Rwanda to Tanzania

Tuesday 23rd June. Rwanda into Tanzania: We’d arranged to meet for breakfast at 8. I was up at 6, courtesy of the dogs finding their voice again. I tried to have a shower but no water. The shower head looked positively deadly with electric wires protruding just above the shower head. I went downstairs a little later & spoke with the girl there. Later still, she brought up 4 plastic containers of water, 5 litres per container. I thought she had some master plan, maybe fill the boiler above the sink but then she walked off. They were for me to wash. Fortunately, a short while later, the shower kicked into life and it was effective, if a bit nerve racking, due to the almost bare wires at the shower head.

We were gone from there by 9, after which I updated the blog in a local internet café. It was great to read all your messages as we’d not been near an internet café in almost a week. Thank you all for that, we love to read them. We chatted about whether we should stay in Kigali another night or head for Tanzania and the vote was to go.

We’d been around most of the city and there’s little else to do so we headed for the border. It is a small country & you could easily drive top to bottom in under a day. Most borders close at 6pm & I was conscious that there would be another time zone change in Tanzania so we needed to exit Rwanda by 4.30 their time as it would be 5.30 the other side. We made it at that time and passed through the barrier into Tanzania, formalities completed, at 6.10. We were also back driving on the left side of the road again. While I was processing the carnet at the customs office, John was clearing immigration. When I eventually got to that office, I could tell by the grins on his face that the laugh was on me. He can get in free & I pay $100. I was relieved of my $100 by an almost apologetic immigration officer who said it should reduce very soon. I offered to camp outside their office it was going to happen overnight, so fun at my expense over, we headed south.

Now the fun & games really begin! At 7pm, we approached a roadblock with the gates closed and the adjacent parking area full of trucks. We waited for a few minutes and then a van driver came over & said the road was now closed until 6am tomorrow morning. Hmmm, we thought, nowhere to pitch our tents, not a very savoury area so we walked over to the police office. The man there explained that as we were on the Rwanda/Congo highway and as it was bandit country, for security reasons they stopped traffic at night, from 6pm to 6am. The van driver was also keen to go and when I asked what the bandits do if they succeed in stopping you, was told we’d be robbed. Well, that makes sense. Killing would be a different thing altogether though. Mr Policeman said he’d let us go through and we discussed it quickly and agreed. He said it seemed quiet these days. Could it be a trap? We didn’t think so because there are a lot richer pickings than us, and anyway, I wasn’t going to stop for anyone.

It was about a 60km dash and we passed a couple of vehicles coming the other way. We got to the next town, Nayakanazi, to yet another roadblock, but this was where we were aiming for anyway. We stopped at the police roadblock, the road south was still closed, and a young policeman named Vincent announced that he would take care of us. It just so happened that his boss owned a guesthouse outside town & he’d take us there. It didn’t look like there was a lot of choice; we were after all in the wild west of Tanzania. He jumped in and directed us 1km down the road & sure enough, there was the guest house.

This was where we were going to spend the night, regardless of anything. It was full of off duty police &  soldiers, sitting outside, listening to loud music and drinking beer. They had 8 rooms but guess what, only 1 available. We went to have a look and quickly realised it was not good.

At my request they brought in a second mattress, which was foam. Well, the bits that were left of it were anyway. It was chewed, split, holes in it, and extremely dirty, so I said hello to my bed for the night and then John said he was sleeping in Dusty. Now he's being fussy:))  I decided my negotiating skill wasn’t needed for this and the price quoted was Tzs10,000, which is £5. We certainly didn’t want breakfast thrown in, because it would most likely have been thrown up, given the visible hygiene factor. There was no point going to bed at 10pm because the music speaker was right outside the bedroom window &  it didn’t switch off until midnight. We sat in Dusty & had a couple of beers, watching the action unfold before our eyes. The music was quite good, it was certainly loud. Slowly but surely, couples peeled off to bed or departed in cars. it was basically a knocking shop. When the music finally switched off, and the car park emptied a bit, we got our sleeping bags and pillows out.

John hasn't changed his mind and is still sleeping in Dusty, he's petrified it's going to get stolen or broken into. I tried to persuade him to come inside but I imagine he was wondering what we would do if it was indeed stolen. There would need to be a few of them, because they'd have to push it for a start!  It was indeed the least secure we'd been in terms of parking security on this trip.

So I adjourned to the room.  As for the communal facilities, it was basic, really basic, the smells from it didn’t entice you in. But, needs must. I had to pick my time carefully because there were a few inebriated locals darting around the place, in little or no clothing. I bumped into one lady as she exited a room next to me, wrapped in a towel 4 sizes too small & definitely the worse for wear. I can just imagine the amusement as she went back to her room & said she'd just seen a white guy. I'm sure her partner would have said it was definitely time for bed. At no time however, was there any feeling of risk & everyone else just had a good time. We were now probably going to clock watch until 6, which is when the road reopens. Thankfully, I nodded off quite quickly.

Uganda to Kigali, Rwanda.

Monday 22nd June: Uganda to Rwanda.

We had to push start Dusty again today, after breakfast. We are careful to leave it in a position that makes it easy. John, the chief mechanic for this trip, has been checking everything to find out what’s causing the problem with the dual battery system. It’s most likely they’ve just reached the end of their lifespan.

Lake Bunyoni Uganda

We set off from Lake Bunyoni for the Rwandan border, a journey of 2 hours. The Ugandan people have been so friendly & hospitable, always waving as we went through their villages and helpful in every way.

When we arrived at the border, the exit from Uganda was smooth and the entry into Rwanda equally smooth, although more officious and not very welcoming. Tourists are still a novelty in this country so that might be the reason. We also had to drive on the right hand side of the road once we passed through the border post. Once into the country we found very good roads, a rarity in this part of Africa. It is a country of endless mountains and beautiful scenery with a thriving agriculture; coffee being by far the largest exporter. Because the country is so mountainous and the population so dense, terrace growing is used on the hillsides and it all looks so orderly and fertile.

We wondered what awaited us in Rwanda, known more for the genocide of 1994 than anything else. The genocide resulted in the deaths of over a million people. But death was not its only outcome. Tens of thousands of people had been tortured, mutilated and raped. Tens of thousands more suffered machete cuts, bullet wounds, infection and starvation. There was rampant lawlessness, looting and chaos. The infrastructure had been destroyed, the ability to govern dismantled. Homes had been demolished, belongings stolen. There were over 300,000 children orphaned. There were thousands of widows. Many had been the victim of rape and sexual abuse, often by known HIV carriers and subsequently caught the disease. Others had seen their children murdered in front of them because the aim was to exterminate the Tutsi population by murdering the young people.

Memorial for 10 Belgian soldiers killed in this house on the7th April 1994

It took a couple of hours to get to the capital Kigali. Once there, we headed to the genocide memorial centre. We were there for about an hour and a lot of people just cried their way around, reading the background, the genocide and the aftermath to it. After that sobering visit, we needed to find beds for the night & set off in search.

Kigali Genocide Memorial

It’s difficult here, if you exclude the big hotels like the 5 star Serena. There’s very little in between that & really basic, due to nonexistent tourism. We really struggled and a few places were full. Finally, we happened upon the Rose guest house, which is mentioned in our east Africa Guide as a good place for expats. It may have been such when the guide was issued but now it was very basic, and very empty.

Still, we had a base if we got desperate. Food was a pressing issue too so we headed off to the Kabana Pizzeria and had one of the best pizzas I’ve had outside Italy.

Kabana Pizzeria Kigali

After dinner, we checked out a couple of more places but all were full. Finally, we came across the Romalo guest house and it seemed good from the outside. I went in to enquire & secured rooms at a good price. It was just then we discovered the time zone changed and it was an hour earlier than Uganda. We laughed at the rooms; they were huge and about as naff as you’d find anywhere. However, we had toilet seats although loo paper in my room would have been a nice touch too. The rooms were named after cities: John was in Tokyo & I was in Cape Town.

Romalo Guest House Kigali

It seemed a quiet location so we headed off to our rooms with the intention of an early start the next morning. Soon after drifting off to sleep, the neighbours’ dogs started barking and continued for what seemed like hours. We were awake now. Sleep seemed all but impossible & then they stopped, probably worn out themselves.

Uganda: Gorilla Tracking in Bwindi

Sunday 21st June: Uganda. Bwindi Gorilla Tracking

Tea & cookies were delivered to our rooms at the requested times. I had mine at 7.30am &  John was having a lazy morning, his being delivered at 8.30. When I went to start Dusty, it again refused to start due to a flat battery so I enlisted the help of 3 young men who just happened to be passing, and got a quick push start.

Gorilla trekkers returning to camp

 Each day, there are 3 groups, tracking three separate families of Gorillas, with a maximum of 8 people per group. When they finally encounter the Gorillas, they have just 60 minutes with them and not a minute longer. This area is home to half the worlds Gorilla population which totals about 660. The other 330 are in Rwanda & the Congo although they do cross over the mountains from time to time. People book up to two years in advance. The cost per ticket is currently $500 each and as each day is full, that equates to $12000 income per day, which goes towards conservation.

We now continue on our way to Lake Bunyoni. It was a really difficult drive on very bad roads and we had to get off the mountain before nightfall, as it’s just too dangerous on those bad roads. We climbed to the highest point of the mountain which was almost 8000’.

Ugandan village children

We reached Bunyoni about 6pm, with a bit of daylight left and found our little lakeside lodge. The setting is absolutely beautiful, overlooking the water and we sat and watched the daylight disappear.

Lake Bunyoni

Also, we were the only guests in that night. Dinner was had overlooking the lake accompanied by a few cold beers and off to bed early.

Uganda: Katunguru to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park for Gorilla Trekking

Saturday 20th June: Uganda. Katunguru to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. A good hearty breakfast was served to us at 9am & we were ready to be on the road by 11 am. Unfortunately, at that time we found out we had a flat battery; reasons unknown just yet.

Reuben was quickly to the rescue & he gave us a tow start. I think Dusty started within 20 feet so we were quickly on our way. I’m not surprised that Dusty throws a little hiccup every now & then because we’ve covered 11500 kms since we left Cape Town and a lot of it, as recently as yesterday, has been really punishing.

The journey to Buhoma Gate took us about 5 hours and we travelled through Queen Elizabeth Park, spotting Elephants & Impala along the way. We crossed over a bridge that had been washed away a few days earlier and had been hastily repaired, looking a little unsafe. We didn’t stop for a photo while on it, just in case! We reached Buhoma at about 4pm & met a guy called Godfrey.

We asked Godfrey about accommodation in the area and he guided us towards a couple of lodges in the forest park itself. We had now officially penetrated the impenetrable forest, but only by a few hundred metres. We stopped at the Gorilla Forest Camp, owned by upmarket travel company Abercrombie & Kent and I volunteered to climb the steep steps to make enquiries. Godfrey had said it was US$560 per room and when I arrived at reception I was told it was $500.

Sanctuary Gorilla Forest Camp.

Gorilla Forest Camp. A typical tent

 I asked for the manager & negotiated a hefty discount, for full board, including lunch for myself &  John on Sunday. We finished up getting each room for $150. It is considered the ultimate jungle camp in this area. The tents are huge and very opulent with two king size beds in each one and a very luxurious bathroom. We had dinner at 8pm and it was excellent cuisine, really well presented and very tasty. We called it a night just after 10pm. I returned to my tent to find a hot water bottle in the bed as the chill sets in during the night.

Uganda: Fort Portal to Katungura

Friday 19th June: Uganda. Fort Portal to Katungura:

We had breakfast at 9am & checked out at 10. We wanted to pay by credit card but the power was off so the machines wouldn’t work. We needed to keep our US$ for border posts so we went into town to withdraw more local currency from the ATM & returned to pay our bill.

Fort Portal

We had coffee in town afterwards and then plotted today’s mission. We knew we had to finish up in the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park but that would take 2 days drive, so we set off for the Queen Elizabeth National Park, not knowing exactly where we’d stay. That’s not too surprising anyway because we do that most of the time. After about 4 hours, we saw a sign for the Queen Elizabeth Nature Lodge, just after we crossed the Kazinga Channel, which links Lake George & Lake Edward, outside the town of Katunguru.

http://www.naturelodges.biz/the-bush-lodge/

We drove 3 kms down a dirt track to it & discovered it was situated overlooking the river in a beautiful setting. It had in fact only opened 4 days earlier so the person who was there had to call the owner, who had gone into town to buy a spark plug for his generator, to get the price. A much higher price was hinted at before the call & I said it was too much, considering what we paid the night before in a 5 star hotel. We settled on an excellent rate for dinner, bed & breakfast and as we’d already had a look at the lovely cabins, we were very happy. There is definite bargaining when you want multiple rooms.

Reuben, the owner, arrived shortly after & he was most charming and welcoming. Of Belgian parentage, he grew up in Burundi, worked in Kenya &  has now launched a few lodges in Uganda with the emphasis on affordable accommodation. It looks a winner as far as we are concerned and we hope to stay in his other lodge on Lake Bunyonyi, below Bwindi, on Sunday night. We had cold beer for sun downers and a delicious 4 course meal. We sat around the camp fire for a few hours and John & I managed to force a few more cold beers down. A good sleep in our cabins soon followed, with the very loud snorting of the Hippos down at the river, or maybe wandering through the camp.

Uganda: Murchison Falls to Fort Portal

Thursday 18th June: Uganda. Murchison Falls to Fort Portal We were all packed up, me somewhat earlier, thanks to my restless night due to a flat air mattress. We had our usual breakfast of Weetabix & muesli along with a mug of tea & we were on our way by 9.30 am.

We had two routes to choose from to get to our destination. One would have had us backtracking to Kampala & onwards to Fort Portal, all of it on good tarred roads. That journey would take about 6 hrs. The alternative was a shorter distance but all on bad roads and we were advised not to take that as it was quite treacherous with a reported bridge collapse along the way. That would take about 8 hours but would be infinitely more rewarding & scenic. Naturally, we opted for the difficult one and it was really challenging in places.

We arrived in Fort Portal just after dark & the guest house we hoped to stay at was full, so we stayed instead at the Mountains of the Moon Hotel, but not until I had negotiated a hefty discount. It was quite luxurious, by the standards of the previous days. We had dinner there & as it was late, we didn’t get to bed until 11pm

Mountains of the Moon Hotel

Mountains of the Moon hotel.

Uganda: Murchison Falls

Wednesday 17th June: Uganda. Murchison Falls National Park:

We woke early, dined on weetabix, banana & cold milk, followed by a mug of hot tea cooked on our own stove, overlooking the Victoria Nile. We set off to catch the 10 am ferry to the other side, the crossing takes about 10 minutes.

Once there, we did our own game drive tour around the Murchison Falls National Park. We spent about 3 hours there and saw Elephant, Buffalo, Giraffe & Warthog, plus the usual Impala. At 2pm we went on a 3 hour round trip boat trip, to the Murchison Falls itself. Along the way we saw crocodile & literally dozens of hippos, elephants grazing at the waters edge as well as lots of different birds.

I enquired as to what would happen if anyone fell overboard and was told that a croc or a hippo would have you before you’d either drown or be pulled back in. I can quite believe it. We stopped for photos near the falls and then made our way back downstream. It took 2 hours to get to the falls but only one hour to get back, thanks to a fast flowing river. We made it back just in time for the 5 pm ferry and were back in our camp site at 5.30. We got a bit of a shock when we drove in because there was another vehicle parked and a tent erected.

The camp fire was lit soon after and our new neighbours joined us to say hello. Hannah, from Oxford in the UK, is a newly qualified doctor, doing a one month volunteer stint at a hospital in Uganda. Although critical of some of the NHS failings, she told us she had new respect for it after her experiences in Uganda. Johan, her boyfriend, flew out from the UK to have a week camping with her and they were leaving the next morning for Kampala & London.

We had an enjoyable time & they joined us later after they returned from the restaurant at the nearby hotel. Meanwhile, we set up our cooking gear & had pasta with tuna plus a few glasses of wine. We’d had a pretty hectic day; we were tired, and called it a night at about 10pm, with the sound of hippos snorting in the background. At 2am I was awake, feeling a bit uncomfortable. Sure enough, my air mattress was quite flat & I was now sleeping on the ground. It was about as effective as a sheet on the ground. At 2 am I was not going to look for the pump & disturb everyone, not to mention the possibility of meeting a hippo on the way to the car, so I just resigned myself to a rather uncomfortable night. Needless to say, I was up early.

Uganda: Masindi to Murchison Falls.

Tuesday 16th June: Uganda. Masindi to Murchison Falls, North Western Uganda

After a good sleep, we met for breakfast at 9am & we were on the road at 9.45. We entered the Murchison Park and drove 2 hours to the Murchison Falls area

Before we viewed the falls, we wanted to secure beds for ourselves. We picked the 2nd place we visited, The Nile Safari Lodge. However, it is not as grand as it sounds on here because we actually picked the camp site, a few hundred metres away. The Lodge itself was lovely and in the most beautiful setting overlooking the river. When we saw our site, we were equally happy because it too had a commanding view over the river, and no one else nearby. We had it to ourselves. We then set up our tents.

After that, it was time to visit Murchison Falls and we were not a bit disappointed. It is truly spectacular to see the river gushing through a gorge about 6 metres wide and the power of the water is frightening. I was standing a mere 10 feet from the water as it rushed through the gap. 

We walked around as much as we could and were amazed that there wasn’t another human being in the area. For us, that was a truly awesome experience.  We also had our first encounter with the Tsetse fly. They were everywhere, and they were huge.We just got taken by surprise. We were squashing them inside the vehicle as well, and thankfully our fly swatter was coming to good use. It was an all out war. You couldn't stop to deal with them because then another swarm would descend on you. Some of them were sitting on the wiper blades and other parts of the vehicle. Regardless of the speed or the windscreen washer being used, they clung on for dear life. We were truly amazed at what they could resist. Thankfully, by the time we got back to the campsite, we'd finally lost them all. They are huge, and very nasty.

Later, we went back to the Lodge & had our drinks there, looking down on the river.

We then had dinner at the Lodge & were escorted back to our camp site in the dark, to be pleasantly surprised to see a camp fire lit & lanterns hanging in the trees. Now that was truly special. This is no ordinary campsite. No matter how romantic that was, there was no way John & I were going to hold hands:))) Heck, we won't even share a room. This lovely scene necessitated a couple of hours sitting around the camp fire and having a nightcap. Off to our  tents about 1030 pm with just the sound of Hippos snorting, mere feet away in the river. Africa, Gods continent.

Uganda: Jinja to Kampala & on to Masindi

Monday 15th June: Uganda. Jinja to Kampala and Masindi:

We departed Jinja @ 10am for the 80 km drive to Kampala. It has a reputation for heavy traffic and sure enough it was gridlock from 10 kms out. Lucky for us, Land Rover was on our side of the city so we got there about 1215. The service agents name was Mombasa & we persuaded him to squeeze us into to an already packed workshop.

We had to wait until after lunch but they started work as soon as they returned and we were on our way by 3pm. We had new brake pads fitted; brake fluid emptied & refilled with new fluid , so hopefully no more issues with the brakes. Kampala is one of the party capitals of Africa, it's streets are lined with a variety of unlicenced bars, known locally as Kafunda and it is possible to drink around the clock.

Uganda has reputedly the worlds highest consumption of alcohol and there is a thriving trade in adulterated alcohol. A spin off of this is the fact that Uganda suffers from the highest rate of road fatalities in the world, another reason to ensure good brakes! As a lot of the adulterated alcohol is lethal, it can cause multiple organ failure resulting in death. As cities like this don’t interest us too much, we headed for Masindi in North West Uganda and that would enable us to get to the Murchison Falls the next morning. While we were waiting for the work to be done on Dusty at Land Rover, I booked rooms at the Masindi Hotel and we arrived there about 7 pm after a 4 hour drive from Kampala.

It is a beautiful hotel, built in the early 1900’s and patronised by celebrities such as Ernest Hemingway, Humphrey Bogart & Katherine Hepburn. Thankfully, they weren’t resting on their laurels & the hotel has been renovated to a high standard while retaining the character. Bogart & Hepburn were there because the backdrop to the film ‘African Queen’ was Murchison Falls. Apparently, Ernest Hemingway was an unexpected visitor because his plane crashed into the river after clipping a wire which was crossing the gorge at Murchison Falls. Both he & his wife were rescued and taken to the hotel. A rescue plane was sent for them and that crashed on take off. They survived yet again. We had drinks followed by dinner and went off to our rooms for a welcome sleep.

Kenya: Eldoret to Jinja, Uganda

Sunday 14th June: Eldoret Kenya to Jinja Uganda.

We met for breakfast at 9am, had a walk around the grounds (nice swimming pool) & were on the road at 10am for the journey to Uganda.

As it was a Sunday, the road, which was good tarmac, was relatively quiet with few heavy Lorries. The distance to Jinja was about 300 kms and took us about 6 hours (including border crossing) although we were at the border in about 3 hours. The border crossing was really smooth & only took about 1½ hours. Entering Uganda was our first taste of the friendly Ugandan people who are absolutely delightful & so welcoming. We continued our journey to Jinja and our first view of Lake Victoria. Jinja is where the Nile begins its epic journey north, a distance of 6700 kms.

We had hoped to stay at the Bujagali Falls area but the Nile Porch resort had only 1 room available. We did stay and watch a couple of bunji jumpers and then returned later to the restaurant for dinner, which was very nice. We had to find a hotel so we did the rounds in Jinja town itself, finally settling on the Crested Crane hotel. It would have been nice to spend a few days in Jinja but we needed to head for Kampala on Monday morning and get new brake pads fitted, after our incident with brake fade in Kenya.

Kenya: Nanyuki to Eldoret, Kenya

It's going to be an early start today and it's a beautiful sunny morning with Mount Kenya getting the early morning rays. Along the way, we will pass Lake Baringo and also cross the Rift Valley. The following information is taken from a website to give our blog followers a bit more information on two wonderful sights we will witness today.  

Africa's Great Rift Valley is a 6,000-mile crack (fissure) in the earth's crust, stretching from Lebanon to Mozambique. One of its most dramatic sections slices through East Africa, dividing Kenya into two segments. Geologists know that the Rift Valley was formed by violent subterranean forces that tore apart the earth's crust. These forces caused huge chunks of the crust to sink between parallel fault lines and force up molten rock in volcanic eruptions. Evidence that this process, called rifting, is still in progress comes from the many active and semi-active volcanoes, located along the Rift. Evidence of volcanic activity along the rift is provided by the presence of numerous boiling hot springs.  

Lake Baringo: This is a freshwater lake approximately 22 km long, by 11 kms wide, with an area of 168 sq kms. It is situated at an altitude of 1100 meters but is surrounded by mountains rising to almost 300 meters above the ambient ground level in places. At the northern end of the Lake lies the dormant volcano, Karosi, 1449 meters high. The water of Lake Baringo is fresh unlike those other Great Rift Valley lakes of Bogoria, Elementeita, Nakuru and Magadi which are "soda lakes." Although it is not known where the water flows out of Lake Baringo, it is reasoned that it must do so as otherwise the water would be subject to a continual process of evaporation, and the Lake would become soda. It may well do so from a submerged crevasse at its northern end, emerging 100 ks north at Karpedda. As a freshwater Lake it is home to hippos, crocodiles and an abundance of fish and birds, but it does not have flamingoes, as these feed on the algae specific to soda lakes. Despite this, it is most famous as an ornithologist's paradise, with 500 bird species, many of which are extremely rare or otherwise only seen in this area. 

Mindy looked after us so well for the 4 days we were there and we all send a big thank you to her. Once again, Pauline spoiled us with her culinary skills and that is going to have to last us quite a while. As we were leaving, we saw a very large bird, the Kori Bustard taking flight. It stands approximately a metre high and I know it’s the heaviest &  largest bird in Southern Africa but cannot say that for sure about East Africa. We were given a hearty breakfast to see us on our way, which was a good thing because the journey to Eldoret was 430 kms, with half of it on completely unmade roads. The first 100 kms was quite difficult to navigate because we were basically driving across the bush without a single road sign to help us. We made one mistake, finishing up in the town of Rumuriti, which necessitated a 20km backtrack but after that it was ok.

We also had to cross the Rift Valley on our way, descending from approx 6000 feet to the valley floor. On the way down, the brakes failed. Yes, isn't that your worst nightmare. Thankfully, we were almost down at the bottom. Still, it was a moment where any feeling of fatigue leaves your body in an instant.  I could push the pedal completely to the floor so good use of the gears and the weight of the vehicle kept us at a manageable speed. It took me a couple of hundred metres to stop on a completely level road. Despite being very careful not to overuse the brakes on the way down, we had obviously suffered from brake fade. It was now just getting dark.

We stopped for a short while and gave it a complete check. Pressure started to return and as we were now in the Rift Valley, we carried on, carefully. Thankfully, the remaining part of the journey to Eldoret involved climbing to 7000 feet, with no further brake incidents.  On our journey today we saw Elephant, Giraffe, Zebra, Impala, Dic Dic (small deer) and a large Tortoise.

We stayed at Naiberi River Lodge, run by Raj, who was there to greet us. The journey took us 9½ hours so a cold beer was very welcome, followed by steak & chips in the Stone Cave Bar.

Stone Cave Bar @ Naiberi Lodge

Naiberi River Lodge Resort

Stone Cave

Kenya: Shopping in Nanyuki

We drove into town today to get provisions for the trip. Had a cappuccino at our favourite little place, the Boulangerie Cafe, then went around the shops to get our few bits. A certain lady tells me I must refrain from mentioning the price of food, but really, for a third world country, a small slab of cheese cost 10 US dollars!! well, I ask you, do you get this sort of information on Lonely Planet!! It will be interesting to see what the price is in Eldoret because cheese making is pretty much their entire industry. Another export of Eldoret was President Moi, who hailed from that area. We would like to share with you all a lovely photo of a rainbow over Mount Kenya, taken from Camp David today. We had 10mm of rain, a very welcome occurrence in this country.

We've almost packed Dusty for our departure tomorrow. The roof rack is filling up, Tomorrow morning we head off for Eldoret, a journey of 8 hours. We chatted to a guy in town today and as he lives along the route we are taking, he gave us some helpful information to help us on our way. He did say however that he couldn't speak for security along some of the more remote parts of the route. Coming from a local, that is a little worrisome, but so far we've never encountered anything but friendliness in Kenya. Eldoret will get us within a few hours of Uganda and we'll be heading for the border on Sunday as the Kenya permit for Dusty expires on that day. Nothing like cutting it fine Frankie boy! Why change the habits of a lifetime.

Kenya: Nanyuki- Loisaba -Nanyuki 11th June 2009

LOISABA, KENYA: Our drive today is to Lisaba Wilderness Reserve. It's a difficult enough drive and the terrain is very rough on the entire route.We also had to do a river crossing which was quite deep followed by a very steep and slippery climb out the other side.

The journey took almost 3 hours and on arrival, Bombay, who is head honcho in charge of a rather large fleet of land rovers, guided us onto the pit. A complete service was carried out & we've discovered our brake pads are quite worn, even though the brakes feel really good. There are two pads on each disc so the pads were switched around and the least worn one was now in the best position. We think that'll get us back to Cape Town but we'll change them if there's any doubt.

Unfortunately, Bombay didn't have suitable brake pads as his fleet is the Land Rover Defender.

Sadly, for us anyway, Jim & Lori are cruising around Turkey just now on a yacht. We also got to see lots of elephants at the water hole just below the pool, along with Zebra. John & I had a quick lunch while we were there. We'd like to extend a very big thank you to Bombay for all his effort & advice as well as Jim & Lori for extending the use of their facilities to us. Have a look at www.loisaba.com to see where we were. Bombay now has is own workshop in Nanyuki and is a complete expert on Landrovers.

It was 6pm before we finished all the work. Oil changed, all filters; A fmajor service. Some remedial work done on the front wheel bearings and the prop shaft fully lubed. We also had to replace some rubber bushes on the shock absorbers as they were about to disintegrate. Given that they were fitted brand new before departure from Cape Town, on Old Man Emu shocks, designed for the toughest conditions going, gives some idea of the journey from Cape Town to Kenya. John drove back to Mindy's house and we made it in 2.5 hrs. It was dark for most of the way but with powerful spots, not a problem. Courtesy of Pauline, a lovely chicken curry was waiting for us on arrival.

Kenya: Nanyuki on the Equator.

Mount Kenya in all its glory.

It's nice to be back in Kenya, a real treat to be staying out in the bush, in luxury. We will enjoy it, because it  goes rapidly downhill once we leave here!

Kenya: Nairobi to Nanyuki by taxi.

                                                                June 9th 2009

Nairobi Airport

Had a lovely flight yesterday from London and got upgraded at check in to premium economy seats.  The crew were fantastic and really spoiled us. A big thank you to them all, particularly Carmine (Purser), Caroline & Michael. How wonderful that Jane & Chris Denny took the trouble, on a Monday morning, to travel to Terminal 5 to wish us Bon Voyage. Thank you both so very much.

It was prearranged that Stephen (taxi) would be waiting for us at the airport on arrival and he whisked us to the Boulevard hotel. I know Stephen from my regular visits so I asked him what he thought of the hotel. His answer was a little negative so we were not sure what we'd encounter. It was certainly basic, but at $85 per room, acceptable for the 10 hours we would actually spend there. They are undertaking a renovation program but until it's completed, we would not recommend it.

Downtown Nairobi

We met at 9am for breakfast this morning and it was really quite OK, with good coffee. I had also prearranged for a taxi from Nanyuki, owner driven by Chris, a native of Nanyuki, to collect us at 1030.

Nairobi suburbs

And, only witnessing one near accident where a car in front of us attempted to overtake in the face of oncoming traffic, promptly swerving back in when he realised he was about to die! The last image of him was careering off the road, into a lower ditch area, completely out of control. Gladly, he managed to regain control, albeit off road, without turning it on its roof. It was just like a scene out of "Police, Camera, Action" TV series. Ah, welcome back to driving in Africa.

Nanyuki

It was exactly 3 hours to Nanyuki & we crossed the equator into the Southern Hemispheres shortly before. According to the sign, the elevation is 6389 feet above sea level.

Nanyuki Airfield. Barney's Bar/Restaurant.

     

Nanyuki Town.

Mindy collected us at Nanyuki Airfield & we made our way through Nanyuki to Camp David, her wonderful home. Of course we had to have a quick check on Dusty to see how the three month hibernation went. We reconnected the batteries (yes, we have 2) and it started on the first turn of the engine. Long may it last! Since then, we have just relaxed and enjoyed a long lunch overlooking Mount Kenya and later still, a delicious dinner with good wine.

Reality is awaiting us, mere days away, as we prepare for our departure towards Uganda, on Saturday 13th. Bed is now beckoning for and tomorrow we go &  purchase oil for the service. The remainder of the items we have brought from the UK with us. Thank you already to Derek, Craig, Matthew & Mary for your postings wishing us luck. I speak for us both in saying that we love to see those coming in so please keep it up & don't feel because you've left one message, you can't leave another 20 as well. We're happy for feedback so if there's something you want to see, or have a question, just let us know.

London to Nairobi 8th June 2009. The jorney resumes: Kenya to Cape Town via Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, Malawi & Mozambique.

                                         Monday 8th June 2009 

Leaving for Nairobi on the BA flight at 1020 am this morning. Flight time is about 8.5 hours & on arrival (9 pm) we'll be staying at the Boulevard Hotel in the city.

Boulevard Hotel Nairobbery

Tomorrow morning (Tuesday 9th) at 1030am, we have a car & driver to take us to Nanyuki, a journey of about 3 hours. I would also like to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to Tony & Saya Gaynor for the wonderful hospitality shown to me these last two days at their home on the Hogs Back in Guildford. It was a wonderfully relaxing way to prepare for this journey. Thank you both.

Fasten your seat belts, we're about to resume our journey.

South Africa: Let's make a plan!

1st April

Somerset West, South Africa:

That's it for the time being. John & I have been bowled over by all your interest and messages of support during our adventure. We'll be preparing for the 2nd round of this adventure at the beginning of June. I'm leaving SA & heading back to Ireland over the Easter weekend. Just to recap:.................

8th June: London to Nairobi on BA....................
9th June: Nairobi-Nanyuki on Safari Link Airlines.................
10th June: Camp David to Loisaba and back again...............
11th June: Camp David, preparing Dusty, full service etc........  
12th June:Camp David
13th June: Nanyuki to Uganda border.................................
14th June: Cross into Uganda.............................................

15th July: Arrive Somerset West................................. 


Via...... Uganda-Rwanda-Tanzania-Malawi-Mozambique-Swaziland-Kruger-Drakensberg, Cape Town. 

Stay with us; Join John & I for the next round. We'll be letting you know when we're off, closer to the date. In the meantime, I'll be in Ireland for 2 weeks and then I'm going to the Kentucky Derby at the end of April followed by a visit to Dallas in Texas.