Here in Me'kele the net is too slow to upload many photos, some pics can be viewed on Instagram @browsinabout
18/2/2015 60 km from Qallabat to 16km into Ethiopia
D76, T5, Av16.05, Max41, 37,544, 2676
Close to tailwinds but hot, 37
The moment we passed through the border, what a difference, there were people all over the street. They looked remarkably different, many with wedge shaped heads and large dark eyes.
Many men looked drunk. Then we saw bars and brothels and trucks unloading beer. Here in this country alcohol was available.
Though obtainable in Sudan, it is not openly for sale anywhere.
We walked over to the only area off the main road with few people and put a new chain on my bike.
We had quite and audience, once this was done we just wanted to leave this typical border town. Men were drinking in bars, children were calling out. We bought fruit and veges for the night.
Pedro was being hounded by an obviously intoxicated rather aggressive individual who wanted to see his passport.
It wás a scam. As we left, the words, garbage and scum were heard, among others coming from this individual.
Water was bought off a guy with a 44 gallon drum on a donkey cart.
Once out of town people were everso friendly again it was great, they were calling “you, you, you, you” we would respond with Temaste llem.
It was great riding on the smooth asphalt in the gentle rolling hills. People were everywhere as villages were approached. Some 15km from Metama we found an area frequented by stock.
Here we wandered in some few hundred metres and found a campsite amongst dry stalks of Alfalfa.
It was a great camp. Not too many thorns and flat. Fried potatoes were enjoyed for dinner.
My fry pan is coming in very handy, Loic!! The potatoes here fry beautifully.
19/2/2015 16km into Ethiopia to a bush camp
D77, T7, Av14.39, Max67, 37,622, 2753
Still, rolling hill country, not to hot
We arose to a mild morning after an undisturbed night and both our airbeds and all four of our tyres still full of air. It was a very thorny environment both in the trees and shrubs and on the ground.
The day ahead, unbeknown to us was going to be one of experiences, totally new and in some instances beyond imagination.
We had camped not far from a village. The road leading into it was crowded with people walking all over the road and on the verges. We greeted as many as we could with enthusiasm. Temaste llem was our call. This is hello.
The people were very friendly, especially the children.
There is so much more wood around the housing here. The Catatis have their walls constructed with upright poles in many cases. Large head high urns were seen on some properties. These turned out to be storage for Alfalfa seeds. The lady on the property visited, was enthusiastic about having me into her house which like those in Sudan was very cool inside.
There were pictures of Bob Marley and others on the walls. This Orthodox Christian world is so different from that of the Muslim world. Out on the road with Pedro, there was a family group with a cute little baby. The woman had no inhibitions about breast feeding the child infront of us.
There were donkey drawn carts everywhere as usual. People were dressed in just normal street wear. Though, some were obviously of the Muslim faith. This was apparent among the woman. Most people wore a cross of sorts around their necks.
Lunch was enjoyed in Shehedi. Here there were people literally blocking the streets. Injera, the national dish was eaten, in an outdoor sit down eatery, next door to a brothel in a hut. The girls were coming over to look at us dine. It was quite amusing. The dish was very spicy. The injera is a kind of bread, almost like a flat fungus that covers a large plate and the lentils, salad and spicy sauce are in small piles on top.
There were bars here, where men were drinking from yellow cans. A plate nailed to a post indicates a place to eat and yellow cans stacked two or three high signify a place to drink.
The bread is made with vinegar added.
We stocked up on some foods for the night, Pedro found some porridge, I bought potatoes, we found toilet paper easily for the first time in awhile. Tuna in cans could not be found.
Things are very cheap here to say the least. A good meal of Injera can cost as little as 12 burrs.
From here, again, the road took us through rolling hills on very smooth asphalt. Villages were quite close together. People would just appear from anywhere if you stopped for a few minutes. We stopped under on shady tree and within 5 minutes, a guy with a machine gun turned up, then two other men then 2 men with a cart and donkey heavily loaded with dry poles. We had to help push the cart up a small slope onto the road. It was just too heavy for the little creature.
The load of wood moved and unbalanced the cart, so once on the road they had to unload and rebalance the cart.
In the villages the children would run out onto the road to greet us, which was quite dangerous when other vehicles were approaching. Though, some were intent on hanging onto the back of the bike. A few words soon saw them scatter.
All the hill country is very heavily grazed by goats, sheep and cattle. Everything is so dry, a few trees have sizable leaves but most are just thorny, offering little shade.
Tracks leave the roads edge everywhere. Rocks litter most landscapes.
Many farmers on hillsides had gathered the stones and fashioned terraces.
Late in the day we started looking for a camp, whenever we stopped people would arrive.
Not long before dark we found a spot below the road, no sooner had we decided to unpack, children came from across the tree-clad landscape. One boy climbed the high voltage tower near our camp, others kept their distance. Near dark, we said ciao and they left, thankfully, Pedro went to talk to them beforehand.
Dinner was fried potatoes and a cous cous salad,
I was up till 2200 typing, Pedro was in his tent by 2030.
It is necessary for me to rehydrate at night, tonight was no exception requiring two hot chocolates, herbal tea and much water.
20/2/2015 Bush camp to Hotel Veirut, Aykel
D46, T5, Av9.68, Max58, 37,668, 2799
Climbed most of the day, not too hot
Another undisturbed night was enjoyed. Most people here are at home after dark, there is often no electricity and many can’t afford torches.
We both left together about 0800, some locals helped us push the bikes up the rock strewn incline back to the road.
For me riding was easy, I was almost 9 kg lighter without the extra water and potatoes.
Many children were on the road wandering to school.
Greetings were many.
The scenery now was starting to get more dramatic with high ranges with horizontal rock formation.
Everything was still incredibly dry.
Villages were passed. People really are very poor here, conditions are extremely basic. Some living in just lean to’s.
Everything is done manually, from making flour from crushed beans to carrying water to the house from the guy that delivers it with his donkey and cart, in a 44 gallon drum.
There were some nice downhill runs. We got to one village deep in a gully on the river Gente.
From here, it was all uphill. Passing a cutting in the road, we washed our feet in the cooling waters dripping from above.
Others were washing here also. Men were moving cattle up the road, donkeys were just wandering about, children, as usual were everywhere.
Another village higher up was side lined by people on the road washing clothes on blue plastic in tiny amounts of water. Trucks with trailers were passing doing only 5km/hr, such was the incline and the loads they carried between the truck and long trailers.
We had a few drinks and moved on. A driver motioned me to grab hold of his truck, this was done for half a km, it was difficult just hanging on.
The road now was traversing very steep terrain and became a series of switch backs.
We were climbing from last night’s camp of 1100m. Finally, at the top and the plateau, the air was cooler and Eucalypts dominated the vegetation, most had been coppiced for poles and regrown.
The soil was a rich brown. We got to a small village and had Injera and a few drinks. The family invited us in for the traditional Ethiopian coffee.
Time was spent talking to a guy who was a teacher here.
Most people only went to school for a few years and a normal class size was from 40 to 60 children.
He said it was difficult to teach classes this size.
Right now during the dry, it is their time off. So once again, we had quite a crowd watching us. Many were teenagers. He said the population in Ethiopia is about 89 million now. Mostly rural.
Leaving here, we had 10km to go to Aykel. It was still rolling hill country up here. The Hotel Veirut was recommended by the teacher, it had a bar and girls also a restaurant.
We shared a room. Pedro slept on the floor due to his concern about the infamous bed bugs people write about, I took the gamble and slept on the bed in my sleeping bag.
We washed clothes and ourselves and had pasta in the restaurant. A couple of Dashen beers were enjoyed. My second beer since being in Africa!!
21/2/2015 Hotel Virut, Aykel to Gondar
D67, T6, Av13.35, Max71, 37,734, 2866
Big descent then rolling hills, not too hot
I had my usual breakfast in the room, Pedro wandered into town and had pasta.
We were on the road by 0800.
The “you,you,you, where you go, what your name, money, money” started as soon as we hit the road. Aykel was a real Wild West town, trucks everywhere, everything stained in the brown dirt, sheep foraging in rubbish, dogs on the loose and people everywhere, many trying to sell what they could.
A few km out of town, we were privileged with a great panorama of land to east and south. Aykel had an elevation of 2230m we had ridden 1100m up, yesterday.
The view was spectacular but hazy.
My headset has been loose lately, a stop was made at the top of the descent to try and tighten it up somewhat.
This proved successful. I felt alot better about this as I was descending at over 70km/hr on part of the way down.
The roads here are good enough to be trusted at these speeds. My bike free wheels faster than any other cyclists ridden with, it is no different with Pedro.
No sooner had we got to the bottom an ascent began after the river Aruswusha.
The children were everywhere, chasing us and calling for money among other things. The you you was the predominant call. I knew Pedro was behind me, the calls could always be heard.
We arrived in Iyamba on market day. Stopping for a drink, we had over 100 children around us within 5 minutes. One guy got on Pedros bike. All this is really hard work.
The main road that the village was on was just a sea of humanity. People by the hundreds were walking to the centre with bags on their heads. They were bringing things to sell in the market.
We moved on from here with the usual entourage of young kids.
The moment they touched my bike, they got the hard word and scattered.
Luckily, the older people at times would literally shoo them off our tail.
Greetings became so many, that in the end I was just greeting the older people.
They and I both shared a respect. Me for their endurance of such a hard life and theirs of me, possibly when they saw how old I was. We both shared similar hardships. Mine fortunately was by choice theirs, the only life they know.
These people produce little more than they need to eat.
The job to bring these rural people out of poverty seems almost unsurmountable.
Efforts are being made with water and sanitation by churches along this road as was read on billboards.
The riding was quite tough, down one hill and straight up another.
We got to Azezo and had Injera for lunch and a break. From here, we road along a busy urban valley to a hotel where they let us use the wifi.
Along this road, a teenager grabbed my seat on the back of the bike, I yelled at him in no polite fashion. He ran off as fast as he could. He had broken the little plastic seat such was his intent.
This was it, I told Pedro that, I was not enjoying this and did not want to do the northern mountain route.
Having said this, many people on the road are great, especially the middle aged people and some young ones. It appears those with purpose are not a problem. It is these young kids that run free all day that are the hassle. Some older boys appear to be intoxicated.
Most stops away from the villages see us surrounded by people with more of an interest in us than anything else. Very few people in the rural areas speak English. Just a few students. We met two girls who were studying healthcare at Gondar Uni, the could speak some English
Another 7km saw us get into Gondar and the usual touts were on us rapidly. We spent 2 hours looking for suitable lodgings. All prices were inflated.
We finally found a family pension that offered a fair price.
We shared a room. The power went out on dark, we are used to this now.
My throat is infected so on going out for dinner in the cool air shoes, a beany and two jumpers were worn, in an effort the halt this throat cold.
Pedro had found a good spot for us to stay in tomorrow so we are going to move.
We spoke about future routes here. He to decided not to do the mountain route. A blog had said that the kids near the Simien Mountains are even more of an annoyance. So far, the rock throwing has been minimal for us.
Pedro and I get on well and think alike, he is going to accompany me south to Addis.
The mountains now are extremely dry and are best visited just after the rains in November.
For me, there is a commitment to meet Ben and Callum, my two sons who are joining me in Nairobi for the trip south to Cape Town.
For the three of us this will be an extremely special, once in a lifetime experience for us to be cycling for 6 months in Africa.
I am penning this at 0300 in the morning as the Christian Orthodox Church over the road has been calling prayers at full volume, all night. I mean all night.
Half the town could hear this, our building is not far short of vibrating, such is the volume of the broadcast, it is live.
I am out in the lit hallway. Pedro is in his bed.
The next morning we packed up and moved to the Begelez Pension.
It was great we had a room each and even hot water. I was unbelievably tired and had stomach pains.
We decided to stop here for two nights. The internet was such that my blog could only be updated with print and no pictures. We tried to get sim cards for our phones but being a regional centre, Ethiopia Telecom was packed out both days. The line ups were huge.
Some research into malaria protection was done with the net and local pharmacists.
Mefloquine (Eloquine 250mg) has been chosen as a preventative medication, it is only taken once a week. Chloroquine resistence is present here in Africa.
Coartem can be taken after getting Malaria, though the problem of complications can arise.
As said, my stomach was upset. Eating so much of the acidic Injera has caused the problem I feel.
We used the wifi at a local hotel all the time here which was great of them. It is the hotel on the North east corner of the Piassa.
One of the delicious mango and avocado juices was enjoyed. It was more of a custard like drink. A spoon had to be used to remove it from the tall glass.
My water bottles were thoroughly cleaned out. My drinking bottle on the vertical frame bar had enough algae inside to support a small fish population!
A great way of building up the body resistence, maybe !?
24/2/2015 Gondar to Dabat, TheYamrot Cafe Hotel
D75, T6, Av12.80, Max61, 37,809. 2941
Mild day, cool as we climbed, rain spots late in the day
As usual for me, 0500 saw me awake. Coffee and Semonila was enjoyed before beginning to pack.
We decided to see if we could get to Ethiopia Telecom early to get a sim card. Once we arrived here, it was obvious this was not going to happen. There were already 50 plus people lined up.
They said they would see us first but this did not happen. Before 1000 we went to the hotel for internet use.
Back at the pension we were ready to leave about 1030.
Heading out of town fresh spinach was bought. This was to be the first greens I had eaten for some time.
Yesterday, a copy of Lonely Planet East Africa, had been purchased on my Kindle.
Reading this we became aware that March April May are the three months of the big wet season in Kenya, Uganda, Burundi the Congo and Tanzania.
To avoid this we have decided to change our minds and ride into the mountains of North Ethiopia. In particular the Simeon Mountains.
This 1300km loop to Addis will fill in March.
As soon as we left Gondar, the climbing began. It was a gentle gradient on good tarmac. People and traffic on the road were not so bad.
The air was cool, this made riding a pleasure.
At times, the view to our left was spectacular, over looking deep valleys of the African Rift.
As we got deeper into the hills the villages became more common, so did the people on the roads.
We stopped for lunch in a tiny village , Injera was served. I had bread with me and ate the condiments with that. This Injera is very acidic, for me I feel too much is upsetting my stomach. Tablets to neutralize an aching stomach in Gondar were bought, Antacids.
Eucalypts are a huge part of life here. All construction uses the wood. People cook on it, the sell poles and other cut lengths. It is all handled manually with axes.
Many old trucks were seen grossly overloaded bring poles down the road.
Most people were working up here. They were walking with tools or cattle and donkeys. They were no problems and friendly.
Once about 40km had been clocked, we got into a plateau area. Here the difficulties started.
Children and teenagers were throwing stones and sticks. On one occasion, Pedro was coming down a hill and a young guy purposely moved his cattle into the middle of the road.
One guy tried to steal bread from my bike.
All the while it was give me money give me money.
This and other calls has led me to become quite insensititive to all the poverty here. At one point, a mother was telling her young daughter to say money money.
The people moving stock or the older ones are so friendly and it can be seen the mean well in their greetings as we do.
It is these delinquent teenagers, that are the problem.
The word please has yet to be heard.
In Amba Georgis hundreds of people were on the streets, Pedro was ahead and stopped. On stopping with him a small coke in glass was bought the woman said 2 Burr. I drank it and on paying she wanted 20, well I kicked up a stink. Within 1 minute 100 people were about. This young woman was nothing short of a thief. I told her so. After quite a heated argument 10 Burr was payed.
By the time we rode off the police had arrived.
These are all the challenges of riding Ethiopia, it is difficult mentally and at times tests Pedro and I. It leaves both of us very worn out.
Late in the day, the need for a camp arose. Pedro asked at a church, they wanted money. In this respect, Pedro makes me look like a big spender. He is unimaginably tight with money.
His budget is minimal. It suits me almost all the time. But, I like to buy things when I like. Paying two or three dollars for a room is fine by me.
So we rode on. We found a community well, here my bladder and some bottles were filled. Again, everyone wanted money. Firmness has to prevail in these situations.
Distribution of any money could easily get out of hand. In this respect Pedro and I stand firm, we give no one a cent and don’t acknowledge those asking.
We soon got to the village of Dabat, here the Cafe Hotel Yamfot was booked.
It was new upstairs and the young guy Nigus was great company. We booked a room together with a double bed. We were going to top and tail on this.
Pedro wears socks and runners when he rides.
The problem is that when he removes these, in a small room the air suddenly takes on the resultant odour.
The room was small and on this occasion I told Pedro, it was no problem that I had paid for half the room. I needed more space so moved into an adjoining room.
Incidentily, the rooms were $2.50/ night. So, as you can see Pedros budget is amusingly tight.
We had dinner with Nigus in the restaurant below. I enjoyed a couple of St George beers. By far the best beer here as far as my taste buds go.
We talked at length about life here.
He could speak good English. Each village is quite different, we have noticed this some are peaceful with friendly people, others are feral with wild kids everywhere.
The size of the crowd when you stop often determines this. Where people have things to do the crowds are small and peaceful.
Late in the day today, we also had a small amount of rain and had to put on warm shirts to descend one big hill.
It was quite cool.
The donkeys carrying loads are fearful of cyclists, they are unpredictable as to where they may run. Care has to be taken when descending fast and encountering a donkey.
The whole landscape up here has been cropped. All the hillsides are tilled. On stopping and digging in a ploughed field, it was found the subsoil moisture is non existent.
Barley was seen growing. Many people were moving one or two cattle along the road. This is what they own.
It was nice to be in a clean bed and well fed. The spinach was blanched and eaten with garlic and pepper, it was great.
Riding here in Ethiopia, is very challenging to say the least. The roads are in good condition.
It is the constant interaction with people on these roads that makes it such a challenge.
Many people are very friendly. Unfortunately, many are only interesting in money or annoying us. At times, this can be dangerous and psychologically disturbing.
It all makes for days that are very unpredictable, especially out on the road. Being with Pedro, makes this bearable. I can see why many cyclists ride the shortest route through Ethiopia.
This is understandable. Pedro and I do not put up with any trouble on the road. I have stopped and yelled at people. He has yelled at the civil police to control the kids.
I have turned around and chased them. They scatter at a rapid pace.
Over and above all this the older people here are a pleasure. They will often tell the kids to clear off when we are stopped.
These things are what riding Ethiopia is all about. It is unique and adds to experiences on the road. The lifestyle, culture, food and scenery keep me enjoying the riding here in Ethiopia, these things make up for any other problems encountered.
25/2/2015 Yamrot Cafe Hotel, Dabat, to camp on River Ambera
D66, T6, Av13.80, Max39, 37,875, 3007
Cool on the tops, hot in the valleys
The night at the new hotel was great. It was good to be in a bed with new everything. Nigus said we were the first cyclists to stay here. Early in the morning, my blog was updated and breakfast had before Pedro had arisen.
Using the toilet sees my somewhere between diarrhoea and being fine.
The runny foods we eat are probably the cause. Very little meat has been eaten since being in Ethiopia. Even chicken is not common at most eateries. Our meals on the road are generally from private homes come restaurants. My favourite dish is Mesr, a kind of spicy textured runny thick sauce. Where possible I order this with Plain bread buns rather than Injera.
We were on the road amongst thick smoke in the town, the streets were lined thick with people.
The dress is a mix of orthodox Christian, Muslim and just normal street wear. Many of the younger children have the traditional small tuft of hair above their forehead surrounded by a close shave.
They all wear an OC pendant of some kind.
Further down the road, it was realised in yesterdays commotion someone had stolen my little Petzel headlight from a side pocket on my bar bag.
So, since being here my glasses case, the torch and my seat have been pilfered.
One has to be on full alert all the time.
Precautions are necessary. The zips on the side pockets have been secured with fine spectra line to make it more difficult to open them.
The people in the villages passed through were remarkably friendly it was a pleasure to be greeted and greet. Most people had things to do.
A sign was seen that read: “Send your children to school not work”.
Traffic now is just minibuses, tour 4x4’s, a few local buses, the odd UN Landcruiser and Tuk Tuks near towns.
We soon arrived at Debark, quite a large town. Here many tourists stay whilst on the trip to the Simien Mountains, so the usual touts were on to us very quick.
They soon got the message we were not open to any persuasion and left us alone. Most prices in town were inflated accordingly.
Here at the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, I spent time trying to get the cash that did not come from the ATM in Gondar. I was in possession of a letter from the Gondar Branch. So, after much mucking about they finally gave me the 3000 burr that was owed.
The local bank would have refunded transactions fees. The costs incurred in Australia would not have been returned. On an ATM transaction, this can cost up to $7.
We had lunch here.
Just out of town the gravel started, we got water from a new well, it was clean and cool.
From here we road on until the edge of the escarpment was reached.
For the next 30km, the views of the Simien Mountains were equally as stunning as those seen in the Andes of Peru.
The road snaked its way down over the edge through forested mountains. There were small streams and water dripping from moss covered cliffs in a few places.
We were both so pleased that a few words about the wet season in East Africa had made us change our minds.
There was a haze in the distance always taking the high definition from the view.
The deep valleys always had rugged pinnacles within them off in the distance.
Many photos were taken during the descent from 2600m down to 1245m at the end of the day.
Both of us had sore fingers from using the brakes all the way down on the gravel road which was under repair near the top.
Some exotic Black and white monkeys, the Abyssinian Colobus Monkey, with long black tails and a big white tuft on the end were seen in an Acacia forest on the way down. Chai and things to eat were had in a small village on from here. Across the road was an Italian cannon from the short period they occupied Ethiopia in the 1930’s
The road was gravel all the way to the river Ambera where we decided to camp, just before the village of Zerima.
We stopped in one village and played ball with a bunch of people on the road. A ball with a metre long string attached was swung and launched skyward, a bit like a huge conker from many years ago.
At the river Zerima beyond this village, we took a track down to the water and camped across the other side.
It had not been a physically tiring day as most was downhill, just one of concentration required to control the bike on the downhill gravel road.
I am carrying at least a kilo more than Pedro for every year he is younger than me! All 18 of them!
He comments on this every time he picks up one of my panniers. Due to this weight, the brakes need to be applied heavily during descents.
My bike takes off with this weight. When we roll down asphalt hills together, I always gather momentum under the load and just take off.
This momentum can be very hard to arrest on gravel roads.
We had a great meal of pasta and veges with soya sauce, a new taste on the road!.
As it darkened, all the locals, headed home.
We camped under a huge fig tree at the edge of the riverbed.
26/2/2015 Camp on River Ambera to camp on river Asia
D34, T6, Av9.42, Max54, 37,909, 3041
Cool on the tops, hot in the valleys
The night had been free of disturbances. We both carried our panniers across the creek and the bikes unloaded.
This river, though clear is heavily polluted. The flow is minimal, people were seen washing in it, among other things.
We only washed our dishes in the water. There were paradise ducks calling from the river as the sun went down last night.
By morning light, people were crossing the river, on their way to the village or to gather wood.
Others were taking their few cows out for the days grazing.
These animals are almost like pets.
I gave one of the boys who had come to sit and watch us, a few oranges that were more like lemons. They were eaten with haste.
Life really is so tough here. A day for many appears to consist of a large walk to get water, then, carrying firewood from the hills back to the village, With the lack of water, people are often wearing clothes that never look like they never get washed.
People’s feet are like dirty leather, most people wear these dull translucent yellow plastic buckle sandals, Congos, many young OC children wear brown long robes, again they don’t appear to have been washed for much time.
Around the corner was the village of Zerima, here we got water for the days ascent and bought some tomatoes.
Roadworks in the village made it quite an obstacle course.
Pedro had a problem with his front rack this was repaired just out of town.
The climbing soon started.
The first pass took us 500m skyward. There were major roadworks being carried out.
The only machines used were, dozers, trucks and a grader. Rocks in places were being broken up by men with sledge hammers. At culverts, some 40 people were laying rocks in cement, othes were unloading bags of the stuff from large dump trucks.
People were following us on and of all day wanting money and pens among other things. Many wanted our water.
Pedro is faster than me on the climbs, we both have our comfort zone and stick within it.
He will wait if I cannot be seen within half an hour.
We stopped for bread and tuna under a shady tree after the first pass.
The gravel road gave way to asphalt after some twenty odd kilometres. This is the ultimate goal of all this road works.
The day was a series of big climbs the back down again. We had lunch of sorts in a village at the top of the last ascent.
Running down the range the river Asia was crossed. Stopping on the bridge at 1600 we stopped and decided to camp here and wash a few things.
Pedro had a bottle of cooking oil open in a pannier so he cleaned this up.
A guy from a government water concern was cleaning his vehicle in the river. We were told it was polluted. It had flow, but had a slight milky appearance. It was good only for washing things. Though he said we could cook with the water if it was boiled.
It was great to be camped on another river here in The Simien Mountains of Ethiopia. A great place to fill in time during the beginning of the wet season in Kenya and surrounding countries.
We set up camp under the high concrete bridge on sand.
For once there were almost no visitors about!!
27/2/2015 Camp on River Asia to May Tserbi
D40, T6, Av11.25, Max61, 37,949, 3081
Cool on the tops, hot in the valleys
We had used a lot of river water to cook with last night and had boiled it for at least 10 minutes.
I told Pedro if he heard me up in the night this would be the problem. Thankfully, we both awoke feeling none the worse. The camp had been comfortable on the sand next to the bridge pylon.
We were not disturbed once again.
On the road by 0800, it was another climb out of the river valley. Dozens of men were working n Culverts on the way p.
The scenery continues to leave us in awe. The rugged pinnacles just appear in the distance and look different from every aspect. There is a constant haze in the air. This we guessed was from smoke, dust and some pollution. Though, much is a heat haze. It is so dry here and locals have deforested almost all land that is accessible.
We arrived in the next village, some 5km away. Here veges and other things were bought. We are using lots of toilet paper due to runny noses with all the air laden particles.
A Papaya was enjoyed and half given to a road worker who help shoo the kids way from us. Crossing the road, a visit was made to a small shop and some roasted wheat bought for breakfast.
One of us has to look after the bikes always.
Anyway back at the bikes, I suddenly realized my bar bag was not with me. What a terrible sensation come upon me. I ran back to the little shop, the woman had put it under the counter. Both Pedro and I agreed it is so easy to get side tracked and put something down. For the purchase I had been checking the price and the seal of the bag and had put the bar bag down.
I was still shaking thinking that this had been done, it can happen so easy. My passport, smart phone and other things were in it.
Leaving town we got great views of more rugged pinnaces rising skyward that are part of the Simien ranges. Most towns are having their main streets re worked, it is major construction, providing work for hundreds.
About 1200 we stopped in another village and had Injera. These meals are 50c for the both of us.
Pepsi is also 50c from glass. They seem to have a bigger presence here than Coke.
The town was on the river Boiay. Here we stopped down by the river. The children soon gathered.
We had a special time with a bunch of kids here. Giving them some English lessons and mucking about.
I have bought a little bar of soap to wash things on the road as we pass water. My hat, gloves and buff were washed.
Some teenage girls in traditional dresses turned up. At first they were shy. After a chat and some English lessons, they lost some of this shyness and allowed me to photograph them candidly.
This was a real privilege, they were attractive with very unique facial features. They enjoyed posing.
From here, we rode up another range. Arriving in the village of May Tsebri, quite a large place. We finally managed to get a couple of Ethiopian Telecom cards. They said it was 3G, it is so slow, email cannot even be sent, let alone instagram pics.
We found a great little hotel, Te Serenita, and settled in here. Now both booking single rooms. The power was off the whole time we were here, so nothing could be charged.
All these hotels in these small towns where tourists don’t stop are costing us about $1.50 to $2.00/night.
Taking our torches, we negotiated the roadworks to find a pasta place for dinner.
Here it was so hot, mosquitos were everywhere. Luckily, our beds had pre hung mosquito nets.
Showering is always with a bucket, and ablutions, also require a water container. Toilets are hole in the ground type. Getting ones feet in the right spot can prove challenging, especially when proceedings are a little runny.
28/2/2015 May Tserbi to Indaabaguna
D57, T6, Av12, Max52, 38006, 3131
Not too hot, wind funnelling in places
I had an ordinary nights sleep to say the least, it was so hot and clamy in the little room.
Pedro had been eaten by bed bugs, but had slept well.
He left half an hour before me. I am never really in a rush in the mornings. As soon as we left town the road came to a huge valley, this contained the river Takane.
The descent was reminiscent and the grand vista at the top of the drop off was reminiscent of Peru.
It was a rapid descent some 5km or more on smooth asphalt.
At the bottom it was hot and dusty, the Takane river was running fast displaying a rich brown unnatural colour. The colour signified pollution. Children were swimming downstream from the metal bridge that spanned the fast lowing body of water.
A small village, Adika was on the river. I still had not seen Pedro. Some donuts were bought here, they were deep fried and very oily. This would be burnt of going up, they were eaten with haste.
Children followed me for a kilometre out of the village, occasionally throwing stones.
So began a huge climb. The bigger the river the bigger the climb out of the watershed.
I caught up to Pedro some 3km into the ascent.
It just kept going up, though the new asphalt was a pleasure to ride on. Looking back we could see all the terrain we had covered. It was so much like Peru.
We stopped on many occasions and drank hot water and had a chat. People on the road were few which was great.
The odd tourist went past in a 4x4 giving us the thumbs up.
At the top, we entered the village Adigebru, here children mobbed us immediately. We stopped for water and a lovely woman invited us in for coffee.
Its preparation is a real ritual here and her delivery was no different, the required beans are roasted over charcoal then hand ground and put in a small earthernware pot on the coals. The small cups with saucers are filled and sugar added. Mostly it is taken black. We had two cups, it was one of the better coffees enjoyed for some time.
The woman had worked in Dubai. She told us she walked from here to Isreal for work, with no papers it is the only way to cross borders.
Life is so difficult here that she decided to walk through Sudan, Egypt and on into Isreal. She found work.
She said many people died on the huge journey. She was about thirty and now had a child to a man who has since departed.
She hopes to go back to Dubai and work in the prison as she did previously. When my boy gets old enough, I will leave she told us.
Stories like this are hard to comprehend. To just walk for months through foreign countries with no papers implies that the hope some people have for life here in Ethiopia is not at all great.
Finally from here the road levelled out, it was unreal riding on the plateau. Water was retrieved from one of the hand wells.
Some 20km saw us arrive at Indaabaguna. Here we decided to stop and get a motel.
The town’s main feature is the solitary peak nearby called the Devils Toilet, for reasons unknown.
The hotel was a family run business and very homely, we had beers and a pasta and mesr dish.
Earlier, I took a walk into town. An entourage of thirty or so children followed everywhere I went. They were good kids. They watched every move. Being famous really would be a life with difficulties, especially the public aspect of it.
Here in Ethiopia one gets an insight into that lifestyle where people mob you whenever you arrive somewhere.
The last few days have given me a lot of confidence about the state of my knees. No pain has been experienced, either during or after these difficult climbs. There is a few miles in them yet!! Fingers crossed. The muscles around my knees give the joints support. It is hard to believe the difficulty I had walking in Nicaragua after the Chikungunya in Tobago. Hopefully, it will not afflict me again.
We are both so pleased of our decision to come to the Simien Mountains, the scenery has been breath taking and the locals have been for the most part great company. The children are nowhere near as feral as those encountered before Gondar.
Most people up here have things to do.
1/3/2015 Indaabaguna (Hotel Semien) to Shire (Hotel Yata)
D22, T3, Av14.30, Max31, 38029, 3153
Strong easterly
It had been a night with the distant calling of the church again. We had drinks with the owner and a few others.
St George is definitely a nice beer, it suits my tastes. We were ready to leave about 0800 as usual.
The woman were baking Injera under a dome over a fire.
Out on the road we had a strong easterly to deal with. It was cool and the road pretty flat, we really had nothing to complain about. The children were well behaved along the way. We stopped to play a volleyball type game with a few kids on the road.
Twenty km into the trip, we arrived a Shire, a large town with plenty of hotels. Both of us wanted to us the net. The Yata hotel had wifi, we could just roll our bikes into the bar area inside.
Here we connected for the first time in a week. It did not last long. Anyway, a decision was made to stay the night here.
The afternoon was spent just relaxing. It was great to have heaps of spare time around a hotel room.
I went over to the local upmarket hotel and had a huge meal of lamb with rice and salad. The meat was on the bone. I had not eaten meat for over a week.
The bones were picked up from the plate and every inch of meat stripped from their surface. I felt like a dog chewing on a bone. It was the only way to eat these oddly cut offerings. It was so so good.
Pedro ate elsewhere and dined on his usual pasta with tomato.
A doco was watched on the Simien Mountains. It was about the Gelada monkeys that raid the crops high in the ranges. No wonder the kids are good stone throwers. This is one way they repel the monkeys.
Some washing was done. We both ate across the road and retired about 1000.
2/3/2015 Shire to Adi Abun (Awetash Haylu hotel, Gere,)
D94,T6, Av14.22, Max70, 38123,3247
Wind funnelling in valleys.
We were both a fresh as daisies after yesterday’s rest. Though Pedro had an upset stomach.
The road out of town was easy riding, people were everywhere. as usual.
Kids with stones were prevalent. Pedro, climbing one range had had enough of it with one group and parked his bike. He took off after them with a bunch of rocks. They scattered unbelievably quick.
There were some long windy hills but always provided a good run down once at the top.
We met the guy from telecom Ethiopia on the road, he was visiting family in a village here.
Though my phone shows 3G, it is very slow. There were huge numbers of people walking the roads. There was a funeral in one village.
On arrival in Axum we used wifi in a hotel, this was too slow to do much.
We had lunch here and a juice. The local touts soon found us and were offering rooms and even to go and buy some vegetables we needed.
Everything was inflated here. This place is very popular with tourists because of the OC churches cut into rocks among other things.
We got water a few km from town at a hand well.
Arriving at Adwa, the home of the very popular previous president, Meles Zenawi, a statue of him was outside one house was passed. There was also a huge textile factory and sandstone works factory.
Pedro was still feeling a bit off.
We decided on a hotel. Our accommodation was great, at 40Birr a night it had everything, shower from a tap, running water and sizeable rooms. We ate spaghetti bolognaise in the hotel restaurant. The owner Gere was a great guy.
I enjoyed three St Georges over dinner.
We spent time studying the route into Kenya via Lake Turkana.
Pedro is having problems with bed bugs in his rooms they have yet to bother me.
I gave him a couple of Panadol to sleep on for the night.
3/3/2015 Adi Abun to May Kenetal (Hotel Kidu Welherus)
D45,T4, Av11.78, Max 60, 38168, 3299
Strong head winds on top of ranges and in valleys.
We were up early and decided just to take our time. I had some emails to send.
Gere kindly let me copy the Ethiopian music he was playing in the bar last night.
A good shave was had at the water supply infront of a big mirror. This makes life easy, normally I am shaving with my 3 inch by 2 inch mirror getting a clean shave is difficult to say the least. Often thisis carried out using 2 cups of water just to make it even more tricky.
We meandered down the hill through town, bought some peanut butter and bread. Prices vary so much here. One lady tried to charge me 10birr for 3 tomatoes and one onion. In our currency we are talking cents.
We are not using our currency and base everything on local prices and money. Down the road, the same produce was 5 birr.
Up on these mountain roads apart from asking for money children are always saying gimme pen, gimme pen. Some people must be giving out pens to people as they travel in cars.
In my mind this is fine but, I feel this needs to be supported with some dialogue, maybe show them how to write a word or two.
Whenever we stop and the kids gather, and ask for money or food. I nearly always tell them how to say “where are you going” not where you go.
It is nice to know that you have helped them in a very little way. English is taught at the schools.
I tell them to use the word please. They do not like it at first but with encouragement will repeat the words after me. At one such stop, a sandwich was shared after one of the boys said please. We have never heard one person use this word. The few words they know, are passed on from child to child.
Some simple education in the schools could change all this.
The word please can get people many places.
The road out of town was very steep and was dusty gravel. We had been told the road is under construction, to our pleasure near the top the surface changed to asphalt.
We climbed for the first hour or so then had a rapid descent into a village on new asphalt. The wind was howling up from down below. My peak hat had to be removed due to the consequent apparent wind created.
We stopped at road works base for bananas and a chat.
Passing one hill there were dozens of people at its summit with donkeys collecting loose rocks for a crushing plant associated with the road works.
These people had completely stripped this hill of loose stones, it was unreal.
Almost all landscapes now have rock terraces.
We are getting used to the fact that people are just everywhere here in Ethiopia. They have altered almost every environment.
Only the steepest of country is untouched, this has been seen only once leaving Gondar.
Drinks were found in another village. Finding cold ones can be difficult. Not every little store has a fridge.
The roadworks continued throughout the day, some asphalt then gravel.
The temperatures are ideal and the wind has cool air in its flow.
At 1600 we arrived at May Kenetal and ate, later deciding to stay the night. Pedro bought Ciprol to try and alleviate the diarrhoea he has.
I did washing and watched a ridiculous movie called Bugs. The hotel was comfortable and had good food and a private courtyard with friendly people.
4/3/2015 May Kenetal to Adi Abi (hotel Atsea Kaleab)
D55,T5, Av11.94, Max 74, 38222, 3354
Little wind, great views and not to hot.
It had been a great nights sleep. This family run hotel had a nice feel about it. I shared my coffee with the owners wife. It is ground coffee called Abyssinia. It has a great strong flavour.
Pedro wasn,t bothered by bed bugs last night so he was happy. I seem to be lucky in this respect.
We were on the road at a leisurely 0830. Pedro is now not so intent on leaving so early. He said he is feeling a bit flat. It has been 8 months on the road from him all the way from Madrid.
The feeling is well known, I was a bit like this after riding up through Brazil, day after day of dust and humidity.
Taking it easy in the morning and mixing with the locals seems to work for me. I am never in a hurry to leave.
Often the best riding conditions are late in the day.
Leaving town we climbed for 20 km on mainly gravel.
Nearing the top we stopped at a village for pasta. The bikes were parked outside the little building. The kids were crowding around them. They were still in sight.
Our bar bags were with us in the cafe.
Whilst in there for me 5 Mirindas were drunk, it had been a hard but enjoyable morning, the views were great and the rural vistas superb.
On finishing, we wandered to the bikes. Shit!! Both of our bike computers had been stolen by these kids.
Immediately, I walked out in to the street and yelled out how important these were to us and that we were pissed of big time. Anyway a woman about my age bought mine back within a few minutes.
Pedros was nowhere to be seen he madea trip around town with mine showing people. No results. He then went to the local civil police. The village may have been about 600 strong.
Some two hours later, his was returned. The police knew all the thieves in town. We were incredibly lucky on this occasion.
Leaving town we had an entourage of 50-60 kids following us.
We were now on the plateau, riding was great in the rolling country. A speed record for Ethiopia was set for me at 70km/hr.
It is always dodgy on the roads at speed with donkeys and cows sometimes acting unpredictably.
Pedro was feeling a lot better.
My health is great, I feel strong and positive. Though, the runs is always the scene in the morning.
We just can’t find meat to eat. Pasta and spicy homemade tomato paste with bread and salad is pretty much our diet in the restaurants.
Once in Adi Abi, I needed to find someone who could re tap a hole in my stem for a bolt that is loose. This was done to no avail.
We found the hotel Atsea Keleab and booked a couple of rooms.
Pedro pitched his tent in his room to avoid bed bugs. After unpacking and bucket showering a visit was made to an internet cafe.
We ate late, as usual pasta, a great juice was enjoyed on the road with two great guys who were mechanics on the new road project.
We have met some great people here. It is just the young kids that are hard work.
5/3/2015 Adi Abi to Aksal Salam
D46,T6, Av9.64, Max 66, 38268, 3400
Cool wind, great views
As usual, I was up early and making an entry in the blog. It is perfect sleeping weather up here, now at 1870m.
For once, I was ready before Pedro so left the hotel in hope of getting wifi back at the internet cafe. They were closed.
Leaving town we had a descent to a river. Flying down here very fast, we arrived at the concrete bridge, unknown to us one slab had risen on the span. Our front wheels hit this hard. I could feel my rim touch. Trying to lift the front only moved the handle bars due to the loose bolt there. Inspections afterward revealed both our rims, ok, we were lucky.
From here a 12km climb started. This took use from 1500m to 2600m at a rapid rate. Sometimes the climbing became quite an effort. The views were spectacular.
We stopped for a bite of bread and honey half way up.
Children would just turn up from the rocks on the hillside.
One one occasion they threw stones at me. Always, after you have passed.
Pedro was worn out at the top. I felt fine.
These new roads are little used. People are so poor here there are not even any small motor bikes about.
This poverty is hard to come to terms with. Most people are wearing clothes that look like they have never been washed, due to scarcity of water.
Children are always carrying wood for fires to cook. Donkeys are carrying rocks and other produce to towns.
It is not uncommon to see a man with 6 of these little creatures carrying rock to a building site somewhere.
Once at the top we stopped for lunch. We now park our bikes right next to us. They had no food so we enjoyed more bread. I opened a can of tuna and offered the leftovers to people. They would not accept it because this month is a fasting month. We had a huge audience again. One guy was shooing the kids like flies, they would soon come back.
The call Farangi is common now. This means white man. It is usually the very young that use the word.
Come 1400 we arrived at a town and booked a motel, the only one in the village. There were major roadworks everywhere, so riding was a real obstacle course.
Dinner of Fada was enjoyed, this is a salad over fried bread, very nice. We relaxed and watched movies.
It is actually very cold up here. During the afternoon people came to our doors just asking for money. We have adjusted to expecting anything here now.
The expression of time here is crazy. Sunrise is twelve o’clock, 0600 our time. After 1 hour of sunshine, it is 0100 and so on! The sun sets at 01200, 1800hrs our time! After 1 hour of darkness, it is one o’clock again.
Having travelled with Pedro now for a few weeks, we both know each other’s habits and idiosyncrasies; our company is very relaxed due to this. We often ride apart but always stop and chat at intervals.
Our riding is the same in most cases. He is faster downhill on gravel and I pass him on the asphalt descents, our climbing is similar.
I am carrying 10kgs or more than him, but have a super low gear. Today he had to walk the last few hundred metres on the rough gravel into town because of his slightly higher gearing.
In my blog go to “My Bike” to see the rear cassette, tooth numbers. This cassette is the lowest gearing that Shimano make as far as I know.
I went to bed early.
6/3/2015 Aksal Salam to Me’kele
D59, T5, Av11.94, Max 74, 38327, 3413
Strong head winds most of the way.
Leaving town was another obstacle course through roadwork. A few km out we got a great vista of the road ahead. We were as high as you could go in this part of the country. I said to Pedro it was good to be looking down on hills not up at them.
It was a great 9km descent into the valley below. We started riding with long . There was a cold wind blowing from the south East.
Once at the bottom, we stopped at a well to top up on fresh water.
Incidentally, last night I ate with some mechanics on the road project. They said the ti axle Chinese dump trucks forever need maintenance after 2-3 years. These trucks are much cheaper than their European counterparts.
You get what you pay for!. I always say if you are making a living with something, get the best.
They said these trucks were all the companies could afford and with the cheap labour down time was not such an issue.
Most private trucks in this hill country are new Ivecos. The roads are so steep, nothing other than a quality brand would survive out here in the long term.
We still see old Ivecos from the 80’s on the road.
Again it was a series of down and back up again. Luckily the road is now all paved. We stopped in one village for lunch. This time the bikes were kept well within sight. The elders were shooing the kids like flies every 5 minutes.
The nor easter was howling now and our easterly passage was pretty much head on into it.
Closer to Mekele we passed the huge cement works billowing a column of white smoke from a lone chimney. Here dozens of trucks were waiting to be loaded. We stopped for a light meal and break here.
A few km on saw us turn right into Mekele. On the way in we stopped at an heavy machinery work shop to get some repairs done. I needed a handle bar locking bolt hole re tapped, Pedro wanted to do some work on his front rack.
The staff were so helpful and repaired what we needed.
In town we chanced upon the Dubai pension at 60B a night with was brilliant for a tourist town. Other hotels wanted 300.
The weekend is being spent here.
Time was spent maintaining the bikes. Whilst inspecting mine, much to my annoyance, the rear rim had been damaged at the bridge yesterday. It has been slightly pushed out of round.
Though the sidewalls are still true so it does not affect braking.
Hopefully, this can be replaced in Nairobi.
Last night we went to a bar to watch Real Madrid play Athletico at the Basque stadium. Madrid got beaten. Everywhere we go people are asking pedro about the Spanish league. Especially Barca.
Washing was done and we ate well at the many restaurants here in Me’kele.
18/2/2015 60 km from Qallabat to 16km into Ethiopia
D76, T5, Av16.05, Max41, 37,544, 2676
Close to tailwinds but hot, 37
The moment we passed through the border, what a difference, there were people all over the street. They looked remarkably different, many with wedge shaped heads and large dark eyes.
Many men looked drunk. Then we saw bars and brothels and trucks unloading beer. Here in this country alcohol was available.
Though obtainable in Sudan, it is not openly for sale anywhere.
We walked over to the only area off the main road with few people and put a new chain on my bike.
We had quite and audience, once this was done we just wanted to leave this typical border town. Men were drinking in bars, children were calling out. We bought fruit and veges for the night.
Pedro was being hounded by an obviously intoxicated rather aggressive individual who wanted to see his passport.
It wás a scam. As we left, the words, garbage and scum were heard, among others coming from this individual.
Water was bought off a guy with a 44 gallon drum on a donkey cart.
Once out of town people were everso friendly again it was great, they were calling “you, you, you, you” we would respond with Temaste llem.
It was great riding on the smooth asphalt in the gentle rolling hills. People were everywhere as villages were approached. Some 15km from Metama we found an area frequented by stock.
Here we wandered in some few hundred metres and found a campsite amongst dry stalks of Alfalfa.
It was a great camp. Not too many thorns and flat. Fried potatoes were enjoyed for dinner.
My fry pan is coming in very handy, Loic!! The potatoes here fry beautifully.
19/2/2015 16km into Ethiopia to a bush camp
D77, T7, Av14.39, Max67, 37,622, 2753
Still, rolling hill country, not to hot
We arose to a mild morning after an undisturbed night and both our airbeds and all four of our tyres still full of air. It was a very thorny environment both in the trees and shrubs and on the ground.
The day ahead, unbeknown to us was going to be one of experiences, totally new and in some instances beyond imagination.
We had camped not far from a village. The road leading into it was crowded with people walking all over the road and on the verges. We greeted as many as we could with enthusiasm. Temaste llem was our call. This is hello.
The people were very friendly, especially the children.
There is so much more wood around the housing here. The Catatis have their walls constructed with upright poles in many cases. Large head high urns were seen on some properties. These turned out to be storage for Alfalfa seeds. The lady on the property visited, was enthusiastic about having me into her house which like those in Sudan was very cool inside.
There were pictures of Bob Marley and others on the walls. This Orthodox Christian world is so different from that of the Muslim world. Out on the road with Pedro, there was a family group with a cute little baby. The woman had no inhibitions about breast feeding the child infront of us.
There were donkey drawn carts everywhere as usual. People were dressed in just normal street wear. Though, some were obviously of the Muslim faith. This was apparent among the woman. Most people wore a cross of sorts around their necks.
Lunch was enjoyed in Shehedi. Here there were people literally blocking the streets. Injera, the national dish was eaten, in an outdoor sit down eatery, next door to a brothel in a hut. The girls were coming over to look at us dine. It was quite amusing. The dish was very spicy. The injera is a kind of bread, almost like a flat fungus that covers a large plate and the lentils, salad and spicy sauce are in small piles on top.
There were bars here, where men were drinking from yellow cans. A plate nailed to a post indicates a place to eat and yellow cans stacked two or three high signify a place to drink.
The bread is made with vinegar added.
We stocked up on some foods for the night, Pedro found some porridge, I bought potatoes, we found toilet paper easily for the first time in awhile. Tuna in cans could not be found.
Things are very cheap here to say the least. A good meal of Injera can cost as little as 12 burrs.
From here, again, the road took us through rolling hills on very smooth asphalt. Villages were quite close together. People would just appear from anywhere if you stopped for a few minutes. We stopped under on shady tree and within 5 minutes, a guy with a machine gun turned up, then two other men then 2 men with a cart and donkey heavily loaded with dry poles. We had to help push the cart up a small slope onto the road. It was just too heavy for the little creature.
The load of wood moved and unbalanced the cart, so once on the road they had to unload and rebalance the cart.
In the villages the children would run out onto the road to greet us, which was quite dangerous when other vehicles were approaching. Though, some were intent on hanging onto the back of the bike. A few words soon saw them scatter.
All the hill country is very heavily grazed by goats, sheep and cattle. Everything is so dry, a few trees have sizable leaves but most are just thorny, offering little shade.
Tracks leave the roads edge everywhere. Rocks litter most landscapes.
Many farmers on hillsides had gathered the stones and fashioned terraces.
Late in the day we started looking for a camp, whenever we stopped people would arrive.
Not long before dark we found a spot below the road, no sooner had we decided to unpack, children came from across the tree-clad landscape. One boy climbed the high voltage tower near our camp, others kept their distance. Near dark, we said ciao and they left, thankfully, Pedro went to talk to them beforehand.
Dinner was fried potatoes and a cous cous salad,
I was up till 2200 typing, Pedro was in his tent by 2030.
It is necessary for me to rehydrate at night, tonight was no exception requiring two hot chocolates, herbal tea and much water.
20/2/2015 Bush camp to Hotel Veirut, Aykel
D46, T5, Av9.68, Max58, 37,668, 2799
Climbed most of the day, not too hot
Another undisturbed night was enjoyed. Most people here are at home after dark, there is often no electricity and many can’t afford torches.
We both left together about 0800, some locals helped us push the bikes up the rock strewn incline back to the road.
For me riding was easy, I was almost 9 kg lighter without the extra water and potatoes.
Many children were on the road wandering to school.
Greetings were many.
The scenery now was starting to get more dramatic with high ranges with horizontal rock formation.
Everything was still incredibly dry.
Villages were passed. People really are very poor here, conditions are extremely basic. Some living in just lean to’s.
Everything is done manually, from making flour from crushed beans to carrying water to the house from the guy that delivers it with his donkey and cart, in a 44 gallon drum.
There were some nice downhill runs. We got to one village deep in a gully on the river Gente.
From here, it was all uphill. Passing a cutting in the road, we washed our feet in the cooling waters dripping from above.
Others were washing here also. Men were moving cattle up the road, donkeys were just wandering about, children, as usual were everywhere.
Another village higher up was side lined by people on the road washing clothes on blue plastic in tiny amounts of water. Trucks with trailers were passing doing only 5km/hr, such was the incline and the loads they carried between the truck and long trailers.
We had a few drinks and moved on. A driver motioned me to grab hold of his truck, this was done for half a km, it was difficult just hanging on.
The road now was traversing very steep terrain and became a series of switch backs.
We were climbing from last night’s camp of 1100m. Finally, at the top and the plateau, the air was cooler and Eucalypts dominated the vegetation, most had been coppiced for poles and regrown.
The soil was a rich brown. We got to a small village and had Injera and a few drinks. The family invited us in for the traditional Ethiopian coffee.
Time was spent talking to a guy who was a teacher here.
Most people only went to school for a few years and a normal class size was from 40 to 60 children.
He said it was difficult to teach classes this size.
Right now during the dry, it is their time off. So once again, we had quite a crowd watching us. Many were teenagers. He said the population in Ethiopia is about 89 million now. Mostly rural.
Leaving here, we had 10km to go to Aykel. It was still rolling hill country up here. The Hotel Veirut was recommended by the teacher, it had a bar and girls also a restaurant.
We shared a room. Pedro slept on the floor due to his concern about the infamous bed bugs people write about, I took the gamble and slept on the bed in my sleeping bag.
We washed clothes and ourselves and had pasta in the restaurant. A couple of Dashen beers were enjoyed. My second beer since being in Africa!!
21/2/2015 Hotel Virut, Aykel to Gondar
D67, T6, Av13.35, Max71, 37,734, 2866
Big descent then rolling hills, not too hot
I had my usual breakfast in the room, Pedro wandered into town and had pasta.
We were on the road by 0800.
The “you,you,you, where you go, what your name, money, money” started as soon as we hit the road. Aykel was a real Wild West town, trucks everywhere, everything stained in the brown dirt, sheep foraging in rubbish, dogs on the loose and people everywhere, many trying to sell what they could.
A few km out of town, we were privileged with a great panorama of land to east and south. Aykel had an elevation of 2230m we had ridden 1100m up, yesterday.
The view was spectacular but hazy.
My headset has been loose lately, a stop was made at the top of the descent to try and tighten it up somewhat.
This proved successful. I felt alot better about this as I was descending at over 70km/hr on part of the way down.
The roads here are good enough to be trusted at these speeds. My bike free wheels faster than any other cyclists ridden with, it is no different with Pedro.
No sooner had we got to the bottom an ascent began after the river Aruswusha.
The children were everywhere, chasing us and calling for money among other things. The you you was the predominant call. I knew Pedro was behind me, the calls could always be heard.
We arrived in Iyamba on market day. Stopping for a drink, we had over 100 children around us within 5 minutes. One guy got on Pedros bike. All this is really hard work.
The main road that the village was on was just a sea of humanity. People by the hundreds were walking to the centre with bags on their heads. They were bringing things to sell in the market.
We moved on from here with the usual entourage of young kids.
The moment they touched my bike, they got the hard word and scattered.
Luckily, the older people at times would literally shoo them off our tail.
Greetings became so many, that in the end I was just greeting the older people.
They and I both shared a respect. Me for their endurance of such a hard life and theirs of me, possibly when they saw how old I was. We both shared similar hardships. Mine fortunately was by choice theirs, the only life they know.
These people produce little more than they need to eat.
The job to bring these rural people out of poverty seems almost unsurmountable.
Efforts are being made with water and sanitation by churches along this road as was read on billboards.
The riding was quite tough, down one hill and straight up another.
We got to Azezo and had Injera for lunch and a break. From here, we road along a busy urban valley to a hotel where they let us use the wifi.
Along this road, a teenager grabbed my seat on the back of the bike, I yelled at him in no polite fashion. He ran off as fast as he could. He had broken the little plastic seat such was his intent.
This was it, I told Pedro that, I was not enjoying this and did not want to do the northern mountain route.
Having said this, many people on the road are great, especially the middle aged people and some young ones. It appears those with purpose are not a problem. It is these young kids that run free all day that are the hassle. Some older boys appear to be intoxicated.
Most stops away from the villages see us surrounded by people with more of an interest in us than anything else. Very few people in the rural areas speak English. Just a few students. We met two girls who were studying healthcare at Gondar Uni, the could speak some English
Another 7km saw us get into Gondar and the usual touts were on us rapidly. We spent 2 hours looking for suitable lodgings. All prices were inflated.
We finally found a family pension that offered a fair price.
We shared a room. The power went out on dark, we are used to this now.
My throat is infected so on going out for dinner in the cool air shoes, a beany and two jumpers were worn, in an effort the halt this throat cold.
Pedro had found a good spot for us to stay in tomorrow so we are going to move.
We spoke about future routes here. He to decided not to do the mountain route. A blog had said that the kids near the Simien Mountains are even more of an annoyance. So far, the rock throwing has been minimal for us.
Pedro and I get on well and think alike, he is going to accompany me south to Addis.
The mountains now are extremely dry and are best visited just after the rains in November.
For me, there is a commitment to meet Ben and Callum, my two sons who are joining me in Nairobi for the trip south to Cape Town.
For the three of us this will be an extremely special, once in a lifetime experience for us to be cycling for 6 months in Africa.
I am penning this at 0300 in the morning as the Christian Orthodox Church over the road has been calling prayers at full volume, all night. I mean all night.
Half the town could hear this, our building is not far short of vibrating, such is the volume of the broadcast, it is live.
I am out in the lit hallway. Pedro is in his bed.
The next morning we packed up and moved to the Begelez Pension.
It was great we had a room each and even hot water. I was unbelievably tired and had stomach pains.
We decided to stop here for two nights. The internet was such that my blog could only be updated with print and no pictures. We tried to get sim cards for our phones but being a regional centre, Ethiopia Telecom was packed out both days. The line ups were huge.
Some research into malaria protection was done with the net and local pharmacists.
Mefloquine (Eloquine 250mg) has been chosen as a preventative medication, it is only taken once a week. Chloroquine resistence is present here in Africa.
Coartem can be taken after getting Malaria, though the problem of complications can arise.
As said, my stomach was upset. Eating so much of the acidic Injera has caused the problem I feel.
We used the wifi at a local hotel all the time here which was great of them. It is the hotel on the North east corner of the Piassa.
One of the delicious mango and avocado juices was enjoyed. It was more of a custard like drink. A spoon had to be used to remove it from the tall glass.
My water bottles were thoroughly cleaned out. My drinking bottle on the vertical frame bar had enough algae inside to support a small fish population!
A great way of building up the body resistence, maybe !?
24/2/2015 Gondar to Dabat, TheYamrot Cafe Hotel
D75, T6, Av12.80, Max61, 37,809. 2941
Mild day, cool as we climbed, rain spots late in the day
As usual for me, 0500 saw me awake. Coffee and Semonila was enjoyed before beginning to pack.
We decided to see if we could get to Ethiopia Telecom early to get a sim card. Once we arrived here, it was obvious this was not going to happen. There were already 50 plus people lined up.
They said they would see us first but this did not happen. Before 1000 we went to the hotel for internet use.
Back at the pension we were ready to leave about 1030.
Heading out of town fresh spinach was bought. This was to be the first greens I had eaten for some time.
Yesterday, a copy of Lonely Planet East Africa, had been purchased on my Kindle.
Reading this we became aware that March April May are the three months of the big wet season in Kenya, Uganda, Burundi the Congo and Tanzania.
To avoid this we have decided to change our minds and ride into the mountains of North Ethiopia. In particular the Simeon Mountains.
This 1300km loop to Addis will fill in March.
As soon as we left Gondar, the climbing began. It was a gentle gradient on good tarmac. People and traffic on the road were not so bad.
The air was cool, this made riding a pleasure.
At times, the view to our left was spectacular, over looking deep valleys of the African Rift.
As we got deeper into the hills the villages became more common, so did the people on the roads.
We stopped for lunch in a tiny village , Injera was served. I had bread with me and ate the condiments with that. This Injera is very acidic, for me I feel too much is upsetting my stomach. Tablets to neutralize an aching stomach in Gondar were bought, Antacids.
Eucalypts are a huge part of life here. All construction uses the wood. People cook on it, the sell poles and other cut lengths. It is all handled manually with axes.
Many old trucks were seen grossly overloaded bring poles down the road.
Most people were working up here. They were walking with tools or cattle and donkeys. They were no problems and friendly.
Once about 40km had been clocked, we got into a plateau area. Here the difficulties started.
Children and teenagers were throwing stones and sticks. On one occasion, Pedro was coming down a hill and a young guy purposely moved his cattle into the middle of the road.
One guy tried to steal bread from my bike.
All the while it was give me money give me money.
This and other calls has led me to become quite insensititive to all the poverty here. At one point, a mother was telling her young daughter to say money money.
The people moving stock or the older ones are so friendly and it can be seen the mean well in their greetings as we do.
It is these delinquent teenagers, that are the problem.
The word please has yet to be heard.
In Amba Georgis hundreds of people were on the streets, Pedro was ahead and stopped. On stopping with him a small coke in glass was bought the woman said 2 Burr. I drank it and on paying she wanted 20, well I kicked up a stink. Within 1 minute 100 people were about. This young woman was nothing short of a thief. I told her so. After quite a heated argument 10 Burr was payed.
By the time we rode off the police had arrived.
These are all the challenges of riding Ethiopia, it is difficult mentally and at times tests Pedro and I. It leaves both of us very worn out.
Late in the day, the need for a camp arose. Pedro asked at a church, they wanted money. In this respect, Pedro makes me look like a big spender. He is unimaginably tight with money.
His budget is minimal. It suits me almost all the time. But, I like to buy things when I like. Paying two or three dollars for a room is fine by me.
So we rode on. We found a community well, here my bladder and some bottles were filled. Again, everyone wanted money. Firmness has to prevail in these situations.
Distribution of any money could easily get out of hand. In this respect Pedro and I stand firm, we give no one a cent and don’t acknowledge those asking.
We soon got to the village of Dabat, here the Cafe Hotel Yamfot was booked.
It was new upstairs and the young guy Nigus was great company. We booked a room together with a double bed. We were going to top and tail on this.
Pedro wears socks and runners when he rides.
The problem is that when he removes these, in a small room the air suddenly takes on the resultant odour.
The room was small and on this occasion I told Pedro, it was no problem that I had paid for half the room. I needed more space so moved into an adjoining room.
Incidentily, the rooms were $2.50/ night. So, as you can see Pedros budget is amusingly tight.
We had dinner with Nigus in the restaurant below. I enjoyed a couple of St George beers. By far the best beer here as far as my taste buds go.
We talked at length about life here.
He could speak good English. Each village is quite different, we have noticed this some are peaceful with friendly people, others are feral with wild kids everywhere.
The size of the crowd when you stop often determines this. Where people have things to do the crowds are small and peaceful.
Late in the day today, we also had a small amount of rain and had to put on warm shirts to descend one big hill.
It was quite cool.
The donkeys carrying loads are fearful of cyclists, they are unpredictable as to where they may run. Care has to be taken when descending fast and encountering a donkey.
The whole landscape up here has been cropped. All the hillsides are tilled. On stopping and digging in a ploughed field, it was found the subsoil moisture is non existent.
Barley was seen growing. Many people were moving one or two cattle along the road. This is what they own.
It was nice to be in a clean bed and well fed. The spinach was blanched and eaten with garlic and pepper, it was great.
Riding here in Ethiopia, is very challenging to say the least. The roads are in good condition.
It is the constant interaction with people on these roads that makes it such a challenge.
Many people are very friendly. Unfortunately, many are only interesting in money or annoying us. At times, this can be dangerous and psychologically disturbing.
It all makes for days that are very unpredictable, especially out on the road. Being with Pedro, makes this bearable. I can see why many cyclists ride the shortest route through Ethiopia.
This is understandable. Pedro and I do not put up with any trouble on the road. I have stopped and yelled at people. He has yelled at the civil police to control the kids.
I have turned around and chased them. They scatter at a rapid pace.
Over and above all this the older people here are a pleasure. They will often tell the kids to clear off when we are stopped.
These things are what riding Ethiopia is all about. It is unique and adds to experiences on the road. The lifestyle, culture, food and scenery keep me enjoying the riding here in Ethiopia, these things make up for any other problems encountered.
25/2/2015 Yamrot Cafe Hotel, Dabat, to camp on River Ambera
D66, T6, Av13.80, Max39, 37,875, 3007
Cool on the tops, hot in the valleys
The night at the new hotel was great. It was good to be in a bed with new everything. Nigus said we were the first cyclists to stay here. Early in the morning, my blog was updated and breakfast had before Pedro had arisen.
Using the toilet sees my somewhere between diarrhoea and being fine.
The runny foods we eat are probably the cause. Very little meat has been eaten since being in Ethiopia. Even chicken is not common at most eateries. Our meals on the road are generally from private homes come restaurants. My favourite dish is Mesr, a kind of spicy textured runny thick sauce. Where possible I order this with Plain bread buns rather than Injera.
We were on the road amongst thick smoke in the town, the streets were lined thick with people.
The dress is a mix of orthodox Christian, Muslim and just normal street wear. Many of the younger children have the traditional small tuft of hair above their forehead surrounded by a close shave.
They all wear an OC pendant of some kind.
Further down the road, it was realised in yesterdays commotion someone had stolen my little Petzel headlight from a side pocket on my bar bag.
So, since being here my glasses case, the torch and my seat have been pilfered.
One has to be on full alert all the time.
Precautions are necessary. The zips on the side pockets have been secured with fine spectra line to make it more difficult to open them.
The people in the villages passed through were remarkably friendly it was a pleasure to be greeted and greet. Most people had things to do.
A sign was seen that read: “Send your children to school not work”.
Traffic now is just minibuses, tour 4x4’s, a few local buses, the odd UN Landcruiser and Tuk Tuks near towns.
We soon arrived at Debark, quite a large town. Here many tourists stay whilst on the trip to the Simien Mountains, so the usual touts were on to us very quick.
They soon got the message we were not open to any persuasion and left us alone. Most prices in town were inflated accordingly.
Here at the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, I spent time trying to get the cash that did not come from the ATM in Gondar. I was in possession of a letter from the Gondar Branch. So, after much mucking about they finally gave me the 3000 burr that was owed.
The local bank would have refunded transactions fees. The costs incurred in Australia would not have been returned. On an ATM transaction, this can cost up to $7.
We had lunch here.
Just out of town the gravel started, we got water from a new well, it was clean and cool.
From here we road on until the edge of the escarpment was reached.
For the next 30km, the views of the Simien Mountains were equally as stunning as those seen in the Andes of Peru.
The road snaked its way down over the edge through forested mountains. There were small streams and water dripping from moss covered cliffs in a few places.
We were both so pleased that a few words about the wet season in East Africa had made us change our minds.
There was a haze in the distance always taking the high definition from the view.
The deep valleys always had rugged pinnacles within them off in the distance.
Many photos were taken during the descent from 2600m down to 1245m at the end of the day.
Both of us had sore fingers from using the brakes all the way down on the gravel road which was under repair near the top.
Some exotic Black and white monkeys, the Abyssinian Colobus Monkey, with long black tails and a big white tuft on the end were seen in an Acacia forest on the way down. Chai and things to eat were had in a small village on from here. Across the road was an Italian cannon from the short period they occupied Ethiopia in the 1930’s
The road was gravel all the way to the river Ambera where we decided to camp, just before the village of Zerima.
We stopped in one village and played ball with a bunch of people on the road. A ball with a metre long string attached was swung and launched skyward, a bit like a huge conker from many years ago.
At the river Zerima beyond this village, we took a track down to the water and camped across the other side.
It had not been a physically tiring day as most was downhill, just one of concentration required to control the bike on the downhill gravel road.
I am carrying at least a kilo more than Pedro for every year he is younger than me! All 18 of them!
He comments on this every time he picks up one of my panniers. Due to this weight, the brakes need to be applied heavily during descents.
My bike takes off with this weight. When we roll down asphalt hills together, I always gather momentum under the load and just take off.
This momentum can be very hard to arrest on gravel roads.
We had a great meal of pasta and veges with soya sauce, a new taste on the road!.
As it darkened, all the locals, headed home.
We camped under a huge fig tree at the edge of the riverbed.
26/2/2015 Camp on River Ambera to camp on river Asia
D34, T6, Av9.42, Max54, 37,909, 3041
Cool on the tops, hot in the valleys
The night had been free of disturbances. We both carried our panniers across the creek and the bikes unloaded.
This river, though clear is heavily polluted. The flow is minimal, people were seen washing in it, among other things.
We only washed our dishes in the water. There were paradise ducks calling from the river as the sun went down last night.
By morning light, people were crossing the river, on their way to the village or to gather wood.
Others were taking their few cows out for the days grazing.
These animals are almost like pets.
I gave one of the boys who had come to sit and watch us, a few oranges that were more like lemons. They were eaten with haste.
Life really is so tough here. A day for many appears to consist of a large walk to get water, then, carrying firewood from the hills back to the village, With the lack of water, people are often wearing clothes that never look like they never get washed.
People’s feet are like dirty leather, most people wear these dull translucent yellow plastic buckle sandals, Congos, many young OC children wear brown long robes, again they don’t appear to have been washed for much time.
Around the corner was the village of Zerima, here we got water for the days ascent and bought some tomatoes.
Roadworks in the village made it quite an obstacle course.
Pedro had a problem with his front rack this was repaired just out of town.
The climbing soon started.
The first pass took us 500m skyward. There were major roadworks being carried out.
The only machines used were, dozers, trucks and a grader. Rocks in places were being broken up by men with sledge hammers. At culverts, some 40 people were laying rocks in cement, othes were unloading bags of the stuff from large dump trucks.
People were following us on and of all day wanting money and pens among other things. Many wanted our water.
Pedro is faster than me on the climbs, we both have our comfort zone and stick within it.
He will wait if I cannot be seen within half an hour.
We stopped for bread and tuna under a shady tree after the first pass.
The gravel road gave way to asphalt after some twenty odd kilometres. This is the ultimate goal of all this road works.
The day was a series of big climbs the back down again. We had lunch of sorts in a village at the top of the last ascent.
Running down the range the river Asia was crossed. Stopping on the bridge at 1600 we stopped and decided to camp here and wash a few things.
Pedro had a bottle of cooking oil open in a pannier so he cleaned this up.
A guy from a government water concern was cleaning his vehicle in the river. We were told it was polluted. It had flow, but had a slight milky appearance. It was good only for washing things. Though he said we could cook with the water if it was boiled.
It was great to be camped on another river here in The Simien Mountains of Ethiopia. A great place to fill in time during the beginning of the wet season in Kenya and surrounding countries.
We set up camp under the high concrete bridge on sand.
For once there were almost no visitors about!!
27/2/2015 Camp on River Asia to May Tserbi
D40, T6, Av11.25, Max61, 37,949, 3081
Cool on the tops, hot in the valleys
We had used a lot of river water to cook with last night and had boiled it for at least 10 minutes.
I told Pedro if he heard me up in the night this would be the problem. Thankfully, we both awoke feeling none the worse. The camp had been comfortable on the sand next to the bridge pylon.
We were not disturbed once again.
On the road by 0800, it was another climb out of the river valley. Dozens of men were working n Culverts on the way p.
The scenery continues to leave us in awe. The rugged pinnacles just appear in the distance and look different from every aspect. There is a constant haze in the air. This we guessed was from smoke, dust and some pollution. Though, much is a heat haze. It is so dry here and locals have deforested almost all land that is accessible.
We arrived in the next village, some 5km away. Here veges and other things were bought. We are using lots of toilet paper due to runny noses with all the air laden particles.
A Papaya was enjoyed and half given to a road worker who help shoo the kids way from us. Crossing the road, a visit was made to a small shop and some roasted wheat bought for breakfast.
One of us has to look after the bikes always.
Anyway back at the bikes, I suddenly realized my bar bag was not with me. What a terrible sensation come upon me. I ran back to the little shop, the woman had put it under the counter. Both Pedro and I agreed it is so easy to get side tracked and put something down. For the purchase I had been checking the price and the seal of the bag and had put the bar bag down.
I was still shaking thinking that this had been done, it can happen so easy. My passport, smart phone and other things were in it.
Leaving town we got great views of more rugged pinnaces rising skyward that are part of the Simien ranges. Most towns are having their main streets re worked, it is major construction, providing work for hundreds.
About 1200 we stopped in another village and had Injera. These meals are 50c for the both of us.
Pepsi is also 50c from glass. They seem to have a bigger presence here than Coke.
The town was on the river Boiay. Here we stopped down by the river. The children soon gathered.
We had a special time with a bunch of kids here. Giving them some English lessons and mucking about.
I have bought a little bar of soap to wash things on the road as we pass water. My hat, gloves and buff were washed.
Some teenage girls in traditional dresses turned up. At first they were shy. After a chat and some English lessons, they lost some of this shyness and allowed me to photograph them candidly.
This was a real privilege, they were attractive with very unique facial features. They enjoyed posing.
From here, we rode up another range. Arriving in the village of May Tsebri, quite a large place. We finally managed to get a couple of Ethiopian Telecom cards. They said it was 3G, it is so slow, email cannot even be sent, let alone instagram pics.
We found a great little hotel, Te Serenita, and settled in here. Now both booking single rooms. The power was off the whole time we were here, so nothing could be charged.
All these hotels in these small towns where tourists don’t stop are costing us about $1.50 to $2.00/night.
Taking our torches, we negotiated the roadworks to find a pasta place for dinner.
Here it was so hot, mosquitos were everywhere. Luckily, our beds had pre hung mosquito nets.
Showering is always with a bucket, and ablutions, also require a water container. Toilets are hole in the ground type. Getting ones feet in the right spot can prove challenging, especially when proceedings are a little runny.
28/2/2015 May Tserbi to Indaabaguna
D57, T6, Av12, Max52, 38006, 3131
Not too hot, wind funnelling in places
I had an ordinary nights sleep to say the least, it was so hot and clamy in the little room.
Pedro had been eaten by bed bugs, but had slept well.
He left half an hour before me. I am never really in a rush in the mornings. As soon as we left town the road came to a huge valley, this contained the river Takane.
The descent was reminiscent and the grand vista at the top of the drop off was reminiscent of Peru.
It was a rapid descent some 5km or more on smooth asphalt.
At the bottom it was hot and dusty, the Takane river was running fast displaying a rich brown unnatural colour. The colour signified pollution. Children were swimming downstream from the metal bridge that spanned the fast lowing body of water.
A small village, Adika was on the river. I still had not seen Pedro. Some donuts were bought here, they were deep fried and very oily. This would be burnt of going up, they were eaten with haste.
Children followed me for a kilometre out of the village, occasionally throwing stones.
So began a huge climb. The bigger the river the bigger the climb out of the watershed.
I caught up to Pedro some 3km into the ascent.
It just kept going up, though the new asphalt was a pleasure to ride on. Looking back we could see all the terrain we had covered. It was so much like Peru.
We stopped on many occasions and drank hot water and had a chat. People on the road were few which was great.
The odd tourist went past in a 4x4 giving us the thumbs up.
At the top, we entered the village Adigebru, here children mobbed us immediately. We stopped for water and a lovely woman invited us in for coffee.
Its preparation is a real ritual here and her delivery was no different, the required beans are roasted over charcoal then hand ground and put in a small earthernware pot on the coals. The small cups with saucers are filled and sugar added. Mostly it is taken black. We had two cups, it was one of the better coffees enjoyed for some time.
The woman had worked in Dubai. She told us she walked from here to Isreal for work, with no papers it is the only way to cross borders.
Life is so difficult here that she decided to walk through Sudan, Egypt and on into Isreal. She found work.
She said many people died on the huge journey. She was about thirty and now had a child to a man who has since departed.
She hopes to go back to Dubai and work in the prison as she did previously. When my boy gets old enough, I will leave she told us.
Stories like this are hard to comprehend. To just walk for months through foreign countries with no papers implies that the hope some people have for life here in Ethiopia is not at all great.
Finally from here the road levelled out, it was unreal riding on the plateau. Water was retrieved from one of the hand wells.
Some 20km saw us arrive at Indaabaguna. Here we decided to stop and get a motel.
The town’s main feature is the solitary peak nearby called the Devils Toilet, for reasons unknown.
The hotel was a family run business and very homely, we had beers and a pasta and mesr dish.
Earlier, I took a walk into town. An entourage of thirty or so children followed everywhere I went. They were good kids. They watched every move. Being famous really would be a life with difficulties, especially the public aspect of it.
Here in Ethiopia one gets an insight into that lifestyle where people mob you whenever you arrive somewhere.
The last few days have given me a lot of confidence about the state of my knees. No pain has been experienced, either during or after these difficult climbs. There is a few miles in them yet!! Fingers crossed. The muscles around my knees give the joints support. It is hard to believe the difficulty I had walking in Nicaragua after the Chikungunya in Tobago. Hopefully, it will not afflict me again.
We are both so pleased of our decision to come to the Simien Mountains, the scenery has been breath taking and the locals have been for the most part great company. The children are nowhere near as feral as those encountered before Gondar.
Most people up here have things to do.
1/3/2015 Indaabaguna (Hotel Semien) to Shire (Hotel Yata)
D22, T3, Av14.30, Max31, 38029, 3153
Strong easterly
It had been a night with the distant calling of the church again. We had drinks with the owner and a few others.
St George is definitely a nice beer, it suits my tastes. We were ready to leave about 0800 as usual.
The woman were baking Injera under a dome over a fire.
Out on the road we had a strong easterly to deal with. It was cool and the road pretty flat, we really had nothing to complain about. The children were well behaved along the way. We stopped to play a volleyball type game with a few kids on the road.
Twenty km into the trip, we arrived a Shire, a large town with plenty of hotels. Both of us wanted to us the net. The Yata hotel had wifi, we could just roll our bikes into the bar area inside.
Here we connected for the first time in a week. It did not last long. Anyway, a decision was made to stay the night here.
The afternoon was spent just relaxing. It was great to have heaps of spare time around a hotel room.
I went over to the local upmarket hotel and had a huge meal of lamb with rice and salad. The meat was on the bone. I had not eaten meat for over a week.
The bones were picked up from the plate and every inch of meat stripped from their surface. I felt like a dog chewing on a bone. It was the only way to eat these oddly cut offerings. It was so so good.
Pedro ate elsewhere and dined on his usual pasta with tomato.
A doco was watched on the Simien Mountains. It was about the Gelada monkeys that raid the crops high in the ranges. No wonder the kids are good stone throwers. This is one way they repel the monkeys.
Some washing was done. We both ate across the road and retired about 1000.
2/3/2015 Shire to Adi Abun (Awetash Haylu hotel, Gere,)
D94,T6, Av14.22, Max70, 38123,3247
Wind funnelling in valleys.
We were both a fresh as daisies after yesterday’s rest. Though Pedro had an upset stomach.
The road out of town was easy riding, people were everywhere. as usual.
Kids with stones were prevalent. Pedro, climbing one range had had enough of it with one group and parked his bike. He took off after them with a bunch of rocks. They scattered unbelievably quick.
There were some long windy hills but always provided a good run down once at the top.
We met the guy from telecom Ethiopia on the road, he was visiting family in a village here.
Though my phone shows 3G, it is very slow. There were huge numbers of people walking the roads. There was a funeral in one village.
On arrival in Axum we used wifi in a hotel, this was too slow to do much.
We had lunch here and a juice. The local touts soon found us and were offering rooms and even to go and buy some vegetables we needed.
Everything was inflated here. This place is very popular with tourists because of the OC churches cut into rocks among other things.
We got water a few km from town at a hand well.
Arriving at Adwa, the home of the very popular previous president, Meles Zenawi, a statue of him was outside one house was passed. There was also a huge textile factory and sandstone works factory.
Pedro was still feeling a bit off.
We decided on a hotel. Our accommodation was great, at 40Birr a night it had everything, shower from a tap, running water and sizeable rooms. We ate spaghetti bolognaise in the hotel restaurant. The owner Gere was a great guy.
I enjoyed three St Georges over dinner.
We spent time studying the route into Kenya via Lake Turkana.
Pedro is having problems with bed bugs in his rooms they have yet to bother me.
I gave him a couple of Panadol to sleep on for the night.
3/3/2015 Adi Abun to May Kenetal (Hotel Kidu Welherus)
D45,T4, Av11.78, Max 60, 38168, 3299
Strong head winds on top of ranges and in valleys.
We were up early and decided just to take our time. I had some emails to send.
Gere kindly let me copy the Ethiopian music he was playing in the bar last night.
A good shave was had at the water supply infront of a big mirror. This makes life easy, normally I am shaving with my 3 inch by 2 inch mirror getting a clean shave is difficult to say the least. Often thisis carried out using 2 cups of water just to make it even more tricky.
We meandered down the hill through town, bought some peanut butter and bread. Prices vary so much here. One lady tried to charge me 10birr for 3 tomatoes and one onion. In our currency we are talking cents.
We are not using our currency and base everything on local prices and money. Down the road, the same produce was 5 birr.
Up on these mountain roads apart from asking for money children are always saying gimme pen, gimme pen. Some people must be giving out pens to people as they travel in cars.
In my mind this is fine but, I feel this needs to be supported with some dialogue, maybe show them how to write a word or two.
Whenever we stop and the kids gather, and ask for money or food. I nearly always tell them how to say “where are you going” not where you go.
It is nice to know that you have helped them in a very little way. English is taught at the schools.
I tell them to use the word please. They do not like it at first but with encouragement will repeat the words after me. At one such stop, a sandwich was shared after one of the boys said please. We have never heard one person use this word. The few words they know, are passed on from child to child.
Some simple education in the schools could change all this.
The word please can get people many places.
The road out of town was very steep and was dusty gravel. We had been told the road is under construction, to our pleasure near the top the surface changed to asphalt.
We climbed for the first hour or so then had a rapid descent into a village on new asphalt. The wind was howling up from down below. My peak hat had to be removed due to the consequent apparent wind created.
We stopped at road works base for bananas and a chat.
Passing one hill there were dozens of people at its summit with donkeys collecting loose rocks for a crushing plant associated with the road works.
These people had completely stripped this hill of loose stones, it was unreal.
Almost all landscapes now have rock terraces.
We are getting used to the fact that people are just everywhere here in Ethiopia. They have altered almost every environment.
Only the steepest of country is untouched, this has been seen only once leaving Gondar.
Drinks were found in another village. Finding cold ones can be difficult. Not every little store has a fridge.
The roadworks continued throughout the day, some asphalt then gravel.
The temperatures are ideal and the wind has cool air in its flow.
At 1600 we arrived at May Kenetal and ate, later deciding to stay the night. Pedro bought Ciprol to try and alleviate the diarrhoea he has.
I did washing and watched a ridiculous movie called Bugs. The hotel was comfortable and had good food and a private courtyard with friendly people.
4/3/2015 May Kenetal to Adi Abi (hotel Atsea Kaleab)
D55,T5, Av11.94, Max 74, 38222, 3354
Little wind, great views and not to hot.
It had been a great nights sleep. This family run hotel had a nice feel about it. I shared my coffee with the owners wife. It is ground coffee called Abyssinia. It has a great strong flavour.
Pedro wasn,t bothered by bed bugs last night so he was happy. I seem to be lucky in this respect.
We were on the road at a leisurely 0830. Pedro is now not so intent on leaving so early. He said he is feeling a bit flat. It has been 8 months on the road from him all the way from Madrid.
The feeling is well known, I was a bit like this after riding up through Brazil, day after day of dust and humidity.
Taking it easy in the morning and mixing with the locals seems to work for me. I am never in a hurry to leave.
Often the best riding conditions are late in the day.
Leaving town we climbed for 20 km on mainly gravel.
Nearing the top we stopped at a village for pasta. The bikes were parked outside the little building. The kids were crowding around them. They were still in sight.
Our bar bags were with us in the cafe.
Whilst in there for me 5 Mirindas were drunk, it had been a hard but enjoyable morning, the views were great and the rural vistas superb.
On finishing, we wandered to the bikes. Shit!! Both of our bike computers had been stolen by these kids.
Immediately, I walked out in to the street and yelled out how important these were to us and that we were pissed of big time. Anyway a woman about my age bought mine back within a few minutes.
Pedros was nowhere to be seen he madea trip around town with mine showing people. No results. He then went to the local civil police. The village may have been about 600 strong.
Some two hours later, his was returned. The police knew all the thieves in town. We were incredibly lucky on this occasion.
Leaving town we had an entourage of 50-60 kids following us.
We were now on the plateau, riding was great in the rolling country. A speed record for Ethiopia was set for me at 70km/hr.
It is always dodgy on the roads at speed with donkeys and cows sometimes acting unpredictably.
Pedro was feeling a lot better.
My health is great, I feel strong and positive. Though, the runs is always the scene in the morning.
We just can’t find meat to eat. Pasta and spicy homemade tomato paste with bread and salad is pretty much our diet in the restaurants.
Once in Adi Abi, I needed to find someone who could re tap a hole in my stem for a bolt that is loose. This was done to no avail.
We found the hotel Atsea Keleab and booked a couple of rooms.
Pedro pitched his tent in his room to avoid bed bugs. After unpacking and bucket showering a visit was made to an internet cafe.
We ate late, as usual pasta, a great juice was enjoyed on the road with two great guys who were mechanics on the new road project.
We have met some great people here. It is just the young kids that are hard work.
5/3/2015 Adi Abi to Aksal Salam
D46,T6, Av9.64, Max 66, 38268, 3400
Cool wind, great views
As usual, I was up early and making an entry in the blog. It is perfect sleeping weather up here, now at 1870m.
For once, I was ready before Pedro so left the hotel in hope of getting wifi back at the internet cafe. They were closed.
Leaving town we had a descent to a river. Flying down here very fast, we arrived at the concrete bridge, unknown to us one slab had risen on the span. Our front wheels hit this hard. I could feel my rim touch. Trying to lift the front only moved the handle bars due to the loose bolt there. Inspections afterward revealed both our rims, ok, we were lucky.
From here a 12km climb started. This took use from 1500m to 2600m at a rapid rate. Sometimes the climbing became quite an effort. The views were spectacular.
We stopped for a bite of bread and honey half way up.
Children would just turn up from the rocks on the hillside.
One one occasion they threw stones at me. Always, after you have passed.
Pedro was worn out at the top. I felt fine.
These new roads are little used. People are so poor here there are not even any small motor bikes about.
This poverty is hard to come to terms with. Most people are wearing clothes that look like they have never been washed, due to scarcity of water.
Children are always carrying wood for fires to cook. Donkeys are carrying rocks and other produce to towns.
It is not uncommon to see a man with 6 of these little creatures carrying rock to a building site somewhere.
Once at the top we stopped for lunch. We now park our bikes right next to us. They had no food so we enjoyed more bread. I opened a can of tuna and offered the leftovers to people. They would not accept it because this month is a fasting month. We had a huge audience again. One guy was shooing the kids like flies, they would soon come back.
The call Farangi is common now. This means white man. It is usually the very young that use the word.
Come 1400 we arrived at a town and booked a motel, the only one in the village. There were major roadworks everywhere, so riding was a real obstacle course.
Dinner of Fada was enjoyed, this is a salad over fried bread, very nice. We relaxed and watched movies.
It is actually very cold up here. During the afternoon people came to our doors just asking for money. We have adjusted to expecting anything here now.
The expression of time here is crazy. Sunrise is twelve o’clock, 0600 our time. After 1 hour of sunshine, it is 0100 and so on! The sun sets at 01200, 1800hrs our time! After 1 hour of darkness, it is one o’clock again.
Having travelled with Pedro now for a few weeks, we both know each other’s habits and idiosyncrasies; our company is very relaxed due to this. We often ride apart but always stop and chat at intervals.
Our riding is the same in most cases. He is faster downhill on gravel and I pass him on the asphalt descents, our climbing is similar.
I am carrying 10kgs or more than him, but have a super low gear. Today he had to walk the last few hundred metres on the rough gravel into town because of his slightly higher gearing.
In my blog go to “My Bike” to see the rear cassette, tooth numbers. This cassette is the lowest gearing that Shimano make as far as I know.
I went to bed early.
6/3/2015 Aksal Salam to Me’kele
D59, T5, Av11.94, Max 74, 38327, 3413
Strong head winds most of the way.
Leaving town was another obstacle course through roadwork. A few km out we got a great vista of the road ahead. We were as high as you could go in this part of the country. I said to Pedro it was good to be looking down on hills not up at them.
It was a great 9km descent into the valley below. We started riding with long . There was a cold wind blowing from the south East.
Once at the bottom, we stopped at a well to top up on fresh water.
Incidentally, last night I ate with some mechanics on the road project. They said the ti axle Chinese dump trucks forever need maintenance after 2-3 years. These trucks are much cheaper than their European counterparts.
You get what you pay for!. I always say if you are making a living with something, get the best.
They said these trucks were all the companies could afford and with the cheap labour down time was not such an issue.
Most private trucks in this hill country are new Ivecos. The roads are so steep, nothing other than a quality brand would survive out here in the long term.
We still see old Ivecos from the 80’s on the road.
Again it was a series of down and back up again. Luckily the road is now all paved. We stopped in one village for lunch. This time the bikes were kept well within sight. The elders were shooing the kids like flies every 5 minutes.
The nor easter was howling now and our easterly passage was pretty much head on into it.
Closer to Mekele we passed the huge cement works billowing a column of white smoke from a lone chimney. Here dozens of trucks were waiting to be loaded. We stopped for a light meal and break here.
A few km on saw us turn right into Mekele. On the way in we stopped at an heavy machinery work shop to get some repairs done. I needed a handle bar locking bolt hole re tapped, Pedro wanted to do some work on his front rack.
The staff were so helpful and repaired what we needed.
In town we chanced upon the Dubai pension at 60B a night with was brilliant for a tourist town. Other hotels wanted 300.
The weekend is being spent here.
Time was spent maintaining the bikes. Whilst inspecting mine, much to my annoyance, the rear rim had been damaged at the bridge yesterday. It has been slightly pushed out of round.
Though the sidewalls are still true so it does not affect braking.
Hopefully, this can be replaced in Nairobi.
Last night we went to a bar to watch Real Madrid play Athletico at the Basque stadium. Madrid got beaten. Everywhere we go people are asking pedro about the Spanish league. Especially Barca.
Washing was done and we ate well at the many restaurants here in Me’kele.
1st night Ethiopia.
It was unreal eating with such large audiences.
with all the attention at first it was hard to focus on keeping an eye on the bikes and gear. Most people are not thieves but when opportunity arises.....
hard work with a smile
New housing north of Gondar.
Halfway down a big descent.
Dry as a bone and sadly heavy deforestation has occurred, this did not make the Simien mountains any less of a wonder to ride amongst. The haze was always present.
