Illeret - Sibiloi National Park (13.116 km)

dejavu

ditto

tough tough rock fields

feeling so free

crossing a river bed

40litre of gas. 15 litres of water. food, all our usual baggage as well. it was like riding a harle davidson on the worst road imaginable.
arriving at lake turkana. what a sense of freedom.
nice tracks. murder for the bikes
this was that killer hill that made me age 10 years in 10 minutes.
absolutely exhausted

Mercoledi 30/01/2008 ci siamo avviati verso est per raggiungere la strada che taglia a sud attraverso il Sibiloi National Park. 20 km prima del bivio abbiamo incontrato una pattuglia del “Kenya wild life Reserve” che ci ha avvisato della presenza di 150 uomini armati a circa 30 km di distanza che marciavano verso di noi e che ci sarebbe stato un imminente conflitto a fuoco con le pattuglie militari kenyane che gli stavano dando la caccia. Dal momento che un’ora prima erano stati avvistati a circa 15 km a est del bivio che avremmo dovuto prendere Tom, Veysel ed io abbiamo deciso di proseguire confidando nel fatto di riuscire a raggiungere la deviazione verso sud prima di loro ed evitare quindi qualsiasi tipo di contatto. George e Robin invece hanno preferito tornare indietro.

Fortunatamente i nostri calcoli si sono rivelati esatti e siamo riusciti a raggiungere la strada senza effettuare alcun incontro spiacevole. Tuttavia l’eccessivo carico sulla moto, il manubrio storto, le pessime condizioni del terreno ed il caldo soffocante sono stati fatali e mi hanno procurato fortissimi crampi addominali e dolori insopportabili di ogni tipo costringendomi a fermarmi. Devo ringraziare Tom e Veysel per tutto l’aiuto che mi hanno dato in quella difficile situazione. Quella sera ci siamo accampati (N 03 52,815’ E 36 19,570’) osservando il sole che qui al tramonto e’ enorme e di un colore rosso fuoco.

Colonna sonora: “Here comes the sun” The Beatles

we started the day off quite slowly. we had to find a way to pack all that fuel, water and food onto our already loaded up bikes. we had these 1959 military metal jerry cans (bought in addis abab). indestructable things. weighed a ton but you could dop it off a 4 story building and they wouldnt break. so we started off quite late. about 3okm into the ride we came across a patrol veichle. they told us that 40 clicks south were 150 heavily armed men walking south east. shizen! the group split up. tom, veysl and matteo wanted to risk it. george and i didnt. so we hit the coastal road. the infamously tough coastal road. we road about 15km that day and i tell you it was the toughest day of my life. we hit some foot deep sand to start off with. i break my gear lever. so now i can only ride in first gear. nice start. then we hit the rock fields. the track gives way to the biggest rocks ive ever seen. and now we have to ride a 300 kilo bike over this stuff! are you kidding me! id ride literally 3 metres then fall over. pick it up (which is a 15 minute ordeal and absolutely destroys you physically. add 40 degree heat and full bike gear - hell on earth). 3 metres later i would fall down again. repeat 20 times then duly give up. i saw white, couldnt stand up straight. i was suffering from mild sunstroke. we slept under a tauphalin for the rest of the day to gather strength. we then tried to ride back to the barracks. aboslute hell. i couldnt even keep the bike upright. we would ride 100metres and stop because we were out of breath. i fell down numerous times again and at one point i just couldnt any longer. i fell over and collapsed on a thorn patch. i was so exhausted that i didnt move from there. we eventually arrived back at the barracks and i went straight to bed. i couldnt stand up striahgt from stomach pain and i was suffering from sunstroke and dehydration. it was the hardest day of my life. the next morning we awoke at 05.00. hit the road. we did the first 100km before lunch. really fast. the road was super tough. large rocks and deep sand again. but we made good time. we had to stop every 5km or so to look out for bandits. it was a bit nerve racking being out there on that bad stretch. but by lunch we had re-united with the rest of the team and we made a great bushcamp on an oasis with palm trees! what a great place to spend the night!

Turmi - Illeret (13.033 km)

tells a tale doesnt itletting the tyre pressure down for the thick sand
the border post out of ethiopia was a shack in the middle of nowhere at the border post. our entourage + support vehicle our first nights camp in kenya. we slept at a barracks. such wonderful policemen. so hospitable. arriving at lake turkana

we started off the ride quite early in the morning. we got all our fuel (200litres of it!) enough water for a week and food. the road just went from really bad offroad to camel tracks. i really felt like we were entering africa that day. ethiopia is still very much arab africa. kenya is the real deal. the ride was lovely. lots of sand and accacia trees and the border post was a little shack in the middle of nowhere. this is bandit country now. so we had to awares. we hit lake turkana in the afternoon and all 5 of us road off into the nothing to reach the lake. i had such a sense of freedom doing that. just riding over the countryside. no tracks nothing. just over whatever was in our way. we hit the lake and payed with the children in the water. there were dows and fisherman. it was a wonderful arrival. we hit illiret that evening and were immediatly offered beers by the local policeman. 'welcome to kenya!' we slept that night in the barracks with the armed forces. theyre stationed there in order to fight off the bandits that steal all the cattle in the area. such lovely people. its so nice to have a decent conversation. kenyans speak such good enlgish. these guys stationed out here have a very hard life. going home every 6 months to visit there families. some of the die out here fighting these bandits. so its hard and made me think how simple and uncomplicated my life was. we are so very lucky and we forget that.

Martedi 29/01/2008 siamo andati verso la frontiera con il Kenya attraverso la strada che costeggia la sponda orientale del lago Turkana. Qui inizia una delle zone piu’ inospitali ed inaccessibili dell’Africa ricoperta da tantissima sabbia e grandi rocce. Alla frontiera i militari keniani hanno fermato il 4x4 impedendogli di proseguire oltre, cosi’ abbiamo dovuto scaricare tutta la benzina e le provviste che avevamo raccolto.

La notte ci siamo accampati vicino alla capanna della caserma (N 04 18,751’ E 36 13,641’) dove i militari ci hanno fatto compagnia aiutandoci ad accendere il fuoco e prestandoci alcune pentole per cucinare. E’ stato proprio un bel benvenuto in Kenya.

Colonna sonora: “Think” Aretha Franklin

Weyto - Turmi (12.850 km)

lovely scenery here

thought id try and fit in you know
having a wash. what fun!
the team planning our lake turkana mission. getting some good info from locals

Domenica 27/01/2008 siamo tornati a Weyto per recuperare le motociclette che avevamo lasciato alla piccola stazione di polizia del villaggio. Da li’ ci siamo avviati verso Turmi lungo una strada piuttosto sabbiosa. Purtroppo un po’ ingenuamente mi sono messo ad effettuare alcune riprese in movimento e la tracolla della videocamera si e’ impigliata nel casco fancendomi cadere su alcune rocce. Io non mi sono fatto praticamente nulla, anche se ho impiegato 10 minuti per liberare la gamba sinistra che era rimasta incastrata sotto la moto in mezzo a due rocce. Pero’ la videocamera e la leva del cambio si sono rotte. Ma la cosa piu’ grave e’ che si e’ piegato il manubrio, cosi’ dovro’ fare i 1.000 km piu’ impegnativi di tutto il viaggio con il manubrio completamente storto.
Gli ultimi 50 km per arrivare a Turmi (N 04 58,070’ E 36 29,454’) li ho dovuti fare spostando quello che rimaneva della leva del cambio con la mano sinistra.Verso sera ci hanno raggiunto anche George e Veysel che verranno insieme a noi in Kenya attraverso il lago Turkana.
Il giorno dopo siamo stati invitati tutti quanti in un villaggio Hamer per assistere ad una cerimonia di matrimonio: le donne non sposate si fanno flagellare dai giovani del villaggio per dimostrare la loro resistenza e capacita’ di devozione, mentre il promesso sposo deve affrontare una prova di coraggio saltando per sette volte consecutive sopra sette tori.
Colonna sonora: “No Matter” Jack Radics

We left our bikes at a police station for 3 days whilst we visited the Omo valley. and came back to collect them in the morning. the ride was a pretty easy one a part from matteo wiping out whilst filming something. apparently it was a very hard crash. he split a rock open with his helmet, busted the video camera, twisted his handlebars and wrecked levers left right and centre. its not a joke out here, and were being constantly reminded of the dangers that we are facing daily here. we arrived at Turmi. our last ethiopian town before hitting kenya's infamous lake turkana. iwe spent many hours planning our route there and talking to locals. trung to understand were the water and gas was positioned on the ruote. we stayed in a lovely campsite near a dry river bed with a water pump. there were many hamer villages in the area and they came in droves to fetch water. i had a bath under the pump which was fun. it was just lovely relaxing there. all our biker buddies rocked up and the place felt like home. i painted a frescoe on a mud wall with this hamer kid. spent a lovely afternoon with him. had to make the paintbrushes out of sticks by chewing on them for hours.

Omo Valley

The omo valley is one of those special places in the world. a place that kind of got forgotten whilst the rest of the world was thinking about things too much. the valley is host to a number of tribes, the principle ones being the Hamer and Mursi. they are everywhere and all you have to do it ride down the road and stop. they come. they stare and we all laugh. i can just imagine them chatting over a hot cuppa cows blood later that evening ' so there we were, herding some goats when these two red ufos came along. they stopped. took off their helmets and they were white! with this funny hair on their face. and my gawd did they smell!!!'. we are literally aliens for them. there is very little we have in common and its just and incredible experience to be there with them. these guys live in huts, they herd goats. theyve probable never walked further than 30 km from their village. live is very simple. they paint themselves with body paint which turns it into a really surreal experience. we stayed there for about 5 days cruising around all the villages. the Mursi (lip people) have these huge lip plates. these guys were super agressive with us, we had to be escorted by a scout. all of them were swingin ak47's and machettes. we got off the bikes and they would tug us, pull us and krikey... i felt like we were being accosted by them. took lots of photos and did a drawing of one kid. it got a bit sickening after a while as just by being there we felt that we were playing a part in killing this culture. so we left. the day after we visited the market. were all the tribes come together to sell and swop their wares to the other tribes. its the best place to view all of them together. and again its very surreal. everyone is practically naked, wearing goatskins and donning red die in their hair... at one point i was feeling pretty left out! mental note to everyone that reads this blog: this is a place to visit in your lifetime. go soon, their beautiful culture is vanishing as we speak.

Nella Omo Valley si possono incontrare diverse tribu’ indigene. Ognuna con differenti caratteristiche ed abitudini. Venerdi 24/01/2008 siamo andati in un villaggio Mursi. Le donne usano portare un piattello labiale alla bocca, mentre gli uomini decorano il proprio corpo con cicatrici procurate ad arte. Visitare quel villaggio e’ stata sicuramente un’esperienza particolare. Ci vuole un po’ di tempo per superare quella sensazione di disagio che si prova quando ci si trova in mezzo a tanta gente cosi’ diversa. Ma la cosa piu’ strana e’ che tutte queste persone apparentemente semplici e genuine hanno sviluppato un fortissimo senso del denaro. Appena arrivati il capo villaggio pretende di incassare 100 birr come “tassa d’ingresso” e poi si viene letteralmente assaliti da tutti i componenti della tribu’ che cercano in tutti i modi di convincerti a farsi scattare una fotografia in cambio di un po’ di soldi. Non e’ sicuramente una situazione piacevole. Da una parte a causa dell’aggressivita’ delle persone e dall’altra per il fatto che ci si trova costretti a scegliere solo alcune persone da fotografare dovendo rifiutare tutte le altre richieste.

Colonna sonora: “Hop, Hop, Hop” Goran Bregovic

Arba Minch - Weyto (12.719 km)

Giovedi 23/01/2008 abbiamo assistito all’ennesimo drastico cambiamento. Entrando nella Valle dell’Omo, la zona sudoccidentale dell’Etiopia, la vegetazione inizia ad infittirsi e cambiano anche i tratti somatici delle persone. Fa impressione vedere quanta gente si puo’ incontrare in giro da queste parti e ci vuole un po’ di tempo per abituarsi all’idea che qui tutti portano con se un machete o un kalashnikov. La strada che porta a Weyto e’ sterrata, ma per la maggiorparte in ottime condizioni. Tuttavia ogni tanto ci si puo’ imbattere all’improvviso in tratti di sabbia profonda che rendono il tragitto molto pericoloso. Uno di questi e’ stato fatale per Robin che e’ caduto rovinosamente rompendo la leva del cambio, il manubrio ed il cruscotto della moto. Fortunatamente lui se le cavata con qualche graffio ed un gran bel livido sul fianco. Mentre riparavamo la moto siamo stati raggiunti da Werner e Tom che ci hanno aspettato ed hanno fatto con noi l’ultimo tratto di strada fino a Weyto (N 05 22,383’ E 36 59,609’). Colonna sonora: “Jungle Boogie” Kool & The Gang

started off the morning nicely by having a massive wipeout. and we got in all on film as well! krikey it was a big wake up call. we ride every day and have near misses often. after a while you get a sense of being slightly immortal out there and you forget your circumstances. so getting bitten is very important, shaking you back to your senses again. i was going up a small hill,too hot on the gas. the road had a huge ditch covered in powdery sand. my front went down and i went over. very simple. it hurt like hell and i realy buggered up the bike. bent handlebars, broken levers all round. serious gash on my hip bone and just generally really shaken up. tome and werner arrived shortly after, dishing out some tlc. we carried on moving and it turned out to be a fantastic ride. we descended into the Omo valley. dropping in altitude and into the heat. the place is just awesome. we stopped regularly to just gawk at the view . i had a little sob in my helmet at one viewing point. its strange i know but sometimes out there you see things so beautiful that they touch a little place deep inside of you. i immediatley thought of the people i love and tears came flooding. its a wonderful emotion and not very manly so ill stop here. i had another realization whilst riding around 16.00. i was alone, on my pegs, riding under the accacia trees, i felt the hot air moving through my jacket and around my arms and waist. and i was feeling so content and serene. i was so happy to be there, at that point in time, and above all, to be me. there.

Awasa - Arba Minch (12.555 km)

Mercoledi 22/01/2008 ci siamo svegliati presto per arrivare in tempo a visitare il parco nazionale di Nechisar, ma dopo un centinaio di metri ci siamo dovuti fermare per 2 ore per sistemare il cavalletto laterale della moto di Robin. Verso le 4 di pomeriggio siamo arrivati al Bakele Mola Hotel di Arba Minch (N 06 00,309’ E 37 33,106’) ed abbiamo fatto appena in tempo per effettuare un giro in barca sul lago Chamo dove abbiamo potuto vedere alcuni ippopotami e tantissimi coccodrilli, molti dei quali lunghi piu’ di 6 metri! Colonna sonora: “Regina del Florida” Vinicio Capossela.

its was wednesday and we awoke early to get a good days riding in. my fabulous sidestand broke off practically around 09.00. and as i couldnt put the bike down i had to redrill it on the spot and sort it out straight away. bush mechanics are fantastic, they are complete hackers but the get the job done i tell you. so our little convoy split up and i found myself travelling alone to abra minch. it was a wonderful solo ride. every now and again its fantastic to go alone. to follow your own instincts and go where your heart tells you. in a group its all about compromise. so i had a wonderful time singing to myself in my helmet and having a ball of a time. the ride was long and the road was very bad. huge potholes everywhere on some fast stretches. i was up on the pegs swerving left and right the whole day. some fantastic scenery the whole day and the land was rich and furtile. banana trees everywhere. i stopped to take a photo and this guy with a machette asks me for money. mmmmm.... then i look down in his other hand and hes holding two of motorolas latest model cell phones! bugger you matei told him, panga and all. ethiopians expect you to give. its a real shame, one gets the feeling that they've received too much aid in the past.

Addis Abeba - Awasa (12.247 km)

Martedi 22/01/2008 siamo finalmente riusciti a partire da Addis Abeba. E’ bastato rimettermi in sella alla Multistrada per ritrovare il buon umore che avevo perso qualche giorno prima un po’ a causa della febbre che mi aveva debilitato per 4 giorni, un po’ a causa dello stress a cui si e’ sottoposti quando in questi posti si cerca di organizzare anche la piu’ semplice delle cose. Sono contento anche perche’ e’ venuto a trovarci un amico e potremo cosi’ passare un po’ di tempo insieme e condividere parte di questa stupenda avventura. Lui ha deciso di affittare un 4x4 ed accompagnarci fino al confine con il Kenya, cosi’ noi abbiamo approfittato dell’occasione per caricare sul fuoristrada tutte le provviste e la benzina che ci sarebbero servite per affrontare la parte piu’ impegnativa di tutto il viaggio: il lago Turkana!

Verso sera siamo arrivati ad Awasa ed abbiamo dormito tutti alla Roman Pension (N 07 02,778’ E 38 29,250’).Colonna sonora: “Father and son” Cat Stevens

Well we finally made it out of addis abeba alive. it had been a hard 2 weeks of fruit smoothies and club sandwiches. our spare parts arrived from ducati and we were as happy as bob marley in a donut shop. matteos friend arrived to follow us for 2 weeks. he hired a 4x4 which would give us some valuable support on the road to lake turkana. supplying us with food, water and enough petrol to get us through one of the remotest places in africa. organizing the 4x4 was probably harder than riding lake turkana in itself. the ride down was fast, we had good tarmac and it was wonderful to be on the move again and back on the bikes. its funny but when your on a bike trip you cant stay put for long, you have this inner urge to keep moving. and when you finally do everything feels so right.

Bike Maintenance Addis Abeba

Finalmente il tanto sospirato, agognato, desiderato pacco della Ducati, dopo aver attraversato il mediterraneo, fatto una sosta di un mese all’ombra delle piramidi e una visita improvvisata a Nairobi, ci ha raggiunto ad Addis Abeba. Praticamente senza neanche togliere la carta d’imballo abbiamo subito montato le due nuove ruote posteriori e cambiato il filtro dell’aria. Abbiamo invece conservato i filtri dell’olio, i kit di trasmissione e le leve di ricambio prevedendo di cambiarle in un secondo momento.

Le ruote anteriori sembrano ancora in buone condizioni e prevediamo di sostituirle dopo altri 6/7 mila chilometri, quando arrivera’ nuovamente il momento di cambiare quelle posteriori. Da un controllo generale alla ciclistica ed al motore sembra tutto in perfetto stato. Siamo veramente piu’ che soddisfatti del rendimento delle nostre Multistrada. Finora non ci hanno dato alcun problema, a differenza di molte altre moto di alcuni nostri compagni di viaggio, ed il loro rendimento e’ stato eccezzionale.

Colonna sonora: “Freedom rider” Traffic