Ben Bowler

Ben Around the World Diary – Day 80 – 24 February 2019

– ODO- 10159 – 10234km
– Location- Nagpur, India
– Weather- 21-35 degrees

Last night I barely slept. I hate that feeling. I was laying there awake. Comfortable. Not aching. But awake. Eyes staring through the mosquito net focusing on the consolation of Orion.

The first problem was my campsite. I’d passed through a town as the sun was setting which meant I had to push through dusk and camp a little closer to a town than I usually like (the next morning I passed great campsites every 30 minutes). Turning off the road I dove through a drainage ditch and hauled my bike up the other side. But the field I was in was exposed and in full view of a packing plant. I pushed my bike through the field and then through into the next one. On the way collecting a big cut on left leg from a thorn. The spot was still not ideal and security lights from a nearby electricity substation, a local dog and the unusually busy Saturday night traffic kept me spinning in my sleeping bag.

The second problem was a dodgy stomach. Seemingly a feature of each leg in India so far. The strength and severity of my afflictions here have never quite matched Turkey so in some cases I’m pretty sure it’s just the effects of trucker levels of chilly in my lunch. But yesterday it really weakened me.

So after only 70km today, I stopped at a hotel – learning from the past. Nagpur is the only major town before Agra that I can guarantee good hotels in. With 1000km to go, it’s nice to have the afternoon off, a hot shower and a restock for bread, peanut butter and hydration salts. Now it’s time for bed and fingers crossed I feel like taking to the road again tomorrow.