12/27/2013

Back to biking today. The trip was mostly off road and downhill for a change. We started with some fantastic descent and then started riding through the dessert. I made it about 30km into the day before taking a tumble. I came off of my bike hard. I only had a few scratches but I knocked the wind out of myself quite hard and I slammed my bike seat into my leg which gave me a huge corky(something footy players get, aka. huge bruise) so I malingered and rode in the support truck for a bit. We stopped for tea at a wise man's house. It was nice and the mid day rest break was appreciated. After that I continued to malinger in the truck for another 10km before lunch. At our lunch stop I got out and walked a bit and found that movement hurt less than sitting.

So after lunch I did about another 30km on the bike. I wasn't going fast and me and another injuries rider got lost several times. We used our highly developed tracking skills to find tire tracks and meet back up with the group. 

The last 15km of the day was on very soft sand. Unfortunately it required more strength than my leg was willing to put in so I jumped back into the support truck.

My ride in the support truck wasn't all bad. The driver and our guide Atif is very knowledgable and helpful. I was well entertained and informed on my ride. 

At the end of the day we were picked up by our Bedouin guides for the evening. We, along with our luggage, were transported in the back of two pickups across the desert until we reached the camp. The camp was a bit commercial but still exciting. We had dinner with some other travelers. They have coal stoves in the ground where they cook meat and vegetables in a stone chamber under the sand. After dinner we all sat around the campfire drinking tea till late( about 8:45) when we all headed to bed.