The Long Dusty Road to Addis Ababa

Road Dust

Almost three weeks ago we left Lake Navaisha in Kenya for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.  The total trip was a journey of a little of 1,500km, to be completed over about 7 days.  The trip involved some of the most barren, dusty and martian like landscapes either of us had ever seen.  Both spectacular and incredibly trying it is a journey we will never forget. 

Zoe and Jen, Dust Bandits

The first day's driving was relatively straightforward, continuing to travel through Kenyan highlands the temperature was mild and conditions on the truck were comfortably cool (despite the fact that we were driving literally on the equator).  The land was hilly, green and offered the ideal conditions for agriculture.  

Early on the second day of driving we left three of our colleagues in a small town a few hours drive north of Nairobi.  Given previous complications with our Ethiopian visas, these three people (2 canadians and a german) had decided that it would be easier to fly into Ethiopia (where a visa can be issued upon arrival) rather than arrive overland (where a visa, to be issued from the Ethiopian embassy of one's home country, is required in advance).  Even within the short space of a couple of hours drive, the temperature had increased notably, with a rather rapid descent from the highlands.  As we continued to head north, the landscape became increasingly barren and we began to witness first hand the evidence of the drought affecting Northern Kenya, parts of Ethiopia and Somalia.  

Bush Camp, Northern Kenya, Dirt Road day 1

Ditto

Ditto - our tent

Initially, evidence of the drought was manifested in the dry-looking landscape - an increasingly brownish complexion to the landscape.  Near the end of the day, as we reached the end of the tarmac and headed onto the corrugated metal road north, evidence of life had substantially diminished.  Trees were much more interspersed and evidence of human habitalisation was reduced to one of the lowest points we have experienced on the whole journey so far.  When compared with densely populated (southern) Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda, we were beginning to feel quite isolated. 

Martian Landscape - nothing but rock

The following day was hard.  Even though we were still about 500km south of the Ethiopian border, the road was no longer sealed and the road clearly hadn't been graded or maintained in a while.  The corrugations in the metal were accentuated through the still suspension, height and double rear-axle of the truck.  As such we were seldom going much faster than 20 kmph and probably only averaged 15 kmph for the day.  Obviously, we weren't the only travellers to have considered the road unsuitable, and alternative highways had been carved out right next to the main road by hundreds of cars and trucks over time.  Even some of the alternative 'bush-roads' have alternate routes as the bush roads began to get corrugated.  The other aspect to the trip was the dust.  Dust, kicked up from the tyres whorled around the  truck and in through the open windows and roof.  There was no escaping the dust.  It was everywhere - even at the highest point, kneeling with my head above the roof I couldn't get away from the dust.  It landed on everything and found its way everywhere.  All we could do was laugh as each of us became increasingly more comical in appearance as the day dragged on.  

The other thing that happened was the already incredibly barren landscape became even more so.  Trees almost disappeared altogether.  By that evening, the landscape could only be described as martian.  Flat land and small rocks as far as the eye could see in every direction.

Corrugations in the road

Every night we could eliminate the dust from our faces temporarily with the extensive use of wet wipes, but the reprieve was always short lived.  The most amazing part was that despite this harsh climate, people manage to eke out a living.  Gone are almost all signs of modern technology, huts are constructed from wood, stone and mud and covered with cloth (they look a little like half a soccer ball).  Camels became the animal of choice (opposed to cows in the more agricultural south and goats and sheep generally).

'Bush Roads' - main road on the right hand side of picture

Soccer ball shaped houses

The bad road had put us behind, and as such our dusty drive had one more full day left to it.  Our progress was slowed slightly by a flat tyre (first one on the whole trip), but ultimately as we finally drew near the border we realised we were too late to make it through Ethiopian customs before they went home for the day.  We made camp early that night and everyone was pleased for an afternoon's respite.  

The contrast between Northern Kenya and Ethiopia was massive.  It was with great relief that we discovered the road north from Moyale on the border of Kenya and Ethiopia was sealed.  The 770km or so from Moyale to Addis Ababa was easily covered in 2 days, less than half the time it had taken us to travel the equivalent distance from our starting point in Kenya to the border.