“The men called them the Ghost and the Darkness. There were two of them, and that had never happened before because man-eaters are always alone. They owned the night but they also attacked in daylight. Alone or together. Without fear or reason. Some thought they were not lions at all, but the spirits of dead medicine men come back to spread madness. Or they were the devil sent to stop the white man from owning the world. I believed this… that they were evil. What better ground for evil to walk than Tsavo? Because this is what the word Tsavo means; “a place of slaughter”.
Read previous chapter: My tryst with Kenya – 0.2
The day we’ve all been anticipating has arrived. We would be driving through the Tsavo National Park. With an area of 22,000 square kilometres (13,671 miles), it is one of the world’s largest wildlife reserves. The park is home to large herds of dust-red elephants, rhinoceroses, buffalo, lions, leopards, hippos, crocodiles, and over 500 bird species. It was, however, more famous for a pair of man-eating lions that used to attack railway personnel in 1898 AD. Legend has it that the couple used to drink blood and slaughter men for fun. One of the lions was killed with nine gunshots. There were also many stories about enraged elephants charging and crushing people, the recent one in March 2023. The last night, the villagers and hotel owner told us a lot of terrible myths and stories about the National Park. It appeared thrilling but yet terrible to think about getting chased by angry elephants or being carried away by a pair of massive cats.
After a relatively easy ride the day before, the group were feeling a little more comfortable. Despite being sleep-deprived for the past few days, we planned an early start. The organizers deliberated late into the night. They considered everyone’s safety and opted to start the day later after the sun was up. Everyone got up early and had to wait for the ride to begin. This was inconvenient for many. However, it was the wiser decision at the time.
We finally started just before dawn, keeping the entire group close and moving slowly. The idea was to stay close to the rescue vehicles, sandwiched between them. The first ten to fifteen kilometres went pretty swiftly. The sun has also completely risen. We were driving through a natural rain forest. Large trees and bushes on either side defined the barrier between the forest and the highway. Big beasts were infamous for crossing this boundary at their whims and fancies. Victor, a local teammate who had previously completed the route, chose to proceed ahead in order to keep a close eye on the large beasts.
After a few more miles of cycling, we finally came across a large rusted “Tembo”, one of Africa’s Big 5. It was emerging from the dense jungle with crushed bushes in its trunk. He was ecstatic about something and was trumpeting. We stopped at a safe distance and looked in astonishment at his massive size. We were expecting a herd to trail him. However, to our disappointment, he returned to the jungle, and after he was well within, we resumed our journey.
We had hardly moved for another 15-20 minutes and another Jumbo appeared out of nowhere. Thankfully, it was on the opposite side of the road. We’d come to a halt once more. This elephant was more aggressive, trumpeting loudly and moving his ear flaps very rapidly. It was a terrifying scene. The squad quickly decided to flee by cycling as rapidly as we could. In the midst of the turmoil, a few of us (myself, Hemant, Antonia, and Stella) in the back were trapped. The elephant was virtually facing us. It appeared to be going to move in our direction.
We all reacted differently to the scenario. Stella just dropped her bicycle and dashed towards the bus. Antonia who was behind her, stood still. Hemant and I were trailing Antonia. It appeared to us that Stella had fallen, and Antonia had run into her. But when we saw her rushing away from her cycle, we didn’t understand a thing. On the top of it, the elephant was making loud sounds. We were still trying to figure out what was going on. To our respite, the elephant changed its direction and moved deeper into the forest away from us. Ah! What a sigh of relief! A close shot! Welcome to Tsavo – A place of slaughter!
We gathered ourselves and continued our journey. We passed by a few more such big mammals but at a safe distance. We also encountered Zebras, Baboons and many other wildlife during our passage through the National Park. We also passed through the general area of activity of the infamous Man eater lions. Fortunately, we did not come across any big cats.
We finally made it out of the Tsavo National Park after around 50 kilometres of cycling. It was an experience that we will remember for the rest of our lives.
Where else in the world would you cycle through a national park fully aware of the dangers, immersed in the whispers of wild animals, see a zeal of Zebras run parallel to you, see a parade of elephants enjoying the jungle uninterrupted, listen to birds chirping the jungle song, and hear wild baboons grunting and jumping on the trees!
These are the things that keep you alive! Brings you closer to nature while also healing you on the inside!
After leaving Tsavo, we kept cycling after a brief stop at the park reception. We were now in the most challenging phase of our tour. The road was now a gentle upslope all the way to our destination for the day. We started biking slowly and gradually, taking frequent stops. But it was not an easy task. Then there were the headwinds to add to our misery. They were too powerful to handle. We were moving behind the rescue vehicle as a shield at times. Our struggles, however, were far from over. We experienced a string of flat tires, damaged chains, and paddles. Ah! It was a horrible feeling. Being the sweeper, it was getting under my skin.
Everyone was exhausted and drained by the time we arrived for lunch. We stopped at a small confectionery shop. The owner, a gracious lady, was kind enough to offer us space to eat. She also offered us hot tea, which energised the whole team. It was probably the best tea I had in recent times!
We spent a great time singing and dancing with the natives. Everyone had forgotten that we still had another 30 kilometres to go. It would be just as difficult as the previous 70 kilometres. The previous stretch had included charging elephants, punishing headwinds, and terrible upslopes. However, the time spent here revitalised us enough to cover the remaining distance, though it was not easy.
We had several bike breakdowns. My bicycle broke down twice. Once it was the chain, then the flat tyre. I was forced to get into the backup vehicle since we ran out of spare cycles and tubes. I didn’t like sitting in the bus, but I couldn’t do much about it. The same was true for a few other riders who were unable to ride due to a similar circumstance. However, I and Alice were able to make one bicycle roadworthy. So, we decided to share that cycle with each other. I was relieved to get back on the bike and finish the day by pedalling to my destination. We got a professional bike repair guy who managed to repair almost all the flat tires and broken bikes.
We concluded our day by cycling 104 km to the city of Voi, west of Tsavo National Park. This day will remain as the most fulfilling day of this bike tour.
We celebrated the evening at the bar, listening to music and hearing exciting stories from our colleagues!
Final two days to go! We are coming Mombasa!
“Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.”
– Newt Gingrich
to be contd…
Read next chapter: The Penultimate Day – 0.4
Read other chapters in the series:
NIKOMEN! 
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