Just A Car Guy: from Nov 1931 to April 1934 Kazimierz Nowak bicycled across Africa, from North to South, then he biked, rode a horse, sailed a boat, and rode a camel to get back to the North

Friday, September 18, 2015

from Nov 1931 to April 1934 Kazimierz Nowak bicycled across Africa, from North to South, then he biked, rode a horse, sailed a boat, and rode a camel to get back to the North

Born in 1897 in Poland, Nowak had fallen in love with bikes and travel by the time he was in his early 20s, but marriage, children, and a job in insurance constrained his wanderlust. In 1925, though, he did what so many directionless adventurers do: declared himself a journalist and photographer and hit the road, riding across Europe several times and reporting from Hungary, Austria, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Romania, Greece, and Turkey. In 1928, he found himself covering war in Northern Africa

Then from Nov 1931 to April 1934 Kazimierz Nowak bicycled across Africa, from North to South, he did not get material help and received only bicycle tires sent from Poland by Stomil factory. Nowak obtained necessary financial means to support himself and his family with fees for reports and photographs sent to Polish and German newspapers.

At the turn of 1932 and 1933 Nowak visited twice, once on the way from Juba to Torit and then before heading toward Congo. He spent quite a few days wandering around in the evenings at Kaganku but wrote letters to his wife and articles to the press, and at night in the privacy of chambers made films and photo prints. Nowak photographs often repaid hosts and benefactors, and thus earned his onward journey and support his family in the country.

He recieved a 35 mm Contax camera, purchased at the Kazimierz Greger’s photo laboratory in Poznań, and took about 10,000 photos along his journey.

On the return trip, his bike broke down, and he rode a horse to Angola, then sailed a small boat to Leopoldville in the current Congo

where he traded boat for camel,

to travel with a caravan across the Sahara, and traded the camel for a bike in Uargla, then rode to Algiers arriving in Nov 1936. During his travels he had met Szilluków, the proud people of Watussi, Pygmies, the Boers of the Transvaal, Hottentots, Bushmen, dwarfs Babinga, wild Abasalampasu, blacks Hauss and many others.

After his return to Poznań, Kazimierz Nowak gave a lecture at the Apollo cinema, presenting the ethnographic aspects of the African continent, illustrated with photographs.

Nowak was exhausted with frequent recurrences of malaria and additionally he got periostitis of his left leg. He needed a surgery. During the stay in hospital he contracted pneumonia. Kazimierz Nowak died less than one year after he returned home, in October 1937.