Journey to Work
This post was inspired by Steve Jackson’s “Journey to Work” Flickr video that he posted last week. He encouraged others to participate, so this is my contribution.
The place I call home, Buea, is a scenic mountain town sandwiched between Mt. Cameroon and the Atlantic Ocean. It’s unique for many reasons, not the least of which is a gloriously pothole-free, four lane slab of asphalt with a center divider that stretches from the forest at the mountain’s base to the car park at Mile 17—a rarity for Cameroon. This road is built on one long, continuous hill and is bordered on both sides for its entire length by gutters that are a meter deep in places.
As an aside, these gutters have an odd habit of attracting unwary white men into their depths. I’m lucky to have never suffered a gutter fall, and I hope to keep it that way.
As African highways go, it’s a wonderful piece of engineering—and a cyclist’s dream. My house is near the top of said highway. This means I can (and often do) roll out of bed, slurp my morning coffee, push my bike out the front door and, after a few pedal strokes—coast all the way into the office. Time from home to work: less than five minutes. Carbon footprint? Nada.
Before I could shoot a video from the bike, I first had to find a way to attach a camera to the handlebars. Steve suggested strapping the camera to my head, but in the end I opted for a solution that made the best of what I had on hand. So without further ado, here’s my morning bicycle commute to work:
Needless to say, climbing back up this hill on the return leg takes a bit longer and makes for much less interesting viewing.
For those with an interest in bikes, here’s how I built mine in Cameroon (start at the bottom). If any gear heads are wondering about the “fixie” claim when I mention coasting, I’ve since traded-up to a fixed/free flip-flop hub. Life is good.
Brilliant! You seemed to be going awfully fast!
That was fun
And you do seem to be going rather fast – passing cars, keeping up with motorcycles, etc. Do you wear a helmet?
@Jo, it’s a brisk descent, yes.
I also think that the low video framerate of my camera makes it look faster than it actually is.
@James,
alwaysmostly for the descent, rarely for the climb back up the hill.what kind of camera do you have?
@Joan, it’s an old 5 megapixel Nikon CoolPix- nothing special but it gets the job done. Not sure I’d risk a fancy new camera on the bike.
Wow. Makes me think about my carbon footprint. Maybe I should air up the tires of my bike I got for $40 on Craigslist earlier this year. Haven’t ridden it since the summer. I am a good walker—possibly a decent hiker—but not much of a cyclist. Biking, for me, is like jogging: something I really, really want to do but my legs refuse to. Full stop. In the summer, I rode my bike simply to get to the place where I could take a nice walk near the river. As for jogging, the last time I did any was on election day when my legs refused to walk and only wanted to run, run, run to the polls. That day I really surprised myself. I jogged to the mailbox. Jogged from my car to my class. Even jogged around our apartment. There was no walking that day, not until the results were announced.
In your “Journey to Work” video, a taxi driver calls out something. Is he speaking to you as you zip by? Thanks for this view of the Buea Highway. It is gorgeous. I remember that it wasn’t always this thing of beauty. If I remember correctly, throughout the 1990s there was a stretch of it, after Soppo and through a totally grassy Molyko to Mile 17, that used to make cars rock dangerously from side to side, some wheels perched on the tar and some bouncing through holes and gullies. There was an unrecognizable tarred sliver of road in the middle, bordered by craters where the tarmac had been eaten away, no doubt by gushing streams of rainwater. I hope the young and fresh Buea Highway will stay so sweet, just for you to enjoy it! Wishing you much fun cruising on the streets of a dry-season Buea. Happy Thanksgiving!
@BamendaBabe, it’s tough to get inspired for winter riding, so don’t feel guilty about leaving your bike indoors. The sad fact is I spend more time taking taxis in Buea than on the bike during the wet season, but I try to make up for it Oct-May/June.
I couldn’t quite make out what the taxi guy said as I passed him. Most of my attention is focused on the road while I’m riding. I get enough attention from others being one of a handful of white men in Buea- even more so when I’m on the bike. Cameroonian men can’t figure out why a white guy would choose a bike over a car or moto, so I get my fair share of shouts and hisses from the road. It’s nice to be oblivious to this for 5 minutes out of every day.
OMG…I am from Buea, and this brought back some good(and not so good) memories. Especially the Bongo square junction part…I spent many years idling on that road….
@Dibo, thanks for the comment, even if seeing Buea brought back some mixed memories for you.
I noticed on your blog “IT from a female view” that you’re a Cameroonian woman engaged in IT. That’s great! I’m heading over to post a comment now…
phew! finally I can let out the breath I was holding! Im suprised u hvnt gotten run over, pushed into those horrendous gutters! my greatest fear in Cameroon, is falling into one of those haha,I remeber suffering many a fall in my kiddo days true story. Infact just recently I would have take a painful trip down memory lane..if not for a really kind guy who warned me!..talk about mortification! I’m sure the entire molyko population would have had a blast though
nice video, makes me wanna come back to buea