1

lovely ,, am glad you enjoyed it .. have you made it to Gondor yet ?

Maryam .

2

I would love to hear how the Cairo to Aswan stretch was, police, hotels, traffic etc?

3

Maryam, thanks for the message. I made it to Gondar now!

Just to complete the info on this thread:

After some days rest in Khartoum I took off to Wad Madani (2 days). There are enough little shops along the way (max distance 30km I guess) to buy some supplies.

From Madani I went to Al Qadarif (2 days) (stayed in the El Hawwad Tourist Hotel there, 120 pound for the "nice room" with A/C). On this stretch the landscape really changes, after all the dessert the intense green landscape almost hurt my eyes, and.. it rained! (later also with thunder and storm).

After Qadarif I took it easy to go to the border (2 days).

Overall I much enjoyed cycling through Sudan. On the whole route the road conditions have been EXCELLENT, also the route is completely flat. Only the stretch from Khartoum to Wad Madani can be called a bit busy with cars/trucks/buses. On the rest of the route I only came across traffic roughly every 5 minutes.

From Wadi Halfa to Khartoum the prevailing wind is coming from the North (meaning wind in the back). The people have been extremely nice and helpful, and... it has been HOT! Probably it's a bit nicer in winter time.

Good luck it you are doing the same!

4

BALDNOMAD, I have posted a few words on Cairo - Aswan here: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?threadID=2040381

5

Hey Cape, Rockermike here, aka Michael from San Francisco. Thanks for all the info. I am in the planning stages for that same ride. Cairo to Addis first leg, then on to Cape Town if all goes well. Your info is invaluable to me - and the more the better. Hard to find this kind of detail anywhere.

One question comes to mind, how did you handle all the visas? Mail in you passport to each embassy one at a time before leaving home? Or are you getting visas along the way?

also, are you "guerrilla camping" anywhere along your route, or do you always look for paid lodging?

I cycled the length and breadth of Mexico last winter, but I've never been to Africa. Have a lot to learn.

thanks again

6

"I did make it to Khartoum by now, road conditions are extremely good and I managed to do the Wadi Halfa - Khartoum stretch in one week - with continuous tailwind :-D."

That's pretty fast, it took me 3 days to do that stretch, and I was on a train! LOL.

http://www.angelfire.com/on2/stevestravelpics/sudantransport.html