Gael warning in the Congo

Somewhere nice to leave! Some nice dusty wee towns to come as you head south and west
 
Cheers all

Actually hard to leave after this sunset
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Kit and I made progress yesterday and this morning (we cracked off at 2 as it was rather warm)
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I now understand Afrikaans perfectly
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The GS is running well at 110/120 kmh on a diet of butterflies
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The right side of the picture is Angola, whilst the left bank is Namibia.


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Just be aware this next post is mainly about bikes, has no pretty animal pictures and has lots of text.

As I'm resting up for a couple of days and the trip is winding down, at least for me, and this is mainly a biking forum, I thought I'd share my reflections of riding a small bike in Africa. The idea of flying in and buying a local bike is an idea Simon and I have flirted with over the last year or so, on his return trips to UK. He'd done a bit of research in Cameroon and in Congo to establish that a new bike could be bought for under a £1,000. This of course was just the first bit of information, the registering of the bike for a foreigner, taking it through borders and the practicality of riding one of these small bikes on a long distance tour on African roads were all uncertain. My life was already busy at the end of 2018 and the fact that I had a short time to decide to join Simon in Congo, did not allow me to dwell too long on the possible difficulties. Simon and I have a shared view that difficulties are part of an adventure and the challenge is finding a solution. In the end I thought, how often does someone come up to you and suggest flying down to Congo with them, picking up a bike, crossing the Congo river in a boat(bike) and plane(us) and riding through Angola, Namibia, Botswana and maybe South Africa, so I went for it. While the challenge for me, with much assistance from Simon with his contacts and excellent French, was to first get a bike. We also had the fact that Simon's bike was not running well and needed some new parts and some TLC, to get it to Namibia to allow Kit to join us as a pillion on the GS in Windhoek and to allow Simon to complete his north to south Africa trip. So we flew into Congo knowing we would have to work as a team to be able to jointly complete the trip with our respective bikes.


I've documented earlier the practical choice of bikes I had in Pointe Noire, Congo and after riding this bike for over 6,000kms I'm pleased with the choice I made, of this little 125 Suzuki. Of course I'd like it to be faster and there are times, mostly on the good roads of Namibia and some in Botswana when I feel it is not the ideal partner for someone on a 1150GS, but mostly we have managed. I was fortunate in Pointe Noire that the Suzuki dealer was doing a special deal on these bikes as the equilivant Yamaha model was 3 times as much, and would have been too expensive. I would then have to have to have bought the Bajaj model, made in India, which may have been OK too but less sophisticated and perhaps had inferior build quality. So the Suzuki it was and at its heart is a sweet and so far reliable4 stroke engine. All the electrics have also been faultless despite some days of torrential rain. The bike has carried its load with ease, dispite some challenging roads in Angola and here in Botswana. Even the road tyres have provided enough traction to pull me through some mud and deep waterholes. One area which has suffered is the chain which is now stretching. It would benefit from having a DID internally lubricated chain fitted, similar to the one I have used on my xCountry 650 on previous long trips. If I return to ride the bike again down here, I'll have one of these chains fitted.


So what's it been like riding down here? To be fair the roads have been better than I expected but that was influenced by our choosing tarmac roads in the main. Some of the roads in Angola are now excellent but some are still under construction and the deviations around the construction are awful and no fun on a little road bike. In fact a small and light road bike is easier to manage than a heavier road bike and I feel more confident on the little Suzuki on rough ground than on my xCountry. The stretch in Angola where we were in a divation for around 30km was a nightmare for me, with a mixture of graven, boulders and occasionally sand, but the bike coped, I didn't drop it. In Namibia we met some German bikers on hired bikes who scoffed at my little Suzuki. The guy boasted at having a BMW 1200GS Adventure back in his garage. The point he missed was that the Suzuki was an 'adventure' bike, it was a motorbike been ridden on an adventure here in Africa, not sitting back in Europe in a garage.


One feature of roads here is that the tarmac break up causing massive and extensive potholes. I know we have potholes in UK too but here the potholes can be all over the surface of the road. Bikes can negotiate these patches of potholes better than cars, as we can seek a path through the holes remaining in narrow strips of tarmac. Seeking a safe route through the potholes can involve long stretches on the other carriageway if that provides an easier path. Of course oncoming traffic can adopt the same approach, so some understanding and courtesy is needed to pass safely. Courtacy is not the essential ingredient where oncoming lorry's and coaches are concerned, because they chose their path and you better get out of the way. The little Suzuki is a nimble bike and this is an advantage with finding a way through potholes. However I have to be careful not to get too confident because if you approach too fast, believing there is a safe route to find, well, sometimes there isn't and heavy braking is required. This kind of riding through potholes can be fun but not at the end of a trying day, like yesterday.


So in summary, if you are tempted to fly somewhere and buy or hire a small bike for a trip, give it a go! It its worked for me so far.

A bit indulgent maybe, but the photos remind me of the experiences this bike has allowed me in the last few weeks. Not an adventure bike, piffle!
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Nice write up and seems a good choice of bike. As you say, it is an adventure bike because it has taken you on an adventure, not just to Tesco.

Are there restrictions on being able to import it and sell it in Namibia or South Africa?
 
Nicely summed up, Jim, and it has been great to travel together.

Kit and I are now by the coast at Swakopmund again after a long hot haul from the Zimbabwe side of Botswana 2 1/2 days ago!

Odd to be in Germany's most southern Baltic Sea resort (as it is sometimes jokingly described!).

But it's low season and everyone is very relaxants chilled (as is the sea wateudue to the Benguela current).

Realised the muddy sight glass of the GS obscured a shortage of oil! Running at 120/130 kmh in this heat does seem to use a little oil.

The excellent Yamaha shop here gifted me a half full container of 15:50
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which has for me back to a respectable level before I do an oil change in Windhoek in a week's time or so
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This should be the theme picture for the day
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as there were.a.lot around and they merge into the background well donate hard to spot until one of them makes a run for it

It was extremely warm through the impressive desert
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But now by the seaside and enjoying the view
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Tomorrow off.intontje dunes.to Sandwich Harbour...but in a 4WD rather than.on a Bavarian tractor!


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Northern Jock: Jim and I believe (having spoken to our excellent agent) that because we have paid duty to temporarily import our bikes, they could be sold with little extra cost.

So time to make us a bid!


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Both the Moto and I are looking a little scruffy by now
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So the dreaded razor may have to emerge (and not for the bike, although it probably needs a good clean too!)
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Many years ago I was on that pier on a very hot day, just arrived after climbing the Spitzkop and the water looked inviting so I jumped in at the far end of it. It was bloody freezing, but with no ladders back on I had to swim all the way in. Took a while to warm up, it just seemed reasonable to assume the sea would be warm.
 
Like me, you were away the day they did the Benguela Current in geography class


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We are staying a few days in Swakopmund so won't bore you with tourist pictures of the fabulous Namib desert, other thanks thèse 2:
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The transparent palmate gecko

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My pillion on the dunes



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Just to keep up on the bike riding...
A few days ago I left Kasane, in the North-east of Botswana and began retracing my steps. My destination was Maun, near the Okovango Delta, where I'd stayed before. I'd taken 3 days to reach Kasane but hoped to do the return journey, 630km in one hop, as accommodation en route was pretty average.

As I finished breakfast in Kasane, the waitresses asked where I was going and when I told them they looked surprised and asked if I was not afraid of the lions. I had seen many elephants on the way here and thought probably other animals were in this park, but had not seriously thought about lions, till then. Thanks ladies

With the thought of lions in my head, I wasn't delighted that the rains had caused the grass to shoot up on the side of the road in places. Comfort breaks would need to be taken with some care as I was on my own. There were a few distractions on the way with people off to work in the field, some wonderful trees, horseback riders and of course elephants. The bike was running well, with no headwind and cruising at 85kph was no problem. The temperature in the morning was fine but it got hot from midday on. Reaching Maun at around 5:30 was a relief. This was the longest day I did on the little bike and it coped well.
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A couple of things to mention about the route. There were patches of potholes and portions of the road where the surface had been worn away with floods. The worn sections west of Nata were not as bad as we feared and quite negotiable. However the pothole sections on the Nata to Maun road needed to be taken with care, as the potholes were deep and quite extensive. Work was going on to resurface the road so things may improve.

The other bit of information is that the Gweta petrol station did not have petrol this time. It had some a week ago but had run out. So this station can not be relied on and make sure this is taken into account when riding this route. I used the stop at Gweta for a chain adjustment and a cold drink stop in the shade.
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My destination at Maun was the Backpackers Camp, near the old Bridge. I'd stayed here before and thought it would be a good place to rest up. It is on the river, has good en-suite tents, good food that is not expensive and a relaxed atmosphere. The wildlife is pretty good too.

Here we have a couple of photos of a pied Kingfisher, a diver that's just caught a fish, a Jacana or Jesus bird(cos it walked on water, or lillies). Then three photos of a crocodile who came up the river yesterday afternoon, and caused a stir, even with the locals. I'd seen hippos in the river here but this was the first crocodile. He went towards the Ibis, as if to attack but moved on. Later he climbed out about 50 meters from the bar/restaurant area and then we could see how large he was, about 3 meters.
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