23 December 2010

Total Distance: 8668 km

Distance covered today: 214 km

Start: Nile Explorers Camp, Jinja, Uganda

Finish: Moses Camp, Sipi Falls, Mbale

We got up with no rush as the distance was not too far and the roads according to info from fellow campers quite good. We first went to the town of Jinja to get fuel as it is cheaper in Uganda than in Kenya. Drove threw the town as well to see Lake Victoria. Beautiful town, so typically lush green with massive gardens. Many houses, are standing derelict and empty, were once upon a time some superb mansions. Our guess is that they must have been belonged to Indian people who were given 24 hours to leave Uganda during the Idi Amin ruel. He saw them as the 'Jews' of Africa and because they were prosperous and thus powerful, he had to get rid of them.

We drove eastwards on the main road to Kenya but soon turned north-east towards Mt Elgon, one of Uganda's highest mountains at 4200m. The mountain stands like a fortress with the sides going nearly 90 degrees up from the surrounding flat plains. The road winds quite steep up the mountain and only at the last minute does one see the falls. And it is truly breathtaking. It reminds me of the Berlin Falls but drops even higher to a distance of 100meters. Behind it the hills are covered in banana plantations and round rondawel huts which is the first time we saw these, which we know in the south, here in Tanzania. Our campsite sits right at the edge of the escarpment and while I am sitting typing this blog, I am looking to the falls on the right and to my front down the ravine and the plains far below. Once again Africa at its best. We will camp here one night and then off to Eldoret tomorrow for 3 nights.