In this episode I recap the last week of riding, prepare my new to me Husqvarna 501 and head to Eswathini (Swaziland) for the start of the second leg of the trip. We're beach bumming our way up the coast of Mozambique. This is a 'Beachbum Safari.'
It's a full episode and an eventful day on the bikes. Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
Muddy conditions are my least favourite to ride as its the most unpredictable and often quite dangerous. For this reason, I elected to start leg two of the trip in Mozambique as the weather forecast predicted a week of heavy showers throughout Botswana, Zimbabwe and Eswathini. I had read a really cool ride-report of a trip along the Mozambique coast along remote roads & tracks (GPX files included) and thought it would be an excellent opportunity to test the 501. Besides, I'd rather contest with wet sand for a week than mud and hopefully it would've dried up by the time I'd start heading West - at least that was the thinking. More on that in the coming episodes.
My dad and I trailered our bikes (mine a Husqvarna FE501 and his a Husky Norden 901 Expedition) to our lodging in central Eswathini from where we would set off the next day - bakkie parked for the week or so of riding before my dad and I would split.
It rained all night and the bikes were drenched the next morning. My bike wouldn't turn over and I had to run-start her to get going. The rain persisted practically all the way to the border so we simply took the shortest/fastest route out. The rest is pretty self explanatory from the video.
Tomorrow we head North up the Mozambican coast to Bilene.
A quick note on my dad's injuries:
The bike slid out at very low speed on a muddy off-camber section. His left leg got pinned under his Norden. I was riding a short distance behind him when he went down. He shouted in agony for assistance over our comms. I rushed over, dropped my bike and lifted his bike so he could get his leg out. He was wearing foam padded kevlar pants and some of the best protection boots available. He was not wearing knee braces. The combination of getting pinned and his leg twisting as he pulled it from under the bike resulted in injuries to his left ankle and knee. He still has mild pain a month later.
I only shared this part for educational purposes - I believe my dad would certainly have broken his leg had it not been for his boots (his bike weighed ~240kgs with luggage). I also believe his injuries could have been mitigated at least to some extent if he had worn knee braces at the time. Invest in quality protection gear - boots, knee braces and helmet in particular. Don't compromise.
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Have a question? Drop it in the comments. Feedback always welcomed.
🎵Nuffer Music - Friday 1.23.2026
Enjoy and thanks for watching 😁
Chapters:
00:00 - 01:22 Intro / Recap
01:22 - 04:49 Bike Prep
04:49 - 05:10 Trip Weather Forecast
05:10 - 05:55 Intro
05:55 - 06:12 To the Border
06:12 - 06:31 Into Mozambique
06:31 - 07:13 Easy Start
07:13 - 07:56 Water Crossing
07:56 - 09:27 Muddy Tracks
09:27 - 09:49 Dad falls
09:49 - 10:55 Wrestling the Norden
10:55 - 11:00 501 vs 901 Comparison
11:00 - 11:36 Close call 1
11:36 - 12:57 Wrestling the Norden
12:57 - 13:31 501 vs 901 Comparison
13:31 - 15:05 Norden Observations
15:05 - 15:33 Close call 2
15:33 - 16:12 Technique
16:12 - 16:58 Close call 3
16:58 - 19:50 Flicking Mud
19:50 - 22:21 901 Observations
22:21 - 23:21 501 vs 901 Reflections
23:21 - 24:01 Seriously Muddy
24:01 - 25:28 Dad gets hurt
25:28 - 27:13 Riding into the Night
27:13 - 28:22 EP2 Preview
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For some of my articles and thoughts, see my profile on DailyRider at https://dailyrider.co.za/members/ryno-van-wyk/posts/
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