Take On Africa

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Below are three photographs showing all the gear and equipment I arrived in Africa with on my bike.
I have since got rid of the MSR stove and fuel bottle as I had problems with this and I forgot the bike helmet in Bissau (although I never actually strapped it on my head before then anyway).
Regarding [...]

Day 14: 19th Feb 2010
Fast rapids – Boat unload – Stuck! – Decision to quit in Kouroussa
It was a successful start to the day, with calm open water which Joliba II glided over with considerable ease.
Boosted by our progress and steady rhythmic paddling, when we heard the distinctive white water ahead and then saw the [...]

Day 11: Feb 16th 2010
Warthogs - Broken boat - Hippo encounter - Bush fire – Bat exodus – Uniformed and uninformed – Poacher or American?
A long, hard morning paddle – at least we were paddling and not pushing or dragging, but the wavelets on the river surface were tiresome. With the ripples lapping at [...]

Day 7: 12th Feb 2010
Ou tu vas comme ca? - Bee island - Frogs and splashes
Nearly a week into the trip, about 100km downstream of Faranah, getting close to the National Park and the number of people we are seeing has diminished – just the occasional onlooker from a riverbank and lone fishing boats. We [...]

Day 4: 9th Feb 2010
Quiet morning – shallow maze - near-disaster - crocodile island
Following a quiet morning on the river where progress was slow but steady, the afternoon brought with it a maze of rocks and shallow waters that slowed progress drastically. We would stop paddling and stand up to get a better view downstream, [...]

Day 1: 6th Feb 2010
Departure – 3 beers – Boh’s helping hand – will we make it to Bamako?
It’s Saturday in Faranah; our boat is built and afloat on the river, our belongings have been wrapped and packaged in plastic bags ready for the trip, we have cycled into town for breakfast and bought [...]

We spent 15 days on the Niger river - that’s 14 nights camping in the ‘wild’. The last night, having arrived in Kouroussa, we were able to check into a hotel!
The photo slideshow includes a photo of every spot we stayed, except one night when I forgot to get my camera out. That night, we [...]

We expected it to take 10-14 days to paddle down the Niger River from Faranah to Kouroussa in Guinea. It took 15 long days. It was hard work and tough at times but great fun too and an amazing experience.
I will of course be writing a full update, but for now, here are some pictures [...]

Leaving Freetown
We had arrived in Freetown on the bustling streets of Kissy Road in the East End lined with stalls selling everything from second-hand shoes to fake Sony radios; and had navigated our way through the commercial district centred around the towering cotton tree, down along Congo Road and across the poor shanty district of [...]

And finally….the final part of the journey, from No Man’s Land to Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown.
Noises in the Night
Camped in No Man’s Land, I woke numerous times in the night to a rattling sound coming from underneath the tent, which seemed to come from the left of my head one moment and then further to [...]