We reached the Kafue River in time for a lunch break. We were prepared for the heat, having frozen all our water the night before at Eureka and even crushing our frozen litre of litchi juice into the thermoflask.
The searing heat sang in our ears while sitting on the riverbank watching hippo’s grunting and snorting from across the river. One of the strangest places to be having a litchi slushpuppy freezing your brain.
We pushed on after lunch and started climbing out of the Kafue Valley. The last week of antibiotics took its toll and my energy levels sank having me sucking down all my water and walking my bike up hills. After 80 kilometres we stopped at Munali Coffee, and by chance stumbled on the home of Willem Lublinkhof. We were invited for the night, which we gladly accepted.
We first caught wind of the legend of Willem and his friend Peter as far north as Kapishya Hotsprings on the Great North Road, and we have heard more and more of them the further south we moved. Willem and Peter, along with Sean Kelly, the “faster pastor”, left Mazabuka on bicycle and cycled to Kilimanjaro for a coffee conference.
The amazing thing is they did it in three weeks. They had a convoy vehicle, but having cycled the same roads, loaded or unloaded, support vehicle or not, 2450 km in three weeks is damn good time, especially if you are already in your sixties!
We had an unreal time in Munali Coffee and were treated like kings. The hospitality was unbelievable considering that Marc and I were complete strangers to the Lubrinkhofs’. We were spoilt with inspiring stories and while sipping on fresh coffee from Munali, we all shared our tales from from Kilimanjaro and the road.
Willem and his son Jesper have developed a very successful cycling team in Mazabuka. The entire family is cycling mad, with Jesper’s five year old son already knocking out 20km on his little mountain bike around the farm.
After a very hearty breakfast we sadly left the Lubrinkhof family and carried on towards Livingstone, 400 km away, inspired and with new gusto to push the pedals.
