Hohoe
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James turned up early to drive us to Hohoe in the east of the country, near the border with Togo. It was a very interesting journey taking us through some very picturesque scenery with mountains and forests. As we drove past the Shai Hills Nature Reserve we saw a very orderly troop of baboons walking in single file up the side of the road, led by the dominant male. We also passed carpenters shops where they were making incredible coffins shaped like large fish. Seven foot long beautifully carved wooden fish complete with pectoral fins, big tails and gills. We asked James, who confirmed that these were coffins for fishermen. The large fish coffins split in two with the top half and dorsal fin forming the lid. Amazing!
We were heading east, over the Volta River, to the mountains. At Hohoe we checked into the Evergreen Lodge hotel and chatted to the extraordinarily friendly manager and staff. After an excellent lunch we set off with James on the 20 km drive from Ho Hoe to Wli Falls.
The Wli Falls cascade spectacularly 100ft over a sheer cliff in the range of mountains which separate Ghana from Togo. During the walk through the forest to the falls James showed us coffee beans, cocoa pods and pineapples growing and chatted about the cultivation and processing methods.
Many Ghanaians visit the falls to picnic and swim in the pool at the base. So whoops, splashing and laughter resounded around cliff faces. Some of the enterprising locals offered to shoot the roosting bats from the cliff face around the falls and cook the catch on an open fire for our nourishment and delectation. However we persuaded them, with support from James, that such hospitality, though pleasing was quite un-necessary.
We returned to the hotel to be invited to join a wedding party. Deciding not to impose on the family’s joy we graciously declined. Never the less were encouraged to partake of the wedding fare of bush rat and fried rice. It had a strong flavour and tasted very much like hare. A lovely end to a perfect day.
James suggested that on the way back to Accra, the next day, we should stop at the Volta Hotel to see the Akosombo Dam. Over soft drinks he explained that the hydroelectric dam was one of the first of Nkrumah’s projects and it supplied all of Ghana’s electricity needs for twenty years.
On the outskirts of Accra we stopped at airport and tried to buy tickets. However we found that the only suitable airline with direct flights to Banjul was Slok Air. They wouldn’t take credit cards so we had to go to a bank to draw out $1000 in Cidis. It took several hours to find the right branch of the bank and we were a bit concerned about walking out of a bank with this much money in cash. Just like a bank robbery James waited outside the bank with the engine running. We soon rushed back to the Slok Air offices with two carrier bags stuffed with blocks of Cidis to buy the tickets before they closed.
This article is part of a series describing our tour of West Africa
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