Exploring the Central Region, Ghana

17 June 2013

Today was one of those days so chock-full of memories it’s hard to know where to begin…In the last 12 hours I walked through the canopy of a rain forest, touched a live crocodile, and stood in a place that had seen unimaginable suffering. Two of these experiences seem great, but it was actually the third that will likely stick with me for the rest of my life.

We loaded into the van and left Immuna at about 9:00am and drove to Kakum National Park. Once there we took a brief look through a museum detailing the various species of plant, animals, and insects who call the park ‘home.’  We paid 20 Cedis each (about $10) and proceeded to hike with a guide and about ten others. At the beginning of the path there was a beautiful sign that read, ‘Leave nothing but your footprints,’ a motto more of us should take.

Walking through the forest canopy

The rain forest is exactly as I've always read…as you enter and hike deeper, very little light is able to penetrate the thick canopy above. The forest floor is covered with vegetation, insects and organic detritus and a strong, earthy scent mixes with the intense humidity to form an intense sensory mélange. Only a few hundred meters into the climb, I was sweating considerably, though not short of breath quite yet. As we climbed through the massive trees and low hanging vines, butterflies of every color flitted around our feet. We soon reached a platform from which the first of seven ‘canopy walks’ is suspended. Long rope bridges with study side netting span the treetops and groups of five are allowed to embark one after the other. Though the bridges teetered with each step, I never felt worried. Walking at this height afforded some stunning photo opportunities and a unique vantage point of the tropical forest below. I was amazed at the lack of animals and even birds, but I suppose there was plenty of room in the park for them to avoid the human intruders.

After the hike, we went for lunch at a restaurant on the grounds of a crocodile and bird sanctuary, which boasted over 40 crocs, hundreds of loud, yellow birds, and whitish/pink egrets. The meal of beans and plantains was quite good, but the highlight of the lunch was getting to touch a living, breathing crocodile!

Touching a crocodile!

From the dining area we could see the crocs in the water and one up on an island inhabited by the yellow birds whose nests hung down from the ends of the branches. For the price of 5 Cedis I walked, with a guide, through a metal gate and over a small bridge flanked by crocodiles on either side to the island. The sunning croc was completely still, mouth agape. Our guide walked right up to the easily 8’ long animal and touched its back. I was so intrigued that I began to move towards the croc, taking a cautious route so as to come at him from the side. Once there, I crouched low and placed my right hand squarely on his back. Crocodiles feel exactly like you think…hard. The girls each had a turn as well and as we were leaving our new friend gave us another gift when he slowly rose and began to walk in our directions. My bravery left as quickly as it had come as we hastily shuffled behind our guide. Yet another memorable experience!

The next leg of our day saw us in the city of Cape Coast for a visit to St. George’s Castle, more commonly referred to as El Mina after the Portuguese word for ‘the mine.’ This was one of the most touching and deeply moving experiences of my life and, at several points along the tour, I was moved to tears. Emotions ranging from pity and anger to remorse and hope, yes hope, coursed through me. Originally built by the Portuguese and subsequently owned by the Dutch and the British, El Mina was once the center of European trade in West Africa. Gold, wood, and slaves were stockpiled in the castle until ships came to take them away. Once inside, the castle’s white walls temporarily masked its dark history, which was brought to life by our skilled tour guide.

El Mina Castle, Cape Coast, Ghana

We were first brought to the female slave dungeons which were overlooked by a balcony from which the governor could select slaves who he desired to sleep with. The dungeons were dark, crowded, and had litter air flow. Standing in a place where such horrific acts and unfathomable suffering had taken place was mind bending. On the very stones where I walked, thousands of slaves had slept, urinated, vomited, bled and died before being forced on to the next in a long chain of torturous holding cells. We later experienced the punishment cell for those slaves who dared to fight for their freedom. It was a small, nearly airless chamber with no light. Rebels would be slowly starved to death and often times rot next to other dying people.

The guide adeptly walked us through the journey of a slave all the way to the ‘room of no return’ from which slaves were forced on to boats bound for the United States and Europe. Standing in those rooms, you could almost feel the fear that these walls had echoed back onto helpless masses.

The 'door of no return'

The tour also worked its way up to the European’s quarters to show the contrast and allow visitors to see the fort from another angle. As I peered off the balcony we had seen from the female dungeons below, a group of Ghanaian children on a school trip looked up at me and I down at them and for a fleeting moment, I had to look away, shamefully staring at the ground. In that moment I had imagined myself back 150 years and could not bear the image. When I looked back up, some of the children glanced up at me and, instead of looks of horror and dread that had passed between people in our places in the past, I was greeted by giggles and beautiful smiles. As I grinned back, tears in my eyes, I felt an overwhelming sense of hope. Emotionally and physically exhausted, I walked out from El Mina’s walls and gave one last, long look at a place that I will never forget.