Rwanda Overview: Compared to Uganda, Rwanda is much more developed. The roads (at least the major ones) are in much better condition. More importantly the driving standards are much better, with more consideration given to other road users. The people seem to have better jobs and dress much better. There is still poverty, especially in the countryside, but it seems much less evident. The standard of food on offer is greater and of better quality. One pleasant difference is the ‘all you can eat buffet’. You pay a set price and fill your boots. Just what a hungry cyclist needs. Although I was the victim of some petty stealing in Gysenyi, I put this down to bad luck and poor vigilance on my part. On the whole I found Rwandans to be honest and when asked by someone why I was so careful with my bike, he was saddened that I should have experienced such a problem in his country.
The routes I rode were difficult, but this was through choice. If you stick to the main roads the conditions will be good, but Rwanda is a hilly country. On the plus side some of the views I had were outstanding. I know Carlsberg don’t do scenery, but if they did they would probably choose the road from Kibuye to Cyangugu.
30th October ‘09: Crossed the border shortly after 12:30 Ugandan time. The transition went without a hitch. No payment for visa and no hassle from either set of border officials. Decided to only change a little cash as I am unsure as to what is a good rate. I checked before leaving Uganda, but still not trusting enough of the touts who hang around the frontier.
Rwanda is an ex French colony so they drive on the right. To this end one of my first jobs is to change the side of my rear-view mirror.
Leaving the dirt, pot-holed roads of Uganda behind I am pleased to see mile upon mile of perfect tarmac ahead of me. I have become quite fond of Ugandan dirt roads and consider myself an expert at two-wheeled travel on them.
Hotel to left; volcano straight ahead!
My destination is the small town of Ruhengeri, only about 30kms down the road. Down is the operative word. Whether it is the tarmac, the absence of hills or just the pure joy of a new country to explore I am not sure, but I blast the distance and arrive in just over an hour. A bank is on the outskirts of town so the first job is to top up with cash as the weekend is approaching.
Find my hotel of choice and try to make adjustments to the new way of life. It is strange when you cross into a new country. All the hard won tricks to survive in Uganda no longer apply. The currency is different, this morning I knew the relative cost of everything, this afternoon I don’t have a clue if I am getting a good deal or not. The driving is a lot better and the road conditions certainly have improved. People here speak the local language, some French and some English I haven’t figured out exactly what yet.
One thing that hasn’t changed is the speed of the internet. Still painfully slow. Tried to send one picture home and it timed out.
At the hotel I meet a fellow traveller, Mark who is on roughly the same schedule as me, but using public transport. We agree to meet at the next destination of Kibuye. The sky’s overcast so I cannot get a view of the volcano just over the border in the Congo and toxic gas sometimes erupts from the lake so swimming in not advised.
The beach at Gisenyi on Lake Kivu
31st October ‘09: Cycling to Gisenyi was a dream. A little hilly, but on the good roads it felts effortless compared to the past few weeks in Uganda. This town is famous for its beaches which lie on the shores of Lake Kivu. On arrival I made for a deserted section and had lunch. Finally, after carrying it around for over a week, my avocado pear had ripened. This big heavy lump of fruit was a welcome meal as well as lowering the overall weight of my gear. As normal the early afternoon rain arrived. Just as well as I was ’sp0tted’ and my 20 minutes of peace and quiet was about to come to an end. To shelter from the rain I picked a large tree where no-one was. Hadn’t been there long when everyone else decides that this tree is where they want to take shelter, including a large group of football supporters in town for a big match. I decide to move on in the rain. Next I spot a big disused house where I can shelter under a balcony. A few local kids are doing the same so I join them. The caretaker comes out and invites me in. I take up his offer of a tour. Seems a bit like Lurch and the Adam’s families house. When I check into my hotel ‘Auburge de Gisenyi’ I discover some of my gear has been taken from the front and rear compartments of my cycle luggage. This really winds me up. It is not possible to replace these items and puts me on edge for the rest of the day. In hindsight I had become too complacent. It could have been a lot worse, I must try to remember where I am.
1st November ‘09: Going to be a big day so left early(06:00). The first part is on good quality tarmac, however it is all uphill and back the way I came. The turn-off for Kibuye shows the true nature of the trip. Poor quality dirt roads and very mountainous. This is going to be a hard day. This road is seldom used, except by locals and seems to have no shops or restaurants in which to buy food. My supplies are exhausted and I will need something to keep me going. Late morning a young lad joins me and speaks reasonable English. There is a food stop about 15 to 20kms ahead. He rides with me all the way to show me where it is. By the time I reach it I am staved and demolish half the shops supplies. I reward this lad with his lunch as he has been a great companion during the hard morning.
Fellow traveller - Mark
2nd November ‘09: The hotels is set in a stunning location and Mark and I enjoy breakfast looking out over Lake Kivu. The internet connection at the hotel is down so we walk into town to find an alternative. During the genocide of 1994 this town, Kibuye, was the worst affected during the uprising. Over 90% of the Tutsi’s were massacred at the local church after holding out for nearly a month. We pass this place on the way into town and make a small detour to visit the site. All internet access is down for the town so returned to the hotel.
Spent the afternoon cleaning and doing bike maintenance. As it is a nice day I have managed to wash and dry all my clothes. As a test ride I check out the access road to tomorrow’s destination, Cyangugu, looks pretty rough.
The evening meal turns out to be a drawn out affair. Only a handfull of customers and there are a couple of waiters. The American’s on the next table give up after 2 hours and walk out. We finally get our meal after 90 minutes of waiting. The setting is stunning, but you can have too much of a good thing.
3rd November ‘09: Today promises to be another epic. If conditions are perfect I hope to make the next major town of Cyangugu, but this is 140kms to the south and the majority of the route will be on dirt roads and through the mountains, so realistically I don’t think I will make it in one hop. Last night I prepared everything for the journey so as to make an early start. The day begins at 05:00 with a breakfast of banana’s and biscuits. At first light I am out the door and on the rough road to Cyangugu. From the start it is up into the mountains with the now normal dirt roads. Mark, a fellow traveller, who I first met in Gisenyi is making the same trip today, but he is going by bus, so I expect to have him pass me some time during the day. My tactic for today is to briefly stop every 10kms and have a little something to eat and drink. Again it is mainly bananas and biscuits, but I manage to find a ‘restaurant’ around mid-morning to cram as much food down my neck as possible. I am informed that I am the only ‘mzungu’ ever to use this place. Not surprising as it is in a small village and down a narrow alley. Meal is basic (rice, beans and cold chips) but filling and more importantly lots of it.
Terrific views, but tough cycling
The road connects Kibuye with Cyangugu and follows Lake Kivu south. Follows is not exactly true as it winds its way into the mountains and then contours back to the lake. It is up and down all the way, but this road must be a contender for the most beautiful roadside scenery in the world. I keep stopping to take a photo of a stunning bay only to find another even better one over the next mountain. Mark passes me on the bus when I have completed around 70kms, which I consider good progress. The day started off cloudy and cool, then turned hot and sunny and by mid-afternoon it is raining. The rain slowed progress as the dirt roads tend to become rather muddy and getting traction with a heavy bike on steep climbs can be difficult. To compound matters my rear tyre has developed a slow puncture. I am reluctant to change the tyre as it means removing all my stuff. Stopping to pump my tyre up every 5kms generates a small crowd of onlookers. I hate to think what a tyre change will do. The leak gets worse as the afternoon wears on and there is no alternative but to change the tube. I carefully select a deserted stretch of road and begin the operation. As expected a small crowd gather to watch. Within a short space of time there are about 30 people all watching. I should sell tickets. There is no problem, but it would be nice to be left alone for just a couple of minutes each day. It takes half an hour, but the puncture is fixed and I am on my way again.
With the light fading fast (the sun sets very quickly in this part of the world) I finally reached the main road into Cyangugu. There was still 25kms to go and there is no way I was going to make it into town today before nightfall. To make matters worse the road condition was pretty bad, as the saying goes, “It’s tarmac Jim, but not as we know it”. Great big holes all over the road and complete sections missing. I anticipated that the road would sweep down towards the lake, but no chance. The first 14kms are all uphill over yet another big mountain before dropping towards the lake. There is no sign of accommodation and as dusk fell I started to look for somewhere to camp. As normal the kids follow me everywhere and one local lad kept with me for nearly an hour making it impossible to look for a campsite. If I am spotted there would be hundreds of locals coming to visit me and I would have no peace what-so-ever and all my gear would be outside all night.
Once it was completely dark it was impossible to look for a suitable site to camp. I did try once, but a short trip into the forest revealed a sheer drop. There was nowhere far enough away from the road to camp, so I pressed on in the dark. My cycle rear light was stolen in Gisenyi, but luckily I still had my front one, although it was barely adequate for the job. 15kms from my destination a boda-boda rider (motor-cycle taxi) pulled up alongside and rode with me all the way into town. This Good Samaritan was a god-send as the descent would have been so much more difficult on my own. I finally arrived at my hotel just before 21:00, nearly 15 hrs of almost continuous riding and 140kms covered on dirt roads with a heavy bike. Even my day on the Etape du Tour didn’t compare with that. This must be my most demanding days cycling to date. I treated myself to a beer and make a mega pasta meal in my room as the hotel restaurant had stopped serving.
4th November ‘09: Rest day at Cyangugu. In daylight the hotel is another winner. It sits right on the border with the DRC. At breakfast we (Mark and I) can watch what is going on across the border as we are only separated by a small river. Looks pretty normal from here. The hotel staff say there is no problem to cross over. I am tempted but there is nothing of particular interest on the other side and there is a visa charge of $50to enter the DRC. Seems a lot to pay just to say you have been to the Congo.
Repaired puncture and headed into town to purchase a few things. Some small rope and spare batteries for my camera to replace those stolen a few days ago. Camera seems to be working well now. Only problem is to get the images home with the slow internet speed. Made some attempts to change some cash into Burundian money, but no-one seems interested. Looks like it may be on a par with the Zimbabwean pound for popularity.
Traffic calming Rwandan style
5th November ‘09: Left the hotel shortly after 08:00. Today the plan is to enter Burundi and make the small provincial town of Cibetoke. The route to the border is right outside the hotel, so the only problem is making sure I turn left and not right as that would put me in the DRC.
Nice road and the run to the border finishes with a 12kms steep downhill descent. Get involved with a race with some local cycle hauliers. They are carrying either bananas or water. Speeds reach 65kph, which is great until we reach a section where the road has been carried away by a landslip. My brakes are red hot by the time I come to a halt. The guy with the water almost didn’t stop in time.
Having lost all that altitude the temperature is much hotter at the border. Leave Rwanda without any problems and push my bike the short distance to the Burundian side. A small river divides the two countries.