Boti Falls

Saturday July 12^th.

We were picked up after breakfast and driven for two hours to Boti Falls. Our union guides were Eric the driver and Thomas Musah, the course leader of the Youth Group. The drive was a real eye opener for some of the members of the group and a reminder for me of the truck drive through southern and eastern Africa. The throngs of people on the side of the road, the hawkers at every stop, the endless small shops, the greenery, the red earth and the dust.

We stopped half way and sampled some palm wine at a roadside shop. Very sweet and not too exciting.

When we arrived, our guide talked us into a hike to a cave, umbrella rock and a three trunk palm tree. So away we went. It was a fairly strenuous hike and it was hot and humid. En route we met a group of young school children out on a school field trip (on Saturday!). They were really fascinated by us and walked with us for quite a way. We hiked for about an hour past the cave, which was really more of an overhang, and almost to the rock. But it was a steep climb up over uneven ground and rock. Lyle, Cindy and Leah, were having trouble with the heat and the exertion and decided to turn back about a hundred yards short of the rock. Eric went back with them to make sure they were okay. So the rest of us stayed at the rock hanging out with the Ghana school groups. The rock was a beautiful example of erosion at work and is a huge boulder perched on top of an eroded base. Then we walked to the palm tree (it has three trunks, very strange). There was a very small village there, and we took photos of some little children and listened to our guide tell us information about the myths and legends of the rare three trunked palm tree.

Just down the road was a very remote primary school, which was very basic and primitive. This school had no resources and was in rough shape. Unfortunately, being the weekend the children were not there. Thomas phoned Eric and had him bring the van up and around the park to pick us up there. This meant that by turning back the other three walked further than us and were very tired and heat stressed by the time they drove around to us.

We loaded into the van and began the journey back. When we got back to the entrance we took a much shorter and a less rigorous hike to Boti Falls. This is a beautiful two cataract waterfall off of a sedimentary shelf into a pool below. We enjoyed the cool mist.

Then we loaded up again and began the drive back. Part way we stopped at another office of GNAT and had a nice lunch of the usual: rice, fish, and plantain.

The rest of the ride back was uneventful, (except that Cameron fell ill with carsickness or something else) and we just took photos out the window (oh how I wish we could stop whenever I wanted to!).

When we arrived we headed off to our rooms and the usual group, Barb, Cindy, Owen and I headed to the pool. We were joined by three little kids, two boys, 9, and a girl 6. We had a great time talking, playing, being splashed and swimming with them. The pool was much cleaner today and we had fun swimming and playing in the water.

We regrouped for dinner. Leah was tired and Cameron, who was still feeling ill, stayed in their rooms, but the rest of us enjoyed a great meal and a drink. We hung around the bar and looked at pictures from today and then some of mine from Southeast Asia. Owen, Cameron’s roommate checked on him and discovered he was feeling poorly. Back in the room to type and sleep.