Tour de Kruger - Day 3, 66km mostly sand!

---

Guess what? Yup - an early start again, same routine, except Phil leaves his mobile phone in a pocket in the tent. We’re reliably informed this tent is now in a storage container and is unlikely to be unpacked until next year’s tour. Sorry to those of you who have sent us text messages and not received a reply - now you know why.

Before we set off we were given vastly varying reports as to how much sand was ahead of us, ranging from 10 - 27km. We set off at the same walk, cycle, walk pace as the previous day. Progress was extremely slow and heavy on the legs. Laura’s legs are taking a bruising every time she knocks the pedal whilst pushing, she’s also stopped using her cleats and her fall rate has dropped dramatically.

After 12kms Laura decides she’d be better off skipping the sand and cycling the afternoon session, which is reported to have less sand. Laura hops on the Landy and Phil sets off in pursuit of the other tail-enders.

After 24kms of sheer cycling hell Phil got to the tea break with no end of the sand in sight. Still 10kms to go for Brunch and energy levels are running very low. Quick break at the tea stop and off again.

At the 27km mark is a local village with 2 bars, by the time Phil gets there the first bar has sold out of beer, but the wallet is in the sweeper vehicle anyway. Phil managed to scrounge a beer from a fellow sufferer (cyclist).

Laura arrives an hour later, she got back on her bike at the tea stop and is feeling stronger. We set off in search of lunch, which thankfully was at the 35km mark. Laura had her first encounter with a snake when she was sat on a cooler box and a snake passed behind her legs. Leonie is worried that after this experience she might never come to Africa again but Laura was too tired and sore to care too much!

Back on the bikes and the sand is now interspersed with patches of firmer road and we’re able to make relatively good speed. The only exception to this was when Phil got stung by a bee on his head and forgot to take his feet out of his cleats so he ended up in a bit of a heap on the ground, he went one way and his bike went the other! As he ripped his helmet off together with his Buff (bandana material) fortunately the bee sting came with it so he was saved from a too sore head!

We make it into Camp 3 with time to spare before sunset, the camp is on the banks of the Limpopo river and bizarrely enough one of the organizers is standing in the middle of the river (which is only ankle deep) playing the bag pipes!

Sunset is spectacular and we’re able to enjoy it with a well-deserved gin & tonic. Dinner is yet again the highlight of the day and dessert is a Belgian chocolate fountain with marshmallows, talk about fine bush cuisine.

Bed calls after some banter with the other members of our group and a bottle of Amarula runs dry.

---

Photos

Compulsory beer stop
The cyclists enjoy a local beer along the way

Laura under a Baobab tree
Laura included to give perspective, these are big trees and widely believed to live in excess of 2000 years.

Sunset over the Limpopo river
The view from camp 2