5 days riding in the magical mountains of Ethiopia

17^th February 2011.  Bahir Dar to Bush Camp. Mando Day.  163kms in the Ethiopian mountains.

163kms might seem a lot of kms for the first timer, but cycling this far with all the riding we’ve done thus far is not a problem.  The only real issue is doing it at altitude and in the mountains.

Today started with the usual breakfast at 6.30am.Luke and I had a room for the past 2 nights and this made it a lot easier not having to pack the tent after a rest day.  After breakfast it was on the road with Rodney, Andre and Daniel.  It wasn’t long and Daniel was off the back of the bunch and our group was down to 3. 

We passed many villages on our way to our first coke stop at the 30km mark.  This turned out to be a terrific little coffee break.  By the time we were sitting down our group of cyclist grew to about 15 and the local Ethiopian crowd was about 30.  They just stand and watch us eat dry cake and drink coffee and coke like there’s no tomorrow.  If you have an idea what a hungry cyclist would eat each day, then times it by 2 and you might be close.  I now understand how Josh use to eat me out of house and home when he was racing.

After the coffee stop we continued onto the lunch break at the 70km mark.  Some people voiced their concern that the lunch stop was at 70km when the day was 163km.  Perhaps the midday break should have been later.  Personally I couldn’t give a shit when I ate.  This is Africa, eat, shit, sleep, and drink whenever you feel like it.

As we ride along the roads of Ethiopia we are constantly harassed by the little shits who either throw stones and sticks at us or yell out, ‘where you go’ and ‘give me money’.  This happens every 50 metres in a daily ride.  No matter where you are in Ethiopia the kids and adults call out for money.  I suppose I should thank the other white dumb ass tourists and aid workers for the behaviour of the current crop of Ethiopians.

Stopped and took a couple of photos of vultures and some spectacular landscape along the way.  

After lunch I rode with Sam.  During the ride I asked Sam if he wanted to go and meet some locals and have a cup of tea in an Ethiopian home.  I found a man who took us to his home and his wife made Sam and me a beautiful cup of Ethiopian tea.  We just sat in the family home, (the lounge room) and just sipped our tea, amazed at the incredible hospitality of the local people.

 

After some family photos we were back on the bike to see what else we could find.There was no reason to push hard today and get into camp too early, because if we did,we would be more tired and there’s nothing to do around a bush camp other than rest or read.I didn’t come to Africa to spend time in a camp, I came here to experience the local life.Many of the cyclists miss this on a daily basis.

As we rode along the road we saw a monastery on the side of the road.  Sam and I decided we should drop in and pay them a visit.  We were greeted by an old lady who bowed as we entered the grounds.  We walked up to the monastery and took some photos of the old and new religious buildings.  As we walked back to our bikes we were greeted by the priests of the monastery.  What an amazing experience to meet these men and allowing us to take their photos.  This is not common for men of the cloth to have their photos taken.  Got some really good shots of them.

So back on the bike and head to camp to get the long day over with.I had a great day with Sam and Bastion, and feel good after all the climbing in 2300metre altitude.  Sometimes it’s hard on my breathing riding at this level but I do back off to make sure I get through the day in 1 piece. Tomorrow is 117kms of more hills.

18^th February 2011.  Bush Camp to Bush Camp.  120kms.
                               Josh’s 25^th Birthday.

As you’ve probably already worked out, I hate getting out of bed early at the best of times.  My next door neighbour Daniel decided to pull his tent down at 5.15am.  Breakfast is served at 6.30am, work that out.  So I’ve been awake since 5.15am, and I have a long hard day ahead.The first 25kms went downhill in a flash, from there on it was hill after hill, after hill. Before lunch we climbed this one hill which must have been 10kms long and just grew from the valley floor. It went up and up all the way to the lunch break at the 60km mark. 

Before lunch we once again found a house to go inside and have a cup of tea.  This time the lady came out and gave us this bread which I haven’t seen or tasted since we started this journey over a month ago. It was really nice and certainly filled the hole.  I always cherish the times when I can sit with the locals and enjoy their hospitality.The racers never get to do this and I do feel they have missed so much of Africa.

After lunch the hills kept coming at us, bigger, higher, longer than before lunch.  Considering we rode 163km yesterday and now we had to back up and do a hard 120km, I was starting to get just a little tired at this stage of the day.

The weather was beautiful all day, not much wind to worry us, and smooth roads to make the kms more bearable.  Still we had thousands of kids yelling out the same shit, every metre, every kilometre, all day.   I think they have no idea what there’re saying.  Perhaps the politicians and village elders should teach the children to stop begging for money or throwing stones and sticks at cyclists who are very tired, and not prepared to put up with this crap. We stopped again in the afternoon for a nice cup of tea and a Pepsi, just to help us to the bush camp.  About 2kms from the camp we hit some serious gravel, some cyclists elected to walk to prevent getting punctures, I just rode the whole way to camp.

I arrived at this beautiful shady forested camp at around 3pm after a long hard day in the saddle.  I left Rodney somewhere down the hill, but he came in about 10minutes after me.  I put up my tent, had the usual wash, a couple of cups of soup and a cup of tea and I was feeling good once again.

Today is a special day, Josh turned 25.  I gave Josh a call at lunch and wished him a happy 25^th birthday.

remember quite clearly 7 years ago sitting in Sun City enjoying his 18^th birthday.  I would have loved for Josh to come along with me again but I know his studies now take precedent over a stupid bike ride from Cairo to Cape Town.  Even though I’m only 1 month into the trip nothing could out do what we did some 7 years ago

Tonight is chicken for dinner.  Going to get an early night’s sleep because tomorrow we drop down into the Blue Nile Gorge then have to climb back up the other side.  Climbing over 2000metres in 20kms.  The 20km is a Time Trial Competition.  Cant’ wait for that.

19^th February 2011 Blue Nile Gorge Time Trial 20kms. 90km ride for the day.

This was the day I was really keen to take part in the race.  The first part was a leisurely ride to the lunch break at the 49km mark.  Like usual the climbs were easy, some of the road was gravel and when the trucks and buses pass you, you have the luxury of eating dust for the next 5 minutes.  

The kids are still calling out in the thousands.  Honestly, you have no idea how many kids call out for money, it goes on all day, from the start of the ride at 7am until we get into camp at 3pm.  One can only take so much of the calling and screaming out for money, or where you go, well, I’m going to Cape Town.  The kid standing 2 metres away will ask again, and the next kid will do the same, they have no idea what the hell there’re saying.Great education system they must have in this place.

So I pulled into lunch to be surrounded by 50 locals watching the cyclists devour  bread rolls with tuna, peanut butter, honey, bananas, tomato’s and in some cases thrown on the same roll.  I have never eaten some of the combinations that I make at lunch back at home.  If I did I would be sick.

It was time to get back on the bike for the 20km descent into the Blue Nile Gorge.  What an amazing view from the top and around every corner to the bottom of the Gorge where the Time Trial began.  I roared down the mountain and reached speeds of 70ks.  Once at the bottom I went over to the time keeper and checked in.  I was allowed to start straight away and off I went.  I knew from my racing days how important it is to pace yourself up a 20km hill, and in doing so, climb 2000metres.   

The finish line was at 2500metres above sea level.  I rode the mountain at a constant pace, looking down into the gorge below as I rounded each corner which happened to kick up each time.

I wish I had legs like Josh on this climb as he could climb mountains like a real pro.  By the time 1 hour was over of climbing I had passed a couple of cyclist and was still holding my rhythm together.  I got passed by 3 of the racers on their race bikes, while I struggled with my heavy hunk of shit mountain bike with fat tires.  

The tour director was standing on the side of the road taking photos as I passed and hopefully I get on the Tour D Afrique website.  You can see how marvellous I looked with my tongue hanging out and sweating like a pig.

I finally crested the last bend to see the finish flag.  I was really happy with my effort and not over exerting myself in the process.  I immediately bought a coke from one of the locals at the gate to our campsite and drank it in less than a minute.

I got my tent out, sent it up and went and had a beautiful cold shower in one of the buildings which forms part of the aid compound.  At home I would never have a cold shower, but when you have sweated like I did for the last 2 hours and basically stink, I don’t care how cold the water is, it’s time to shower. I did 1hr 55mins for the climb and this was good compared to many others.

So now I sit in my tent feeling so happy with my achievement for the day, I climbed a huge mountain, I got to see some of the most amazing scenery on this planet, harassed by thousands of Ethiopians and I live to do it all again tomorrow.  Time for bed.  Good night from about 200kms north of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

20^th February 2011.  90kms. Forest Camp to Camp on the cliff on the Blue Nile Gorge. Ethiopia.

After yesterdays epic climb out of the Blue Nile Gorge I woke feeling pretty good after sleeping 10hours.  They say there’s nothing better than a good night’s sleep.

After packing the tent we knew today we had to ride to the highest point of the tour this year.  The altitude is 3130 metres above sea level.  To put this into perspective, there are no ski fields in the world that are that high, so I’m told. We headed off nice and early and back to the edge of the gorge that we rode up yesterday to take some spectacular photos of the sun rising and to see how stupid I really am taking on the mountain and also competing in the Time Trial event.

So off we go on our 90km ride to our next campsite.  We never know what to really expect at each campsite and honestly I don’t care at all.  I’m not one for luxury and I don’t care if I have to crap in the desert, the forest, the sand, behind a bale of hay so the local can’t see me, as long as I get out of bed each morning, I’m doing just great.

The first 30ks went by really quick and like usual we stopped at a coffee stop with about 15 other cyclists.  We try and put our bikes as close together and look out to ensure no one attempts to steal anything from the bikes.  This time after my coffee I found one of the thieving little bastards had undone my bag under my seat and was about to knock something out of it when I got up to leave.  He took off, I checked the bag and nothing was missing, and we were on our way again.  You can’t take your eyes off your bike for one minute in this part of the world

Today was a beautiful day for riding, pleasant temperatures and not too hot.  The mountains we climbed went on forever and dropped down the other side into spectacular valleys with farmlands, small villages, kids calling for money, throwing stones, just a typical day on the bike in Ethiopia.

The scenery is truly amazing each day, you climb one mountain and roared down the other side and do it time after time, but it’s not ‘oh shit another hill to climb’, it’s just so peaceful taking it easy as you climb into another world.Our lunch stop was at the highest point of the tour 3130metres above sea level.  I do feel the effort of riding much harder as we get higher and higher and the oxygen thins out.  Lunch was in a place looking down into the beautiful green valley below and of course lunch wouldn’t be the same if we were not crowded by 50 local spectators.

The ride to the final point in the day was mainly downhill with about 2 short climbs of about 2kms each.  We stopped at one hotel 15ks from the finish and were greeted by bunch of doctors and professors who were attending a geothermal conference in Ethiopia.  They were amazed at what we were telling them and took so many photos of us.  I stood there for some time and answered all their questions while they took my photo and one lady was writing down what I was saying. I had 15 seconds of fame.  That’s the story of my life.

Back on the bike for the final 15km run into the camp.  When we turned into the road that led to our camp I was amazed to see the trucks and many tents sitting on the side of the cliff looking down into one of the most beautiful sights in the world, the mighty ‘Blue Nile Gorge’.  To think I rode down it yesterday and back up it was one achievement I will remember for quite some time.

So the tents up now and it’s time to for a walk with Rodney and Luke back up the road for a nice Pepsi in the local hotel which overlooks the mighty Gorge.With vultures and eagles soaring overhead it’s moments like these that make all that hard riding sort of worth it. 

The only thing to do now is head back to my tent, have some dinner, do a bit of reading and hit the sack.  Tomorrow is another 90km ride into the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa.  Until tomorrow, good health to everyone back home.

21^st February 2011. Blue Nile Gorge Camp to the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. 105kms.

Illawarra, Spearman Cycles.  Spearman cycles of Figtree New South Wales are the cycle store which donated a bicycle for my fundraising night last month and provided some excellent clothing to wear along the way to Cape town. 

To David and his excellent team of professionals, I am truly indebted to you and the gang for your friendship and generous support of eXsight Tandems and visually impaired cyclists.

To get out of your tent at 6am, (still too early for me) and watch the sun light the walls of the Blue Nile Gorge is amazing.  I hope the photos do justice to this incredible sight.  We hit the road at 7am for the ride which were told would end up at the 92km mark, then a convoy would be formed for the final 13km down into the heart of Addis Ababa.

The first part of the day was like usual, bloody uphill.  The camp site of last night was at 2540metres above sea level.  Addis Ababa is at 2800 metres so today we had more climbing.  The first 25kms was rolling hills to our first coffee break.  We were in no rush today because we had to regroup at the convoy mark of 92kms, so going fast and not stopping would just mean you had to wait longer for everyone to get together later in the day.  Rodney and I stayed at the first coffee stop for about 30mins drinking coffee, tea and eating far too many biscuits.  Again watched by a hundred kids who should be at school and doing something constructive with their lives.  School is free in Ethiopia, so there’s no excuse, before you start criticising my views.

We rode onto lunch at the 64km mark, which was a fantastic ride.  We had a beautiful sunny day, slight breeze, not a cloud in the sky and not too hot.  Again it was another day of kids throwing stones, and yelling out the same crap all day.  The rolling hills got longer and breathing was getting harder.  To all the cyclists who think I sit on all the time, NOT, I actually led the bunch up many hills today and they went for at least 5kms each.  

We did get to see a man dead on the side of the road near the town with some cloth over his head and people standing around.  I suppose that’s Africa.  We made it to the convoy mark at 1.30pm and waited ½ an hour for the remainder to arrive.  The convoy is fun but oh boy is it slow. 

We rolled down hill into the mayhem of capital with intersections being closed as 70 cyclists and 3 huge trucks and support vehicles rolled into town and cause havoc to the local car/bus/truck drivers.    I don’t really care how much of a delay we caused, the need to get this show into town without being killed by the idiot impatience Ethiopian driver is not a matter I concern myself with.  

We got to the Guennet Hotel where many of the cyclists pitched their tents while Rodney and I got our gear together and headed off to the Hilton. See, Rodney use to be the General Manager of the Hilton and because he’s retired now, he gets a special rate.  So I’m staying at the Hilton in one of the most exclusive hotels in all of Africa for $65 per night.  Plus, yes there’s more, Rodney got us access to the Executive lounge.  This entitles us to free alcohol, food, anything we want.  It’s on the 12^th floor of the Hilton overlooking the swimming pool (which happens to be heated) and the entire city.  It’s similar to the lounge at the airport, but in this case I’m getting it for free.  I’m so glad not to be sleeping in my stinking tent.

So, I’m really enjoying having cycled over 4300kms since the tour began and taking the opportunity to spoil myself.  We pigged out in the executive lounge and will be having breakfast there tomorrow morning before we head out to see some of the sites of the capital of Ethiopia.The afternoon will be spent sitting around the pool, sunning my thinning ass.