GSLaaitie
Race Dog
Day 10
Day 10 was to be a quiet day of rest next to the Luangwa River, watching wildlife and giving our bikes a well-deserved rest. The rain on our last rest day in Malawi hindered our laundry plans and we now finally had the chance to drain some dust from our clothes.
How domesticated am I?
We were unsure as to what route we would take the next day. Our plan initially was to keep following the river south until we met up with the main Chipata-Lusaka road, but our warning of thick Mozambique-type sand on this road made us uncomfortable to do this with our loaded bikes right next to the park. This Luangwa River is the border of the South Luangwa park meaning that anything in the park could very easily also be on our side of the river and I had promised my mother that I’d minimize my risk of being trampled by elephants this year… So we decided to take the larger roads down and not have any fun.
After a good breakfast at the pub, we took our bikes back to the town to quickly stock up on beer. Dawie mentioned that while we are on the bikes on a rest day, we might as well just recce the original route next to the river without our luggage and just check it out.
Local market, next to the park
40kms into our recce, we were having a great time playing in the narrow roads in the bush! The day was nearing an end and we had to turn around, but we were without doubt returning the next day to finish this road! This track was a lot of fun!
Some dry river crossings and rocky sections provided great fun
The track had many sandy sections, but not enough to keep us away!
Finding a deserted old campsite
There is no shortage of elephants here
Close call from not focussing on the road ahead!
Dawie gunning it on the loose top
Nearly getting used to seeing elephants
Upon our return to camp, we were informed that a parade of elephants had made their way through our camp, but luckily didn’t try to break into anything for food. A month ago the main bull had flipped a GP Fortuner for a can of fruit.
We had a burger each at the pub and started a fire at the camp. There will always just be something about sitting next to a river or dam with a fire under the clear sky’s stars chatting with a good friend.
Watching t.v. in the bush
Suddenly, we heard a commotion in the dark, behind the bikes. The parade of elephants was on its way back to the park. Nonchalantly, they walked past our tents, sniffing at our bags. One stopped on tried to open my top box with its foot. I don’t believe that there are many top boxes on the road now with scratch marks from an elephant’s foot!
“Ah, an elephant. Let’s piss it off with a bright flash of light!”
Luckily he couldn’t get the box (bottom right) open and I still had food for the rest of my trip
We went to bed late into the night, after realizing that we had spent most of our last rest day riding our bikes! It may be possible that we suffer from an addiction!
Costs for the day:
Camping: R140
Beer: R220 (R14 each)
Fuel: R376 (21l)
Dinner: R140
Distance travelled so far: 3314m
Day 10 was to be a quiet day of rest next to the Luangwa River, watching wildlife and giving our bikes a well-deserved rest. The rain on our last rest day in Malawi hindered our laundry plans and we now finally had the chance to drain some dust from our clothes.
How domesticated am I?
We were unsure as to what route we would take the next day. Our plan initially was to keep following the river south until we met up with the main Chipata-Lusaka road, but our warning of thick Mozambique-type sand on this road made us uncomfortable to do this with our loaded bikes right next to the park. This Luangwa River is the border of the South Luangwa park meaning that anything in the park could very easily also be on our side of the river and I had promised my mother that I’d minimize my risk of being trampled by elephants this year… So we decided to take the larger roads down and not have any fun.
After a good breakfast at the pub, we took our bikes back to the town to quickly stock up on beer. Dawie mentioned that while we are on the bikes on a rest day, we might as well just recce the original route next to the river without our luggage and just check it out.
Local market, next to the park
40kms into our recce, we were having a great time playing in the narrow roads in the bush! The day was nearing an end and we had to turn around, but we were without doubt returning the next day to finish this road! This track was a lot of fun!
Some dry river crossings and rocky sections provided great fun
The track had many sandy sections, but not enough to keep us away!
Finding a deserted old campsite
There is no shortage of elephants here
Close call from not focussing on the road ahead!
Dawie gunning it on the loose top
Nearly getting used to seeing elephants
Upon our return to camp, we were informed that a parade of elephants had made their way through our camp, but luckily didn’t try to break into anything for food. A month ago the main bull had flipped a GP Fortuner for a can of fruit.
We had a burger each at the pub and started a fire at the camp. There will always just be something about sitting next to a river or dam with a fire under the clear sky’s stars chatting with a good friend.
Watching t.v. in the bush
Suddenly, we heard a commotion in the dark, behind the bikes. The parade of elephants was on its way back to the park. Nonchalantly, they walked past our tents, sniffing at our bags. One stopped on tried to open my top box with its foot. I don’t believe that there are many top boxes on the road now with scratch marks from an elephant’s foot!
“Ah, an elephant. Let’s piss it off with a bright flash of light!”
Luckily he couldn’t get the box (bottom right) open and I still had food for the rest of my trip
We went to bed late into the night, after realizing that we had spent most of our last rest day riding our bikes! It may be possible that we suffer from an addiction!
Costs for the day:
Camping: R140
Beer: R220 (R14 each)
Fuel: R376 (21l)
Dinner: R140
Distance travelled so far: 3314m
