Gael warning in the Congo

[Drumacoon Lad.]

The ladder was fine, only one broken rung. The route was more questionable but when you don't have a bike you have to find adventure in other ways.

However, I did pick up the bike later, wearing all the appropriate safety gear for a jaunt through a Congo city at rush hour.

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

The bike rides quite well and being an light is very easy to manoeuvre. The tyres are more street orientated than is ideal but we're not planning on the muddy roads shown above. The carrier seems pretty tough and will get well tested over the next few weeks.

The situation with the GPS holder is not so positive as my investigations found what I believe to be the problem. The ribbon cable that connects the electronics to the pins which supply power the GPS was corroded.

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

Once I'd purchased some switch cleaner the extent of the damage was clear and I don't think this unit will power the GPS.

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

So now on to plan B, always good to have one of those. I'll charge the GPS units(I had brought a spare, but not a spare holder) with a USB lead and run the unit on battery. No audio but I can listen to music on the phone. We will try this approach today with a dayrun out to test both bikes and I will wear proper bike gear.

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[Posh Pete]

Little and large! Rock on Tommy!

 

[Oldrat]

Good luck fellas
Looking forward to following you on another adventure

 

[dubster]

Great stuff - best of luck and keep it coming please!

 

[simondippenhall]

So we had our shake down ride today up to the mountains (I will let Jim tell that story) so just starting to pack.

I realize I now have in my spares

The world's most expensive tiny fuel tube (didn't need replacing when I changed the pump). This tube is over £25!



A spare Motronic unit


Plugs and oil filter


And a new Hall sensor


A spare headlight bulb

So apart from the oil filter I am hoping none of this actually gets used! Decides to stick to the repaired motronic for now as seems to work

Now to fit this in the panniers


Hoping to get into Angola tomorrow and stay in Cabinda whilst we look for a boat over the Congo.


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[trebor]

Once I'd purchased some switch cleaner the extent of the damage was clear and I don't think this unit will power the GPS.

This is a long shot I know, see if you can find one of those back street, or pavement side, repair shops that fix anything electrical, particularly mobile phones (you find them all over SE Asia, not sure about Africa though!). They may have some conductive paint, or adhesive conductive metal strips that they could cut to size, to fix the broken tracks. Years ago I managed to carry out a bodge-up fix with a similar problem on a radio when I was deep sea on a merchant ship with no spares.
Alternatively, if they have a very fine soldering iron, good eyesight, and a steady hand, they may be able to bypass the connecting strip with very fine wires from the PCB to the connector, again, I've done something similar, but the circuitry and connections weren't quite as small in those days

 

[Drumacoon Lad.]

Thanks Trebor. Yes I've used conductive paint in the past myself but not sure of finding it here. These strips are very thin too and would be a challenge. I think I'll continue with the charging of the GPS for now and only use when needed. Simon has a good working GPS so we are not blind.

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

With the R1150GS just repaired and the FN125 brand new we thought it wise to give them both a shakedown to highlight any issues. We opted for a ride to the foothills of the Mayombe mountains. The route out of town was typical chaotic African city traffic at rush hour. Overtaking the taxis and trucks to make progress and realising that they sometimes swerve to miss the potholes. And following a car is also a challenge as they sometimes straddle a pothole which is then suddenly in your path. All of this happened in the 30 minutes or so it took, to to get out onto the open road. I was particularity pleased to have this longer test ride as I was unhappy with the front brake of my bike and only agreed to accept it on the condition I was happy with it after this ride.

The road itself was great. Excellent tarmac, sweeping through the forest. The countryside was a luscious green, such a contrast to the desert in Mauritania, last time I rode with Simon.

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

When we stopped the birds were chattering in the dense forest and eagles were gliding overhead. As I struggled through the city traffics earlier I wondered if the ride was worth it, but now it was a delight to be back on a bike again and in such great surroundings.

The road was not without its hazards. These were mostly the massive logging trucks which trundle along slowly or occasionally broke down.

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

At one corner I was overtaking a local bus when we met a logging truck. I thought I had given it a wide enough berth but was surprised by an overhanging tree trunk at the rear, which came rapidly towards me as it negotiated the corner. Thankfully I have a nimble bike, if a less nimble brain and the risk of damaging this hardwood tree with my head was avoided. We stopped as we could feel raindrops and parked up before returning. The forest seemed alive with life but nothing was visible. It seemed sad that this habitat was being destroyed by the intense logging. I suppose however many of us have real garden and domestic furniture.
Anyway, while waiting we had to have a photo of the bikes next to the rainforest. You know my bike will also become a BMW GS when it grows up!

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

On our way out we had spotted a roadside cafe and stopped there on the way back. We parked up and joined the truckers and locals while we had a cold drink. Across the road was a market and occasionally someone would approach the diners in the cafe with various smoked animals. Some appeared to be birds but others clearly had tails. Photos were not encouraged so you'll have to use your imagination.
The market is behind that inconveniently parked motorbike.

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

After our drink I was happy to be back on the bike. I was getting used to it's handling and how to get the best out of the little engine. I was conscious of the advice to run it in moderately but did not take it as mandatory. The little engine was running sweetly and started immediatly on the button. But Ialso had noticed the brake issue was not improving and planned a return to the garage to get it sorted.

Before we left the forest, Simon spotted this sign, advertising a chargable viewing of upcoming football games, including a Spurs v Man U game. To summarise the French text, "If you don't come with the money, stay at home!"

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

The dangers if this road were underlined to us, as we came across these 2 accidents. One a badly damaged truck which appeared to have hit something very solid, possibly a broken down logging truck. The damage was extensive!

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

We then came across this gravel truck which had left the road, seriously injuring the driver. I'd like to say we rode a little slower after these but we carried on as before.

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

So as soon as we had returned to the hotel and had lunch we visited the Suzuki garage. The problem with the front brake had to be fixed. My suggestion, when I first noticed the problem was to replace the front wheel with the known good one I had tested. While this was not done at the time, with Simon's support, we got a commitment from management it would be done if the problem persisted. In short, the whell was replaced this afternoon and the problem resolved. I suspect the brake drum was deformed or had a manufacturing defect. After travelling 185 km I filled up with petrol, to find I had used 4.4 litres. That's about 118 MPG which I think is 2.3L/100km for my continental friends. It is too late to calculate for American gallons. We finished another great day by catching our first sunset at the beach bar and I'll only show you 2 of the 20 shots I took.

This sunset photobombed by a dog!

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[Drumacoon Lad.]

And this sunset photobombed by a ship. It's a tough life this adventure travelling! Tomorrow brings the joys of a border and another country.

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[nick]

Greatly enjoying your continued adventures and eagerly await more posts.

Ride safe guys.