Mountain Biking around Kilimanjaro challenge

On the reccie. Found a 500 meter volcanic cone. Drove up it. Lizzy the landy did just fine..

Tanzania Mountain Biking Part III

Terat to Emboreet

Highlights: riding with zebra and wildebeest, open plains, kids at the school, riding bikes with Maasai, serendipitous meeting with Maasai at a boma, range of habitats, thick bush, hard uphill, point to point riding

Distance covered total: 63 km

Distance covered mountain biking: 63 km

Accommodation: lightweight camp like night before

The ride today was superb. Riding with game, riding on wide open plains, then into Emboreet village, then a long uphill through Commiphora woodland, dipping down into thick Acacia – Commiphora, lunch under a massive Acacia tortillis with a hill to grab pictures and views from and then a harsh but pretty uphill all the way to camp. Did I mention the teste flies? No, well there were tseste flies today. Ouch!

Riding in Tanzania there are three major types of experience one might expect to make it different from anywhere else in the world. Views, wildlife, people. Today we had lashings of each and plenty of them.

A few minutes from camp we had reached the Terat plains, well actually they surounded us. Cattle went to water behind us and in front, small herds of wildbeest dotted the plains and now and again zebra too. This is one of the great advantages of this particular route at this time of year – lots of game!

Why is there game here, some 40km as the crow flies from Tarangire National Park? Simple really: food. Out here amonst the grassy plains that afford us stupendous views of Kilimanjaro and Meru, the annual rains afford a great and nutritious crop of grasses. Used by domestic cattle and wildlife alike, this really is a haven. Animals from Tarangire migrate here every rainy season to feed on this rich bounty, and, when the water sources and food sources start to dwindle, they head back to Tarangire. Tarangire has a lifeline in the dry season – a river, a sand river at that, which means that vast volumes of water are held in storage for the long dry season ahead. Elephants are particularly adept at making drinking holes in the sand beds, indeed I have heard it said that they prefer drinking from these pachyderm pawed potholes. Anyhow, back to the plains.

But, this is all in danger of being lost. Population pressure combined with the need for cash has meant that over the last 2 decades the amount of faming in these areas has increased steadily. Despite the fact that farmers only return about 3 good crops every 10 years, the land is still being increasingly turned to till. This means migration corridors are being lost, as are the grazing grounds of both the Maasai cattle and the animals that migrate here.

Well here’s the good news, through the initiative of the Maasai and a group of companies in and around Tarangire, a fund has been put together to pay to one of the villages, Terat, to NOT allow farming on their plains. The companies in Tarangire National Park (and around it) realise that with no feeding and breeding grounds the wildlife stock will suffer, and the Maasai, who know these lands better than anyone, see the value of protecting their precious range lands. Indeed, recently Kenyan cattle had been trucked in, yes trucked in to these areas, and so the value of open grazing grounds has been painfully obvious to the local Maasai. So, this is the ‘stop-gap’ solution. Easement payments to villages to keep farming out in favour of simply leaving the land as it is and managing it in a traditional way. The group of companies has also raised money this year and hopes to expand the initiative to another village thereby increasing the area preserved dramatically. But, as we saw ahead, the corridors are still under threat.

As we cycled along great tracks we eventually came into Emboreet village land and here the farming is apparent, as is the wildlife, rather dramatically standing out on the plains as the farms slowly spring up around them. Will this corridor be saved in years to come? Only time, and strong village leadership combined with the resources of those that believe in preserving a more traditional way of pastoral lifestyle, can change the direction of what is happening here now.

And on we went, stopping at a limestone hill (which had metamorphed somewhat, possibly pressure or heat or some combination, and possibly indicative of sea cover in long past years, although lake bed also presents as an option) and then down down into Emboreet village. Kids everywhere coming out of school and boy do they love the mountain bikes! We pushed on pretty quickly before the ladies had a chance to alight straight into a long uphill. Gunnar and Peter L immediately broke into an uphill race to my shouts of “there are buffalo in those woodlands ahead!” and a Maasai on a single gear Phoenix bike smoked us all! The woodland was unusual. Lots of Commiphora, big Commiphora unlike I have ever experienced, and plenty of Erythrina (bussei?) in flower too. Breaking through the tree line we passed a Maasai boma – Pete K couldn’t resist lending out his bike to a moran from the boma. And on into the bush once more, red soils, black cotton soils, thick bush, Acacia nubica and then tortillis woodlands. Very close to Oldonyo Nabpe we stopped.

Lunch under a big tree. Nothing better. Acacia tortillis is commonly known as the umbrella thorn, rightly so – it makes for sun shade. Rolls tables and chairs popped up, thanks to our helpful crew, and we had a light lunch of salads, sandwhiches and fruit. Great cheese too – made in Maasailand. My Maasai shuka, which doubles as my sleeping bag, emergency blanket and now nap throw, came out and Peter L and yours truly had a bit of shut eye.

As the heat abated just a tad we set off once more. Really nasty grasses here by the way, they dig into shoes and socks mercylessly until they finally hit flesh. Ow! Best remember gaitors next time. Once riding it was not a problem and we rolled on, up and down, across dried up rivers and around hills. Pretty vistas of pristine bush were a real highlight BUT THE TSETES were horrendous. It was only a day later when I figured out they hate freshly applied sunscreen, and so, in the meantime, we all suffered in silence. Some not in so much silence to be honest.

The final 10km turned into 15km of uphill. What an uphill. Not some brutal short slog to a summit, but a long unabating pedal bashing all the way to camp. I definitely could have stopped a while ago but we all finally peddled into camp for a rehydrate and rest.

Mawe camp / rock camp: stunning little camp. Ancient crystalline rocks make up this part of Tanzania, and in fact much of the central part of Tanzania. All of this is igneous – pertaining to fire. Always loved that description. Subterrain events where magma had forced it way upwards into country rock had left massive domes of silica rich plumes. As the land around, softer than these intrusives, eroded away over millions of years so these harder rocks have become exposed, leaving a rich mosaic of hills, perfect for our camp, perfect for a sundowner! The whole team, after showers and plenty of water, headed up to the edge of our rocky outcrop. Heather, 83 years and going very strong, led the way, and as the sun set we enjoyed a beer. What a day.

Next day, tsetses, elephant damage, poachers, game, waterholes and game drives!

Tanzania Mountain Biking Safari - Part II

Usa River to Terat Plains

 

Highlights: 15 km downhill, scenic variation: villages to farm land to bush, all in the space of 15km! Wilderness, camping out, sleeping under the stars, Maasai herdsmen, great food and as always, fantastic companions!

Distance covered total: 101 km

Distance covered mountain biking: 42 km

Accommodation: lightweight tents with mattresses & sheets, pillow, canvas water basin outside, bush shower, fly sheet and dinner around the campfire

 

The original plan was to give the option of doing the full 101 km on a bike, BUT everyone had partied hard the night before and so we selected to do the juciest bits instead.. The whole of Arusha and villages all the way to Usa River are on a plateau. Mt Meru, a dormant volcano that erupted last in 1910, has warped the land upward and sprewed vast amounts of lava to create the said plateau. So – that made for a great downhill and after a lot of procrastination and buying of essentials (beer) the riders mounted up and set off.

 

This style of riding is not overly tough – yes you can do the km’s but there is a support truck, bike mec, and guides to look after supplying snacks, rehydration salts and water. So, Juma, bike Mec, had the bikes all prepped for us. Great!

 

The first section was downhill. Coming off the Mt Meru plateau there was a combination of light peddling and then free wheeling downhill. Lots of cattle and goats made the way road a cluttered mosaic of dust and clunking cowbells. Fields, planted before the failed rains, now look rather dire. Failed rains, failed crops everywhere. Some bean farms seem to have survived though. Cycling down here it is obvious to see the importance of agriculture to the local economy and having lived here for over a decade, it’s also obvious the spread of agriculture is rapid, encroaching into areas that were once wilderness.

 

After crossing the Themi river, which was flowing and ridding Arusha of all it’s plastic bags by the looks of things, we soon found a resting point under a tree and waited for the landcruiser that was carrying our lunchboxes and the girls that had decided to skip riding.. And we waited. Thankfully Peter L had his tea making box in the support truck and we had plenty of bananas to cover us. An hour later it was obvious that to complete any riding today the bikes and support truck would have to go ahead and so riders were left stranded whilst we headed on to the next riding section. Lunch eventually arrived and the riders were picked up!

 

In the support truck we head out towards the western end of the ‘blue’ mountains, home to the famous Tanzanite mines. Our path did not cross anywhere near the mines but I hear these days it is possible to do mine tours with the likes of Tanzanite One. By now it was getting late and we all doubted very much if we could ride again today. Indeed by the time we reached Komolo and ascended the ridge to the starting point it was 5.45pm. The cruiser with the riders and non riders arrived right behind us and looking at Gunnar’s face (Mr ‘every kilometer on a bike is a good kilometer’), I knew we had to deliver another ride…

 

Off with the bikes from the top of the support truck, frantic assembly, Maasai crowding round at the spectacle, hats on, gloves on, water check and off! We had about 1 hour of riding left before total darkness and we were now very much at the edge of true wilderness. Add to that the fact the news that a pride of lions had been terrorising cattle in the village ahead, and we were definitely racing darkness and keeping checks on everyone. As the sun edged ever downward Pete K spotted our first game, a herd of Zebra to our right. Peter L completely missed them, thrasing his way up a hill!

 

What to do when darkness falls? Well traditional senses would have it that this was a perfect time to dismount. But, with a bunch of cyclists that had been coming on riding safaris with us for 7 years, that did not happen. 10km or so to go and darkness fell. The support truck followed closely and both Peter L and myself lead the pack keeping our eyes peeled for wildlife, and specifically the maurading lions.

 

“I see lights!” – the camp was spotted some 2 km away. Unbeknown to the group the camp was across bush and there certainly were no roads. As we stuttered across the bush Peter L made short work of finding a hole and did a fine kartwheel over the handle bars, our first ‘offie’. Single track was now the name of the game – let the first unfortunate person hit all the holes.. The support truck reverberated loudly a few times – 2 tracks will always find more holes than our single tread!

 

Finally in camp we received a warm welcome. Our friends at Dorobo Safaris are our partners on this section, and what a great camp they run. The layout was simple and all the essential were there. After a quick rehdyration it was time to tuck into some grub and beer (we always carry a cool box with ice..). Dinner was a really tasty curry, could hardly stop myself from eating. And not soon after we all retired. As was to become the custom, Peter L and myself bedded down by the fire, the crew in the Pyramid, everyone else in their dome tents and the snoring competition would begin.

 

At night time the bush is the best place to be. Contact calls of Hyena, the bark of a Jackal and the trill of a scops owl are noises I long to hear when in town and now, back in the bush, my nights sleep is frequently punctuated as I start awake looking around for nosey animals. No lion calls this night but Pete K, on route for a wee near his tent, spotted a hyena (indeed a spotted hyena at that), that scurried away.

 

Dawn crept over the eastern horizon, a perfect time to wake up, clean up, wander around. Kilimanjaro stood proud to the east. I’ve never seen such a pretty profile and with the soft light, it was literally breath taking. Meru, related to Kilimanjaro by the same fault system, looked down on us from the North and as the sun start to ascend the rosy red rich colours of the morning brought the rest of the camp to life.

 

Breakfast, if I remember rightly, was plenty of fresh fruits and some cereals. With the pretty vistas and morning light I preferred to photograph and film and then the sounds of cattle bells started in ernest – we had camped not more than 200 meters from a temporary boma. Time for some impromptu filming of cattle herding (Leboi our camp guard hepled me talk through the process and sort out the filming rights!) before finishing up with breakfast and a briefing.

 

It was now time to head out on our next day of cycling…

Camping and biking II

Camping Safari / Mountain biking

Mountain Biking Safari!

8 bikes, 6 guests, 1 safari vehicle and 1 landrover 101 Forward Control. 2 guides and 1 mechanic and then 1 Maasai boy, my apprentice. First stop, pick up the guests and do the briefing..

Mountain biking safaris in Tanzania are not new - my first trip was back in 2001. This one will be delving into new territories though: the greater Tarangire ecosystem where lots of wildlife is expected and so after completing our final recconnaisance last week, it's time to head out into the bush!