Monday 29 August 2011

Andy's short cut from Dodoma to Iringa

Word was received today from Malcolm in Dodoma to say that he met Andy on Saturday.He mentioned that Andy  looked Good and seemed to be in very good health.  After sharing a long conversation Andy hit the dirt track again to begin the climb to Iringa. (Ironic really has Iringa is downhill from Dodoma.) Andy decided to take a short cut straight across the mountains. This may seem an outrageous thing to do but in essence it will have shaved 4 days off the journey and nearly 400km. 

He has made the necessary adjustments to his load to ensure the bike does well on the journey. Andy has been eating well with dishes like Spaghetti & Potatoes,Rice, Beans & Meat as a treat from time to time. He washes this down with a litre of Tea (Chi) .

Andy will be travelling in and among Game reserves and National Parks along his journey through Tanzania. He will also be travelling near Mtera Reservoir/Dam.
Mtera Reservoir from the air
                                                                             
Mtera Dam is the biggest hydroelectric dam in Tanzania. It measures 660 square kilometers at full capacity. The lake is 56 km long, and 15 km width, and is feed by the Great Ruaha River and the Kisigo River. It was built from 1975 to 1979 for the purpose of regulating water level at the downstream at the Ruaha installed Kidatu Hydro-electric Dam. Its capacity is 80 MW.

Can you picture what Andy's nights Camping out under the African skies must be like? As the sun begins to fall and the light goes dim.. The sound of crickets and insects singing like  park swings swaying back and forth through  the night. The cheeky Laughter & calls of  Hyenas bouncing off the mountain side..Perhaps the late night Roars of Lion Passing near by... Is you head under the Blanket yet?  Mine sure is!

Let us know if you see Andy! We would love to hear from you!

1 comment:

  1. so glad he is doing well but we all need to remember natalie who is doing this blog page with out her none of this would be here , nat your fantastic , much love to you xxxeyvonne, im also very lucky to be able to call her my friend xx

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