Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi

I don't know what to say other than...wow! What an amazing tale! Thanks for sharing this with us.

Andrew what's up man! Glad you got a chance to check out the RR. Really enjoyed meeting you and thanks for sharing the local knowledge. Wish we'd had a night to toss back a few beers and exchange stories. Next time!

Edit: By the way: I'm pretty sure Rob meant to say: Hope the floods "aren't" wreaking havoc on your town. :)

Hey guys- thanks for all the comments. Glad you enjoyed it! We had a great time and if anyone's headed over that way we're happy to share info if it helps. Also, Donato and the guys at Uganda Bikers are great guys. And they can set you up with a bike if you're in the area. Hoping we get to host them here in the states for a bit.

That's an Acerbis pressure suit. Worked great. I can't remember what kind Rob's is but I don't think he had any complaints either.

Thanks man. From the photos he showed us I'd say Masa has put that bike through hell. Because he is a former engine designer for Honda he can take it apart and put it back together blindfolded. Here's some quotes from the email exchange we had when we got back:

On 3/1, from NW kenya:

"battery has been gone completely (can't be charged any more) and must push-start the engine. (too heavy!!) I tried to get new battery for 3 days in Eldoret Kenya with a owner of campsite where I stayed but we couldn't.... actually sent it from Nairobi but it was wrong one. just I lost 3 days...
and now I'm afraid that AC generator and regulator could be broken.
It'll take a long long time and needed to send them here if I can't find new battery and ACG or regulator is gone.
today I almost didn't stop to get here from Eldolet.
anyway,
It can happen anytime anywhere. just time and money solve it..."

On 3/5, from Nairobi:

"I could find the problem of charging system finally today.
There was a big resistance on the circuit because main fuse and around the
terminals were melted and burnt.
It seems to be all right after I changed new fuse but still I have to change
some terminals.
but I have a problem again.
rotation speed doesn't come down quickly after engine accelerates
the symptom has started after I overhauled carburetor....
tomorrow I hope I make it.
I want to leave here immediately as long as possible but... nightmare...

I take care to stop on top of a steep and then I can use it to push-start.
or I can't get away from people here. people are anywhere.
people often can help me.

thanks again!!
I'll send SOS to you if I get in a real pinch.
I'm looking forward to see you in Oregon around 2, 3 yeas later...;-)"

So that's all I've really got on mechanical issues. But if you want to learn more or check out some photos or if you can read Japanese, he keeps a blog. You can check out his pics by clicking on the various countries on the righthand side:

http://africatwin.dtiblog.com/

Email him and I'm sure he'd offer more info if you're thinking about an AT for a long international trip.

Thanks guys that was a great trip! Anytime a rr gets my wife's attention it's a good one! On an aside, we almost bought the Flying Frog Cafe in Welches, I think it is some Mexican place now. We ended up building a small cafe in Redmond, OR. We were there for a few years and are now living in Nicaragua. It would be great to have you guys come down and ride with us for a while. I have plenty of bikes, not AT but fun none the less. Have Masa stop by here on his way through.

Masa spoke fairly broken english, but we were able to communicate anyway. We asked him why he was doing this trip and he said "it's very complicated..." then he paused for a while like he was thinking really hard about it, and then after all the thinking he just said "I love riding motorcycles." Ha ha ha... we totally cracked up. What a great guy. He's going to come stay with us in Hood River when he gets to the states... in like 2 more years...[/QUOTE]

nice.

Enjoyed every bit of that Ride report. Hope to see more coming from you guys. Cheers!

Great, great trip by you two. The right mixture of balls and prudence. Could not get enough of it.

Thanks for all the great comments guys.

Cool. That's a heck of an offer. Just might take you up on that at some point. Masa emailed today and he's back on the road now and he said he'd log on and check out this thread when he gets to ethiopia where he expects to have internet. I'll tell him to check you guys out on his way through Central America.

Thanks for sharing your adventure guys. Real, plain, stress free People are the best part of this trip. People that you can count on and ask for help knowing that even on the other side of the world you can meet Human's grace.

Now go plan your next trip, once on the road, always on the road

Absolutely fantastic ride report guys. It's really great that you managed to get help to rent some big bikes. Nice to hear that the guys really helped out with gettting the bikes going again when needed.

As for this pic. Did you know that the hotel was a refuge during the genocide for about a 1000 people? It's an interesting story and the manager was very close to being killed for helping people.

Spectacular Adventure! Thanks for sharing it with us.

Very interesting trip. I would have never considered a trip to Africa but it looks like the riding is a lot of fun. 5 star report. Thanks.

I realize this photo isn't exactly going to make the front page of advrider.



Au contraire. This is exactly the pic that should be on the front page. This is a brilliant thread and shows ( as if we didn't already know) that this bikey brotherhood transcends all borders and boundaries. Thanks for sharing it with us. RC
.[/quote]

[/QUOTE]

+1

Yep +1 on that picture going on the front page!

Whoa... sharp eye! Neither of us knew that until we saw you post yesterday. We went to that restaurant because we wanted to try somewhere fancy and that place had a kick-ass view of the city. But I just checked Wikipedia and in turns out the Hotel De Milles Collines is actually the hotel that the movie "Hotel Rwanda" is based on. Can't believe that somehow escaped our attention while we were there. Adds some new significance to the photo. Thanks for pointing that out!

It's like an unspoken international language. When you pull in on a foreign looking bike covered in dirt with all your stuff strapped to the back, all the locals are like WTF is THAT?!? And then they want to chat, ask about the bike (how big is it? how fast is it? what kind is it?), and where you're from. We made some great connections that way.

If I was hanging in Hood River and a foreigner pulled into town on a crazy looking motorbike that I'd never seen with all his shit strapped to the back... you bet I'd drop whatever I was doing and go over to see what's up! And if he was cool I'd help him out with whatever: a place to camp, finding parts, navigation... etc.

Like you said it transcends boundaries. Even seeing all the nationalities of the people chiming in on this post is really cool.

Fantastic report guys! Thank you for taking the time to share!

I was going to post similar thoughts.

Adventure isn't just about riding shiny new $15,000 motorcycles somewhere and coming out the other end unscathed. In my humble opinion it is exactly what is posted in this RR :)

cheers
Tracy

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Very nice trip, guys. Thanks for sharing.

I would like to ask you 2 questions if you don't mind.
1- Previously, if a trip to India, Myanmar, Vietnam has been also a possible option for you; do you still think you made the right choice?
2- Could you tell us more about the costs of fuel, travel, accommodation, food, etc. ?

Thanks