161 km, 1338 m total ascent, 34°C maximum.
We will be crossing into Malawi, our sixth country. We are told that this will be our slowest border crossing, and we should arrive with a healthy dose of patience.
Less than 5 kilometers after departing camp, we came upon a scene that none of us want to see. One of our riders was sprawled in an awkward position in the middle of the lane. She was conscious, but pretty dazed. All of the riders who came upon her created a perimeter and the traffic creeped to a near halt around us.
After our medics arrived, it was clear that there was nothing else we could do on site, so we proceeded to ride on. She would definitely need to go to the hospital for a thorough
evaluation.
Workers washing carrots in the river.
A village near our summit for the day, which we reached at 30 km.
Typical lumberyard.
We met Patrick and Anna on the road, two self-supported Dutch bikers who are riding from the Netherlands to Cape Town. They started in September and anticipate arriving in July. They are well ahead of schedule, and will meander some additional routes on their bikes through Africa with their spare time.
Before crossing the border, we encountered massive tea fields again.
Waiting at the Tanzania-Malawi border. Processing people actually did not take as much time as we thought. The bureaucratic delay was with getting the paperwork completed for the TDA trucks. TDA’s policy is not to let any riders across the border until there are TDA staff and trucks on the other side of the border, so that riders will have TDA support in the new country, in case any problem arises.
Welcome to Malawi!
Immediately upon crossing the border, there was lots of corn drying on the roadside.
There were also fields and fields of rice paddies.
Our destination for the night was Mufwa Lakeshore Lodge in Karonga, which was a decrepit property. No one chose to upgrade into a room because the running water and electrical service was spotty. Many compared the buildings and rooms to a prison.
TDA staff updated us that the injured rider was basically ok, but she has at least two rib fractures. Thus, she and her husband will not be re-joining our tour. We also heard that the accident occurred when an adjacent vehicle traveling in the same direction swerved into her to avoid an oncoming car. This is all very sobering news for us.
The wind started whipping on the lake about midnight, and soon rain was pattering on our tents.
This was ride number 39 of 77, so we have completed just over half of our scheduled rides to reach Cape Town.
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