I had an early start as I wanted to clean Nigel and get going and preferably avoid the lad from last night. I knew today would be tough going. Physically because of the blue Nile Gorge and if yesterday was just the beginning of the kids and villagers then I would have to put an effort in of epic proportions mentally if I was going to survive with a smile intact.
The realisation of how hard the terrain was going to be was evident from the off. The gorge was more like a "w" cross section. I had to climb one side, cycle down into the gorge and then climb the other side. The second I was down a slope I had to go back up and there wasn't any flats to get your breathe back. Breathe was something that was fast disappearing as well as the air became thinner and thinner and i found myself putting in my greatest efforts but covering very little ground. The views were unbelievable though and as eagles soared overhead there was no denying that this area of Ethiopia is simply beautiful.
I had had no breakfast and no dinner previous and with no water and no real village to get some, my body became drained very quickly. The first 4 hours of the day saw me climbing constantly as the downhill parts lasted just seconds. After a back straining, energy sapping 4 hours I only managed 30 miles. It's been a while since the Alps but considering my lack of energy, lack of oxygen and temperature, I would say this was the toughest cycling I've done.
I could see the top of the gorge where I knew it eased off into a plateau. A boy decided to walk alongside me from one of the cliff edge villages. He had a speech impediment so I couldn't catch his name properly but it sounded like "marble arch" he must've walked with me as my dying legs rotated for about 5km up a constant incline. He asked me questions as he spoke pretty good English and as hard it was to talk and reply and sometimes repeat myself to him, he actually helped me to keep going. I stopped twice to sit down for a minute and he would sit next to me. "How far till drink?" "How far till food?" I would mumble exhaustedly as I struggled to hold my head up. This was crazy, the role reversal of the begging white man to the small African boy, I felt pathetic but it gives you an idea of the terrible state I was in. The Blue Nile Gorge and all the varying aspects had broken me down and yet again in Africa I found myself with a huge struggle on my hands to keep going.
At the top the road wasn't exactly flat but it eased off so I could get some momentum. I couldn't keep going at walking pace for Marblearch so I said I would stop for him at the nearest village. I had to find something to drink asap and luckily the next village where i stopped was not too far. Two bottles of water bought and I lay passed out outside a pool house and tea room. I lay there for a good half an hour as people walking down the street just stopped and stared at the dead white man. I never saw Marblearch again which I was gutted about. I wanted to buy him something but maybe he missed me through the crowd of people.
I summoned enough strength to get up and sit in the tea room (someone's lounge) where there were some guys playing checkers with bottle tops. I had some injera but this was not as good as yesterday. They gave me warm sweet milk that tasted so different to it smelt. The smell could turn your stomach before hits your lips as it reminds me of a bizarre combination of peanut butter and sausage. Its not the clean semi skimmed type of milk I'm used to back home but the taste is nice and I was in no real state to be fussy. I did have to draw a line at the sour curdled milk product mixed with spicy curry powder though. I ended up just eating plain bath mat and bread with a little green substance that tasted like wasabi.
The man at the tea room promised the road to Gondar would be "soft" I still had 40 miles to cycle but I figured I could do that in 3 hours if I had a flat plateau and it was only 1 o'clock so before I knew it I could be in a hotel drinking one of Ethiopia's finest beers!
This was a plan that would become merely a dream and I was about to experience something that body and mind would've strictly objected to if I had known previously what awaited me.
My body naturally recovers well so I was in top form as I left the tea room and felt energised thinking I had a flat road to Gondar. I flew through villages calling out to the locals, "heeeey" "you you you" and even sung through one of the towns. Fighting fire with fire was working, as I saw some kids pick up stones I would either blitz it past or give them an almighty high five but the majority of kids gave me nothing but amazing greetings. So far so good and not one stone had been thrown and spirits were flying high.
The landscape was breath taking in more ways than one and it started to rain as I cycled my way around a thunderstorm which was simply amazing. The fields and the colours were so varied but unfortunately so was the terrain and it was up and down again with nothing "soft" whatsoever about the remaining 40 miles.
It didn't take long for my body to die again and I found myself still with 20 miles of climbing to go. Realistically I should've taken two days to ride the 75 miles I had planned. The strains of the terrain and lack of oxygen alone were enough to break a person and then you had the constant effort of human interaction.
I would cycle through towns with one major street and bring everybody to a standstill. The early calls of "you, you, you" would alert the people further down and before I knew it I was being followed or "chased" by 10 to 15 kids through a packed town of hundreds of people just calling out things in Ethiopian. Just smile and keep going, just smile and keep going. I was so so tired and mentally battered the last thing I wanted was kids following me. They did though and with every hill there were another group of kids following.
I would have to weave and look back constantly to make sure they were just running behind and not preparing an air strike. It was like I was cycling the omnium event with no energy and huge inclines to fight against.
Time ticked on and it felt like I was making no ground. Inclines were steeper, slower and kids were more constant. "You you you's" turned to "money money money" and my spirits were getting whittled away second by second. I surprised myself, I was overcoming a barrier of mental strength that years ago I would've snapped after an hour or so. I eventually switched after 7 hours of physical and mental torture when a stone hit the bag on the back of Nigel.
"Nooooo" I let out a huge roar that when I turned around, stunned the 6 or 7 kids into silence. I turned back to carry on cycling and just prayed for Gondar. I had gone so far and for me today was a test that opened up the whole of Africa for me. It's strange to say but up until now I haven't been able to see past Kenya. Maybe this is because my mind has been focused on Christmas so much and I've struggle to see past that but I've not even thought about what it would be like to cycle Tanzania etc. Today was the day that broke down that barrier and opened me up to the belief I can do everything.
As always the blog doesn't do how I felt justice. Physically and mentally broken to pieces I somehow managed to carry on. I was not finished though, until I could relax on a bed I still had hills to climb, I still had villages to endure, i still had kids to somehow shake off and what happened next I have no way of planning for.
As I struggled up yet another endless hill a dog came sprinting out of the bushes in a rage similar to the ones in Europe. I had nothing left, a slight change of pace at most but this dog was not happy at all. I stuck out a foot to kick him away and I swerved dangerously across the road as he was barking ferociously. My shouts and kick didn't deter him at all and if anything made him angrier. I kicked out harder and in seconds he had sunk his teeth into the sole of my shoe. I felt the white daggers slide easily into the rubber just missing my foot. As I briefly shook him off a truck following behind me blasted his horns.
The noise startled the dog and he froze, I gladly powered on as much as I could and thanked the smiling driver with a thumbs up. If the truck hadn't of been there I am sure a hospital bed would've been the next bed I would've been relaxing on! Thankfully the dog only got my shoe and the adrenaline of quite possibly having teeth marks in my shoe to show for it pushed me on further.
The relief of still having both feet meant my switch of moods from the stone throwing only lasted about 5 minutes and I was happy again and making jokes with some of the better dressed, more educated locals that were making their way towards to Gondar. I could see big buildings, I could see a downhill slope, had I done it? Had I survived the toughest test of physical and mental endurance? Was this Gondar? I screamed with glee as I bombed it down the hill towards Gondar only to find I still had 5 more miles!! It was a town called Asizu but I didn't mind too much. If its too good to be true it normally is and I know its never over till that fat lady is hollering but at least I was in the mix of a town with no rabid dogs or mobs of kids.
I eventually made it as close to Gondar centre as I could be bothered to get to. I saw a hotel from the road and that was the one no matter how much it cost. It's hard to compare today with my three day desert effort but I think as far as diversity, today wins hands down. The desert I endured lack of water and heat but managed to finish the last day with energy. Today I was left with nothing. I had no energy, no care what the room looked like and no preference with what food or drink there was on offer, I was just happy I had done it.
A huge barrier was broken today and I was rewarded with three games of football that I watched as soon as I could summon the strength to lift my head. I didn't even know it was Saturday so it was a huge a bonus for me. I was put in the "penthouse" suite. It was supposed to be the best room but there was no water, no light in the toilet and my tv channel changed every time they changed the channel on the TV in reception but I didn't care a bit.
I stumbled down the road to the nearest restaurant like a zombie. I had a bath mat and sheep curry and a St George beer and I sat in silence and just stared at the wall. I was still alive, just. I was so happy and proud of myself and I will hopefully never have to have a day like today again by there's no denying how amazing in its own right that it was.
Morning felt like a week ago and the 75 miles of road felt like a continent but the main thing was I had kept strong,.I had kept positive and after 8 hours of the most extreme emotions I only snapped once and I only had one stone thrown. I had enough of everything else but despite my exhaustion I still enjoyed my accomplishment and I still look forward to the rest of Ethiopia.
The difference between cycling solo and doing it with someone else is massive. The mental strain compared to physical strain is also massive. Today I did surprise myself which I find hard to do because for those that know me, know that I'm not short in self confidence. Today has opened up the rest of Africa for me and although I will probably look back on this day as living hell I will always hold it vital and imperative to the rest of my trip and how I am sculpted as a person so I suppose I should be more thankful.
There's no denying Ethiopia's beauty and the enthusiasm of the people...and the dogs. A well earned rest day tomorrow is needed to keep me sane though and maybe I might travel with a stick from now on!
No comments:
Post a Comment