From Buffalo Springs to Torbi (Stage 2)

 We were woken up during the night by Mohamed to show us an elephant cow and her young one about 50 meters form us. This morning more elephants crossed the road near our camp (100m). Spent the day game viewing and went to Samburu Lodge. Real luxury in the bush. I believe the Aga Khan has a steak in it. The place was empty with just a few rowdy Irish (Phyllis you cant take them anywhere). Nice guys though. Saw many elephants, giraffe, Oryx, Impala, Thompson and Grant gazelles as well as giraffe necked gazelles. This excursion means I am now a day behind schedule. It was good to relax before the next ordeal to Marsabit and Moyale.

4 weeks on the go today.  We were ripped off as far as camp fees were concerned (40$ per person per night and you don’t argue because they have automatic weapons). Said goodbye to Nikki and Nic took her to Buffalo Springs Airstrip from where she flew back to Nairobi and on to London. I set off on the infamous piece of bad road to Marsabit.

The road is rough, rutted, potholed, stony and corrugated all in a matter of a few meters. Difficult to do more than 20kph at any time. Did about 100km over the 8 hours of riding. Nic caught up with me in the afternoon  and we camped just off the road in the bush. Along the road Nic picked up a guinea fowl, which was knocked down a few minutes earlier, and we had it for supper. Very good!

Push through to Marsabit a distance of about 160km. The most grueling ride up to new. Road the same as yesterday. BAD, BAD, BAD.
Got to Marsabit about 5pm where we met Brother Kevin of the De La Salle Brothers. He was at Victory Park, Jhb. for some years.  Nic went off with him to their school below the mountain while I packed the scooter on a local bus and decided to take it to Moyale since it was building up for a great rain, which did come in the night.

This delayed Nic the next morning as he could not get out to the main road until things had dried a bit.
For me the ride on the bus was an experience. In the first tow rows (I sat in 2nd row) the 10 seats gad 16 passengers. I did not check what the situation was behind me, but just as chaotic and overcrowded. We raced through the night and at times the passengers screamed to tell the driver to slow down because they were just thrown about in the back of the bus. We had to stop at Torbi. This is the start of the bandit area and you can only travel there by day and with armed guard. So it was sleep in the bus or a so-called hotel. For 100 Kenyan shillings you got a mattress and a sheet of dubious cleanliness and a place on the floor where you could sleep with about 10 others. Disgusting sounds during the night in this bedroom, which was 4 walls up to about 1.3meter, then a gap and the tin roof above.  The toilet was a dizzy drop with two planks across the hole. Early in the morning the rains came down with a vengeance and caused havoc to the road