We’re camping in the desert again. Yesterday, the sand was hard and earthy. Today, it’s fine and soft.

I was first in camp—except for a few who had taken the truck—and so also amongst the first to set up my tent. Without any washing facilities, there was not much else to be done other than use some wet wipes to clear the sweat and dust off me, and change into more airy clothes.

“That’s awesome,” I thought to myself, “now I have the whole afternoon to chill and relax.”

It was a bit windy while having my soup (we always get soup to re-hydrate when arriving at camp). “Hope that our tents will be OK,” I commented to Anmei.—”Yours should be fine, you got a good tent,” she assured me.—”Yes, but the best tent is useless if the user doesn’t put it up properly,” I joked to her.

After my soup, kindle and coffee kept me entertained, then—shovel in hand—a leisurely stroll out into the desert until I found a thorny bush for some privacy.

Hands washed and about to poor my second coffee, Wendy brought me back to reality. “Alex, your tent is being blown away.”—”Oh sh…”—”Anmei is holding it down,” and off I ran. “Better grab the hammer,” I thought, and so I did, before running to alleviate Anmei from her tent-saving duty. “Got it, thank you so much, don’t know what I would have done without you.” Then I busied myself hammering the pegs deep into the ground, but—given the wind and soft sand—that soon proved to be a futile task.

“Better use those,” Anmei re-appeared with three massive rocks. That did the trick to keep the guy lines down, and would keep my tent upright throughout another a windy night.

Anmei is one of those group members who are always there to help, and actually knows what she is doing. She has a lot of camping and bike touring experience. Many a puncture has already been fixed by her, and many a rider educated by watching her skilled hands. Just earlier today, she helped Charles fix his tent pole that had broken during our stormy night.

Stage 16: Dead Camel Camp – Desert Camp (Sudan), 143km

Road & traffic condition:

Crazy bus drivers who—at least in one case—came all the way over to our side even though his lane was free and empty, as if to scare us intentionally. A few of us got so freaked out by the crazy bus drivers that they’ve decided to take the truck instead—smart choice! No wonder there are so many dead camels on the road . . .

Depending on the wind, when trucks or buses drive past us, a dust storm gets blown—or rather smashed—into our faces; always need to remember to keep my mouth shut and quint. “The sand is good for the skin,” Tallis joked the other day, “peels it.” I think he actually has a point there, even though that peeling doesn’t always feel so good. Ouch!

Weather:

Same, same—manageably hot during the day and very windy.

Culinary highlights:

Chicken, pumpkin and potatoes. To our delight, Errol made us another great pie for desert. Call me hypocrite—I still refuse to eat bread for lunch, but then stuff myself with two helpings of pie after dinner, that’s loaded wih sugar, raisins, cookies, old bread and other forbidden stuff. I really need to start watching my diet again, in fear of Tallis’ words: “Men usually lose weight on this trip, and women usually gain.” Don’t want that to happen to me!

Group highlights:

#1: Cycling progress

We’ve crossed the 2,000km mark today. It’s less than 300km to Khartoum—easy! 🙂

#2: Accident

Niklas had a small crash while riding in a pack with the other racers. Luckily, nothing major happened, just a few scratch wounds. And he still seems in good spirits, taking his unfortunate accident with grace. @Niklas’ parents: No need to worry!

I think Niklas is our fourth wounded rider. Hadn’t mentioned the others yet, partly to respect their privacy, partly because I wasn’t immediately aware of what had happened.

Most unfortunate was Bernd, one of our strongest riders, from Germany, who had a crash on our second riding day and needed to fly back home for more professional treatment. However, he has displayed amazing humor and strength of character in the way he handled his tough luck. What doesn’t kill us, makes us even stronger, and I’m sure that applies to Bernd right now. @Bernd: Am missing my German-speaking companion! Best wishes for your speedy recovery!

Then there’s Linda from Canada who had a stone smashed into her shin by a passing truck, also very early on. She’s been wearing a bandage around her leg ever since to cover the wound. It seems to have healed mostly (i.e., the wound is no longer open), but might leave a scary tatoo as souvenir.

And number four is Andje from Canada. She was my only female race companion to start with, until she slipped on a sandy patch and hurt her arm and wrist. Again, fortunately, nothing serious (and nothing broken as they confirmed in the hospital), but she’s also been wearing a bandage for the past weeks, and withdrawn from the race following her accident.

#3: Camels

A few camel owners visited our camp today, selling cold drinks. Some cyclists took the opportunity to ride a camel, for a change.

You might remember that yesterday’s camp was called Dead Camel Camp. When we visited the local family after dinner, I asked them what they feed the camels.—”Nothing. We don’t need to feed the camels,” they replied.—”Really?!”—”The camels just eat in the desert,” Allam explained.—”But there’s nothing there,” we were all surprised. “You should tell them,” Ed joked, “that’s why they’re all dead. They need to feed the camels!”

Personal highlights: