These "potholes" in the road were created by heavy trucks that got stuck. After spinning their tires and digging around the wheel wells, the drivers invariably made the holes deeper. The depth of this photographed pothole was over three feet (1 metre).
In the rainy season, I was told that on this road it takes about a week to go the distance of only one kiolmetre. This was the advantage to cycling...you can navigate these obstacles with greater ease but at a risk...of falling in, like I did.
The picture on the right is a marker for the Guinean border. I had to cycle a few kilometers after this marker to arrive at the immigration/customs office and be officially stamped in.