can only carry so much clean water, usually only about 1.5 day’s supply, before needing to be refilled. We require water for handwashing, cooking, and drinking. Bathwater is conserved; we are each allotted about 6 liters every day for our “showers”. Many riders stand in the blue bucket to wash themselves and catch the rinse water. The gray rinse water is then used to wash out any clothes for the day. Not the way you were taught, but such is life in a bush camp.
Overall, today was a much easier riding day than the last two days.
Panoramic view of sunrise at the Regency Hotel & Resort from my tent site on a small patch of grass next to the pool.
Although it was a Saturday at 6:45 am, some middle and high school students appeared en masse in their uniforms from a local boarding school to play at the lakeshore and jump in the water.
We rode by many more kopjes.
Beehives in Africa are hung in trees.
Many roadside stands were selling honey.
At 92 km, we transitioned to a stretch of unpaved road for 21 km. This was hard pack clay, fairly smooth with only small rocks, not like the boulders we had ridden over elsewhere. After this 21 km, we enjoyed a 7 km interlude of smooth tarmac.
This was followed by a second section of gravel, which was very wide. The last 6 km that led us to camp was on a narrower dirt road with multiple potholes.
We arrived at the first of four consecutive bush campsites, a soccer field in Doroto. Soccer fields with good grass or nets in the goals are a rarity in Africa.
We received a talk about how water is a precious commodity, especially in bush camps. The trucks can only carry so much clean water, usually only about 1.5 day’s supply, before needing to be refilled. We require water for handwashing, cooking, and drinking. Bathwater is conserved; we are each allotted about 6 liters every day for our “showers”. Many riders stand in the blue bucket to wash themselves and catch the rinse water. The gray rinse water is then used to wash out any clothes for the day. Not the way you were taught, but such is life in a bush camp.
Overall, today was a much easier riding day than the last two days.
No comments:
Post a Comment