Distance: 89.1 km
Ride time: 3:56:47
Average: 22.6 km/h
Max speed: 42.5 km/h
Total: 52087 km
A strong tail wind was blowing me along lake Ziway and lake Gelila towards the city of Mojo – yes, isn’t that a cool name? With the above average speed I thought I would arrive at my destination just after lunch. That was when I had my first flat tire…
Considering the questionable welcome I had received in the villages yesterday, I wasn’t too happy about stopping to fix my tire. It soon turned out that I had nothing to worry about. Sure enough, kids would soon appear from out of nowhere, but today they were as respectful as you can imagine, helping me holding the bike while putting the wheel back on, folding the used tube and so on. I almost couldn’t believe my eyes as those kids will probably throw stones at the next cyclist coming through… that just seems to be the thing you do?
The next bright moment was passing the 52.000 km mark. Those milestones always cheer me up.
I’m getting closer to the capital Addis Ababa. The villages are still poor, but today I passed a modern coffee shop that might as well have been in western Europe. It felt pretty strange to enjoy a coffee in there, thinking about the last weeks of cycling since I left Nairobi. The tribe country between Ethiopia and Kenya has been one of the most challenging but also most rewarding parts of Africa. Full on adventure…
Mojo is located at 1800 meters, and the altitude means plenty of rain. I was making my way through a hard shower before I found my hotel for the night. The northern part of Ethiopia will be even more wet – we are now in the middle of the rainy season.
After the challenging ride through this part of the country I’m looking much forward to a break in Addis Ababa. I should be able to make it there tomorrow afternoon.
Strange experience, with the kids not throwing rocks when you’re fixing your flat!