The rowdy hike to another waterfall

I think my resiliency is a bit waning for some parts of my life here. I have just been more stressed out about the work, or the lack of work, I feel like I can do, and in general the lack of privacy. I was aware about the privacy thing common in Africa, that people just stop by all the time, and especially being white I also cannot just have a quiet walk to town without waving, being stopped, or just being yelled at in all very nice but still grating. And also with my roommate I do not really feel like I have time alone in the house. So I decided to treat myself to a night away in a nearby city and do some hiking. Probably not the best timing because the house owner was in town this week to start work on fixing things in the house but I had made up my mind and just stuck with it.

The falls, very pretty, very busy

Top of the mountain, looking totally pose-y

One of the tamer parts of the ride,
when I felt safe enough to use the camera

I left Saturday morning and got to my guest house, Taste Lodge to drop off my bag. He directed me to the place where the tro tro was going to Liate Wote, a small village with a community development project for tourists to come hike to the tallest point in Ghana Mt. Afadgato (which is apparently redundant since -to mean mount) and see the Tagbo Falls. The tro-tro I found easily but there was no driver and no one in it yet which is not a good sign since they just wait for the van to fill before they leave. I did not want to wait for an hour so I decided to go with the not-recommended motorbike ride for the 25 km trip. Mom, you may want to not read this part. It was terrifying. I have had to ride bikes a few times, sometimes without a helmet but they were on roads and generally drove like normal people. This was not on a road that this guy really, really liked speed. I was holding on for dear life every time he accelerated, bouncing off my seat and feet flailing several times over potholes, the chain dropped twice, and many, many times the narrow path crossed huge puddles and small streams so we were slipping and sliding in the water, mud and gravel through holes and in ruts. Then as soon as we crossed he would slam on the speed again. Overall, just terrifying. Logically I know we were on dirt, going slower, and no other cars so we were probably safer than riding with all the crazy taxis on the main streets, but still pretty scary.

So I got to the little town and it was full of tour buses and drumming and swarms of people. Turns out it was the festival of the mountain that day where all the locals but tons of buses from high schools all over the area come to visit and they have a race up and down the mountain. So much for peace and quiet. I decided to the mountain first then the waterfalls. As I was hiking up there were lots of groups of students, lots of girls wearing the most impractical hiking shoes. I am used to everyone doing everything in flip flops, 

Barefooted Rosemary

but clogs with heels? I met a girl Rosemary who ended up hiking the second half with me who was just going barefoot wince her cute sling backs were plastic with no treat and making her slip. This hike was much, much easier than the one I did last month up to the falls. Even though it is the highest point, it is not the highest mountain because the difference between the base and top is not enough gain in elevation. It took about 45 minutes and was hot but I did not need to stop and take breaks.

At the top it was beautiful, super clear day and surrounded by the mountain range. Along the way a few people were taking my picture but at the top was the first time I felt like Mickey Mouse and Disney world. 

One of the first to ask to take a picture with me

The police stationed up there and several of the students wanted their picture with me. At the waterfall later it was worst with a few groups of young men taking shot after shot, doing poses around me, and I just sat there with a plastic smile just trying to enjoy the cold mist and waterfall. So after a short time on the top I headed down which was a lot harder because I was slipping everywhere, one time slipped and grabbed a tree that swung me around painfully to my shoulder. I am not very surefooted. Some of the guys and younger kids could just careen down full speed jumping and sliding, not me. A few times with especially graceful leaps I kept thinking “Parkour!!”

The hike out to the falls was even busier, with people playing music from their phones, singing and one annoying guy with a megaphone that kept hitting the siren button. I am sure high school students everywhere are like this, on a field trip they still want to hang out with their friends and do what they like to do. I felt like such old lady since all I was thinking was “you kids keep quiet and just enjoy the nature” I did not swim or stay long at the falls, mostly because of the Mickey Mouse in pictures and the megaphone guy, so I headed back. This time I took a different way. I noticed at the start of the trail there was a sign that said falls and mountain ahead, or just falls to the right. I saw a bridge that went off the main path and assumed this must be the path that leads back. So even with the people around me saying it was not the right way, I took that path figuring I could always head back if it was wrong.

Me and Rosemary at the summit

The path less taken

Butterflies!

 The path was much smaller, kind of overgrown, but distinctly a path and it was great. This short bit was the alone in nature time I was looking for. The forest around the mountain is known for its huge diversity of butterflies.  Because there were not dozens of people always coming past I was able to see some great swarms of them. There were places where some kind of prickly/squishy looking fruit had fallen and butterflies of tons of different types were eating on it. Other times I walked through a swarm of all bright yellow little guys. Another one of those mini-magical moments, like the week when we had rainbows every single day. So the path was correct and I came right back to where I was expecting. 

Ghana is a chocolate tease.Cocoa everywhere, but no chocolate to be found. 

After talking with more white people than I have the whole time I was here, back on a motor bike but this time he took me just a short ways to a town where I could catch a taxi back. Shower in the hotel, cold but at least running water was nice. I had a little front porch to my room and settled in with a beer and later dinner they served me there from the hotel restaurant.

I felt a little silly spending money on a hotel that is like a 50 minute trip from home but it was nice to be away. I was thinking a lot about the expression “not matter where you go, there you are” and how even in a very different life/world here I am still the same. For example, I am not a homebody. I like my alone time for sure, but in Chicago I have no plans all week, or spend a whole weekend day at home I get totally stir crazy and get crabby. Give me one day a week, like Monday, to just go home and chill and that is enough for me. Just like at home, I find myself making up things to do after school and on the weekends because even though I am in a totally foreign place, I still need to get out and travel and do things. Next weekend is midterm break so I have another little trip planned. I decided to stay close to home but take two nights and there is a place with hiking, mountain biking and drumming lessons on a mountain where it stays cooler that the rest of the country. I feel a little bad I am not going farther out into the country but I will do more of that when Pete comes to visit, and being by myself it is nice to stay in Volta where I sorta know my ways around and I do not have to spend a whole day travelling to get somewhere. Maybe I will regret not going to see Kumasi or Mole, two of the big three tourist places, but I think the experience I am getting here more than makes up for missing some of the museums/culture spots and seeing elephants.