Take On Africa

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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 [...]

(Joliba Fila - Joliba meaning ‘Great River’ and Fila meaning ‘2′ in Manding)
Travels down the Niger River – 350km, Faranah to Kouroussa (Guinea)
6th - 22nd February 2010
The Idea
The idea of a boat trip came about during discussions with Lars, way back in the early days of cycling through the Western Sahara. Several long days riding [...]

Having spent nearly a week in the small but friendly town of Faranah in Guinea, we managed to get built a river-worthy wooden pirogue and buy suplies to keep us sustained for the two weeks it was expected to take to get to Kouroussa, the next place along the river…

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 [...]

I’m hoping to do a podcast interview with Brian in the coming months, but for now the internet connections in this part of West Africa are too slow.
So, for now, I’ve answered a few of his questions here over at his Korean World blog.
Below is a copy of the interview….
1. What is principle reason you [...]

This second part of the journey from Labe to Freetown, takes me from Kindia to the border with Sierra Leone, where I camped the night in No Man’s Land.
The final part of the journey, from the border to Freetown, I’ll post in a third update.
Sorry it’s taking so long – there are too many distractions [...]

This is the first of two updates about the journey from Labe in Guinea to Freetown in Sierra Leone. This part takes me as far as Kindia, where I had a short rest before continuing across the border.
Leaving Labe
We left Labe late in the afternoon having gorged on a cheap lunch of rice and a [...]

I’ve been on the road now for 6 months (I can hardly believe it!), so I thought it was time for a little update in numbers.
Total distance cycled: 9219 km
Days since leaving UK: 178
Countries visited: 10
Longest distance cycled in a day: 178 km (in Western Sahara)
Average daily distance: 52 km (incl. rest days)
Average daily distance: [...]

3 weeks, 4 countries, 7 boat rides, 1200km cycled.
There have been good days and bad days, the best days and worst ones. At times it’s been tough and tiring, and yes there have even been tears. At times it’s been thrilling and exciting, and I’ve thought I must be the luckiest person alive. All times [...]

Since my last update in Nouakchott, where I signed off at the point of disembarkation of the iron-ore train with decision to take a bush-taxi to Atar in the depths of the Mauritanian desert rather than cycle the 120km piste, so much has happened I don’t quite know where to begin or what to write [...]