After recovering from the crazy journey from Mulanje to Likoma Island, I was rested up and ready to tackle the ferry from Likoma to Nkhata Bay. There were 7 of us leaving the island that day for the journey, so at 7am we all piled into the back of a pickup truck to take us to the harbour. We were all taking the Chambo boat to Nkhata, which was coming from Mozambique. Of course, when we got to the harbour, the Chambo was nowhere to be seen. Apparently, it was still in Mozambique and would be arriving on Saturday. It was now Wednesday.

We weren’t the only ones waiting; lots of locals stood on the docks too. Soon enough, a rather small looking ferry (we had no idea how big the Chambo would be, but it certainly would have been bigger than this), showed up and started loading up. We got into a small boat to get there, and were soon on the boat. Where we waited for an hour and a half for it to fill up of course. By that time, my butt had already gone numb. I was also scared to have anything to drink for fear of having to go to the washroom, of which, there were none. To say the journey was a bit uncomfortable is an understatement.

The good news was the ferry was very cheap, about a third of the price of the Ilaha. It also stopped at Chizumulu island where we could buy some fried bread to tide us over on the journey. I also got a lot of reading done, as there was nothing else to do. In the 9 hours we ended up spending on the ferry, I finished my book I had started the day before (number 39 in the trip so far). 

Finally, we reached Nkhata Bay and were stoked when we didn’t have to shimmy our way into a small boat. We simply jumped off the boat onto the dock, where most of us shared a taxi to Myoka Lodge. I set up camp, grabbed a shower before indulging in homemade pizza and beer at the lodge. We were all too exhausted to head to town.

The next day I set off in search of wifi. So far, in Malawi, I had found free wifi ONE time, in Zomba. I stayed there 4 days, partly for that reason. Now, I had visas to apply for, flights to book and research to do. I knew of one place in town that supposedly had wifi, so I walked to Aqua Africa, tested the wifi and set up shop for the day with coffee and lunch. The wifi was slow, but worked for the most part. I also restocked my e book supply, which was getting desperately low.

Of the group of us from Likoma, it was the Italian couple’s last night on holiday, as they had to return to Lusaka where they were working, so we all met up for happy hour that night and dinner at Sweet Papaya.

Nkhata Bay is potentially the most popular spot in Malawi, but I have to say, after Likoma, I was a bit disappointed. Mayoka Village, where I camped in a gorgeous spot overlooking the water, was nice, but its rocky shores and rough water until the afternoon made it hard to swim and the lack of cushions or hammocks or anywhere comfy made it hard to relax completely. Plus ants were everywhere. Everywhere. 

There was a very well kept beach about 15 minutes down the road, but it clearly belonged to up and coming resorts, and had a bit of a weird vibe. The town itself was decent, but you get hassled a bit there, as it’s a tourist town. I was ready to leave then after a few days, and ready to get hiking again so I headed north for more mountain time.