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Pure
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Kenya ?? Cape Town
Kenya ?? Cape Town
The way to the cape
Six and a half weeks had to be enough to drive from Kenya to the southern tip of the Black Continent. This almost classic route offers one thing above all? Pure Africa.
Michael Rein
02/12/2004
Sleep is hardly to be thought of during our first night in Nairobi – Claus, friend Irmgard and I keep three questions awake: Have the two BMWs arrived in the meantime? Did you get through the flight unscathed? And how quickly do we get the motorcycles through customs? We have almost seven weeks to drive from here to Cape Town. Not much for the approximately 14,000 kilometers we want to cover in between. Every day counts.
But Africa always seems to be good for a surprise – the route through customs proves to be astonishingly straightforward. Already in the early afternoon we sit on the GS, leave the metropolis, orientate ourselves north and pass Mount Kenya, unfortunately mostly cloud-covered in August, before dark.
Pure
Africa tour, MOTORRAD 5/2004
The next day we face the first big challenge: the route from Maralal to Lake Turkana, which is of the highest quality in terms of experience, but quite difficult to drive. 270 kilometers exclusively through sand or over robust trial passages. And because the lake is off our actual route, that means the whole thing back again. The respect for this route actually gives way to the overwhelming impressions. After the surprisingly steep Samburu Pass, we work our way through the jungle, which soon turns into a stone desert. For more than an hour we struggle almost exclusively in first gear, only reaching the salty lake the next day after a night in the steppe, which is home to over 20,000 crocodiles and on whose banks the Samburu and Turkana live. Children are happy about the unexpected visit, lead us by the hand through one of the nearby straw hut villages, while a couple of young warriors watch us with serious faces. Africa with no ifs or buts.
Kenya ?? Cape Town (2)
Pure
Africa tour, MOTORRAD 5/2004
Back on the main route, we aim for the neighboring country Uganda, hire one of the many waiting smugglers to cross the border, who takes care of all the formalities in no time at all. We roll west on a wide runway – and are practically the only motorized vehicles. Only cyclists on steel donkeys produced in India accompany us incessantly. All that remains to be mentioned is that their wild driving style is very reminiscent of that of drunkards.
We reach Murchison Falls National Park, discover fresh elephant dung on a slope in the sanctuary. Since we have practically no view in the thick bush and the roar of the engines drowns out all warnings from the animal world, we only feel our way forward slowly. Suddenly a giraffe crosses and immediately afterwards we spot a herd of elephants in a clearing at the edge of the route. We stop immediately, hardly dare to breathe. An awe-inspiring sight, how the animals slowly move and disappear between the trees.
Pure
Africa tour, MOTORRAD 5/2004
Finally we stand on the bank of the White Nile, take a ferry across to the opposite side, and after another 30 kilometers we arrive at the Nile Falls, where we camp for the night within earshot of the roaring spray. To crown the day, we allow ourselves a short swim in a bay protected by rocks, we can even watch some hippos from our box seat. Africa like in our most beautiful dreams.
Arrived in Tanzania, we load the two BMWs in Bukoba onto a completely overloaded banana freighter that takes us across Lake Victoria to Mwanza. Too bad, we have to say goodbye to our dream of crossing the Serengeti National Park on motorbikes for good. With the exception of Uganda, motorcycle trips into the protected areas are strictly prohibited in Africa for safety reasons. That means a detour of around 750 kilometers on an extremely bad slope. We struggle to make progress, suffer from the dust that is thrown up by the numerous trucks – overtaking is almost like a death-defying maneuver. Several flat feet and a loss of oil on the rear shock absorber of my HPN-BMW do not necessarily improve our mood. And then Kilimanjaro is covered in thick rain clouds – our mood is at its lowest point.
Kenya – Cape Town (Info)
From Kenya to the Cape ?? Truly a dream route that leads through the most diverse areas of Africa. Despite the currently tense security situation worldwide, it is still possible to take this route under the tunnels in the countries mentioned.
getting there
An open jaw flight allows Nairobi as the start point and Cape Town as the end point. The Dutch airline KLM, for example, offers corresponding flights from 900 euros. The two BMWs were transported back and forth on special metal pallets by Bikeworld Travel, a company specializing in motorcycle air freight. For this, you have to calculate around 2500 euros per vehicle, including all incidental costs. Further information: Telephone 05231/580262 and at www.bikeworld-travel.de. A detailed overview of the relevant freight forwarders for air and sea freight as well as many tips for worldwide motorcycle shipping can be found in the MOTORRAD edition 3/2004, which can be reordered if required by calling 0711 / 182-1229.
Documents
In addition to a passport, driver’s license and motor vehicle license (in national and international versions), proof of international insurance and a Carnet du Passage are required for the vehicle. The latter is available from ADAC for a deposit of 3000 euros. Information under phone 089 / 7676-0. Make sure you have copies of every document with you. The current entry and security regulations for the respective countries can be found at the Foreign Office at www.auswaertigesamt.de. While a passport is sufficient for South Africa, Namibia, Botswana or Malawi, for example, a visa is required for Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, which is best obtained from the relevant embassy before departure. If you are afraid of the rather high effort because of the many countries, it is best to hire an agency that procures all stamps for a fee of 20 euros, such as the Visa Centrale in Berlin, telephone 030/230959110, www.visum-centrale.de Alternatively, you can have the required entry permit issued at the respective border crossing – but this is often a very time-consuming procedure.
The distance
Southern Africa is an extremely tempting and adventurous travel destination – you can hardly get more of that African feeling! If you want, you can drive on the asphalt main route from Nairobi in Kenya to Cape Town in South Africa (about 6500 kilometers). More exciting and interesting are, of course, the many side routes, which sometimes come up with deep sand passages or trial-like stages. After rainfall, the laterite slopes in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania are extremely slippery; without a rough profile (Michelin T 63, Continental TKC 80 or similar) then nothing works. Away from the main routes, a large tank or additional canister makes sense; the range should be between 350 and 600 kilometers, depending on the route planning. Navigation is hardly a problem in southern Africa – all routes and slopes can already be found on the world map of a handy Garmin GPS receiver that can be mounted on any handlebar. The specialists: Touratech, phone 07728/92790, www.touratech.de. There are practically no checks by the authorities on the roads in southern Africa. With the exception of Uganda, motorcycle trips into the wildlife-rich national parks are strictly forbidden for safety reasons. Wild camping is possible almost anywhere. However, theft must be expected; if possible, stay out of sight of a road and never leave your motorcycle and equipment unattended. Always watch out for tracks near the river (elephants, hippos) and if you have the slightest doubt do not put up a tent – absolute danger to your life!
Bless you
The following vaccinations are required for a trip through southern Africa: hepatitis A and B, typhus, polio, diphtheria, tetanus and yellow fever. In addition, malaria prophylaxis is required in tropical regions (Lariam or Malorone). Detailed information can be found at www.fit-for-travel.de (Tropenmedizin Uni Munchen) or www.osir.ch (Info Point for Travel Medicine, Switzerland). A foreign health insurance is compulsory.
Literature, information
The range of travel guides on southern Africa is now enormous (very good for detailed preparation). Since motorcyclists cannot carry a complete library with them, we recommend the classic: »Through Africa – Volume 2« by Klaus Darr (Verlag Reise Know How) for 22.50 euros. In addition to all information on immigration, currency, security and road conditions, this book offers detailed route descriptions including GSP coordinates, overview maps and city maps. The author also maintains a detailed information page at www.klaus.daerr.de. For the tour described in the report, a map from Michelin is actually sufficient: “Central and South Africa, sheet 746” (formerly sheet 955) on a scale of 1: 4,000,000 for 7.50 euros.
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