Distance: 127.3 km
Ride time: 6:47:34
Average: 18.7 km/h
Max speed: 47.2 km/h
Total: 48283 km
I was in a happy mood as I left Mzuzu after the nice break in Nkhata Bay. As one of my friends said, Malawi really has a very special energy!
Now I was cruising along the green hills of the northern part of the country. I’m on one of the main highways, but the traffic is really light and mostly consists of people walking or on bicycles.
I’m reading that this part of Africa (including Malawi) is experiencing the worst drought in years. It’s just that I can’t really relate this to what I am seeing. For the last month I have been zig-zagging in and out of afternoon rain showers every day! Perhaps the drought conditions are further south? What I’m experiencing is incredible green and lush landscapes.
With all the climbing I wasn’t really expecting a 120 km day, but since I hadn’t seen any guesthouses for a while I just kept going. After a tough climb up to 1400 meters I was descending very rapidly down towards the shore of Lake Malawi once again. Watching the lake appear from up in the mountains was truly a spectacular sight!
My breaks were burning hot and the last sunlight was disappearing as I reached the shore. A sign proclaimed that there was still 10 km to the next guest house, so I continued into the darkness – and without much electricity in rural Malawi it gets really dark when night comes! I was using my headlamp to try to avoid the potholes as well as the locals out for an evening walk.
After half an hour of darkness cycling I was happy to reach a guesthouse at the shore where I fell asleep to the sound of waves.
Really doesn’t look like drought, does it. Though, maybe it only appears that on the surface. The lake photos look good!