The ‘Meltdown’ has the most diverse changes in scenery and riding conditions: desert, mountains and savannah.

Once we head south from the city of Addis Ababa, the terrain changes to rolling hills interspersed with alkaline lakes. This sounds like real estate speak for hot, dry and damned hard work to us. We continue on to the town of Arba Minch ( Forty Springs ) renowned for it’s beautiful views over lakes Abaya and Chamo and for the Thousand Stars Festival of Music and Dance held here each December.

We continue through Ethiopia on what we are assured is reasonably good pavement until we get close to the town of Yabello where we pass through remote villages inhabited by the Borena people. A people whose existence revolves around the survival of their cattle and maintenance of family wells, without which they would have nothing.

Our crossing from Ethiopia into Kenya at the market town of Moyale marks the beginning of the ‘meltdown’ portion of this section. It’s planned to take us 6 days of riding to cross an unpaved lava expanse of Kenya’s Dida Galgalu desert which redefines the words bumpy and corrugated. It is described as ‘a vast expanse of arid, inhospitable black lava desert with no permanent settlements in a harsh and waterless terrain’ .... now doesn’t that sound like fun !!

The market town outpost of urban civilization called Marsabit set on the slopes of an ancient volcano will hopefully provide a very welcome ‘respite’ before the road descends again into the arid lands that are home to the Samburu people and their herds of camels and cattle.

A paved road surface should bring the promise of Isiolo, a town that grew around local military camps and the anticipation of a cold beer or two. From here we ascend ... then descend the slopes of Mt Kenya before crossing the equator at Nanyuki followed by a short days ride to the halfway point of the Tour d’Afrique and East Africa’s largest city, Nairobi. It will be interesting to compare the reality of Nairobi to that of the romantic images formed by a western childhood.

A long held desire by us both to visit Giraffe Manor will be on the cards here.