Home » Sudan » Cycle to the Summit Part 12 - Khartoum to Galabatt

Sudan - The Facts

Total distance covered in Sudan = 1559km
Total distance covered on 'non tarmac' roads = 793km

Punctures prior to Sudan = 3
Punctures in Sudan = more than 45 (we lost count!)

Sudan is the tenth largest country in the world with a population of 29 million. (Population of Britain approx 57 million)

Most memorable moments from Sudan

Toby - Reaching tarmac after cycling through the desert for 22 days
Owy - Sleeping under the stars in the desert near Akasha, Northern Sudan
Paul - Reaching the hilltop to see the first sight of civilisation after three days of seeing little other than sand!
Ruth - Having my (very knotted) hair brushed by a lady named Affaf in a Sudanese house

Cycle to the Summit Part 12 - Khartoum to Galabatt

Toby Hammond
2006-06-25 19:32:15

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juice.

8th March 2002 - El Kemlin to Jabed - 124km

We were on our bikes before sunrise, unhampered by any birthday hangover and started the gradual uphill towards the border. I cease to be amazed by the improvisation of the African people, and at breakfast we watched a man chop a block of ice with a bicycle chainset as we sipped on sweet tea served by a lady in a beautiful orange sari. Soon we could see the Nile again, although the narrowness of the fertile strip on either side of the river was surprising; in places the area under agricultural production was no more than two hundred metres from the river, and beyond this the land stretched to a vast expanse of dusty nothingness.

Later in the day we observed women carrying water from this fertile strip to small villages many kilometres from the river. They seemed like a trail of colourful ants, spread out across the dusty landscape. That night, struggling to find food, we were invited to the house of Abdel, a fifth year medical student. His family fed us sharia, (spaghetti cooked in oil), and he assured us that the lipids would fuel us for the many kilometres that lay ahead.

9th March 2002 - Jabed to ? - 68km

Before saying our farewells, we used Abdel's stethoscope to make sure we were alive and fit for another day of cycling. The strong headwind made it tough and we were glad of the food that Abdel had so kindly provided. Once again the heat made cycling difficult and despite fears of bilharzia, a waterborne disease that is apparently prevalent in all of Sudan's waterways, the boys could not resist stripping off and diving from a bridge into the irrigation canal. Many men looked on with interest and amusement as they filled their donkey drawn oil drums with water to take to the local village.

10th March 2002 - ? to Gedaref - 137km

With the strong headwind still persisting, slipstreaming was the order of the day ...