We were now approaching the two week point of our desert trek with three days and approximately 250 miles before we reached Dongola, the provincial capitol of northern Sudan and a former center of the Nubian civilization.
I have to admit that by the 13th day I was not very excited to great the cold of the early morning desert. But like the old saying back home in Iowa, if you don’t like the weather just wait. That afternoon the thermometer recorded our hottest ride yet, 98.7.
For suggested rest stop relief along the way our Ride with GPS app has ‘coke stops’ marked. These are small cafes, markets or shops that more often than not offer some shade and sell cold Cokes and snacks. Lucky for us we came across what passed as a Sudanese 7-11.
Our destination for the day was the Nile Ferry Camp, we weren’t going to cross the Nile, just camp there for the night. About a mile or so away I got a flat tire. I changed it out with relative ease but had not gone 50 yards before I had a second flat on the same tire.
Frustrated, tired and hot, I decided to walk it in but within a few minutes I heard the honk-honk of one of out support vehicles. As we ride we have a system worked out. As they approach, almost always from behind, they give a little honk. if everything is ok the rider gives a thumbs up. If not ok, if you need help or a ride, you signal with a thumbs down and they will stop.
The trucks have a cab behind the driver kinda like American semis have sleepers. Our trucks’ cabs have two benches, it’s called the Dog Box. They are for non-riders and riders who have given up for the day for what ever reason. I gave the thumbs down and rode a crowded dog box the final mile into camp.
Later I found a tiny wire piercing my bike tire. In the heat of the day, tired, frustrated and eager to finish, I made a rookie mistake. I failed to pay strict attention to detail and missed it.
That night we shared a beautiful sunset across the Nile. The next morning as the sun broke the horizon of the vast eastern desert, I turned left against the warnings of my GPS and fellow riders who all turned right. A mile and a half later I made a u-turn and made that final ride into camp that I had missed the day before. I am determined to be an EFI* rider. I hope this admission doesn’t hex me. *NOTE: An EFI rider on Tour D’Afrique is a rider that has ridden Every F’ing Inch of the route.
Provincial is a good description of Dongola, Sudan’s northern capitol. 15,000 people go about their business pretty much as they have for centuries with the possible exception of donkey riders on cellphones.
Apparently there is no law against cellphones and driving in Sudan
Some readers may remember a Facebook post of camping in an abandoned Kiddy’s Park in Dongola and fears of deranged clowns attacking at night. I tried to ward them off with my dirty laundry hung along the Nile.
It must have worked, we survived the night and spent our rest day exploring Nubian Pyramids and temple ruins.
We were the only ones visiting the site that day. Their undeveloped state and remote desert surrounding made them seem somehow more authentic. When the caretaker unlocked the metal doors to let us in the temple it felt like we were the first ever to discover it.
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