Yendi Notes
Well, Margaret, it’s me again. Kandie just informed me at the close of supper that the Yendi Notes needed writing and everyone looked at me. No need to fight it; just write it.
Today was an early start from Kintampo. We had breakfast at the hotel at 7:20 am of omelets, mushrooms (I thought they were strange hashbrowns), toast and whatever breakfast drink of our choosing. The breakfast was to start at 7:30 am but since we were already there, they began bringing in the food to serve. After a quick bite to eat and a let’s leave right now, it was upstairs to finish last minute packing, check out and head to the truck. We are away from the hotel and headed north on the Tamale/Kumasi Road by 8:00 am. We are still fighting the traffic of the big trucks, motorcycles, potholes, etc. (you get the picture if you have been keeping up lately).
Again, without fail Kandie is pushing the snacks within an hour on the road. It is share and share alike of what the Taylor’s have and what the Clark’s brought from America. Kandie has been pushing the dried mangos for two days and no one is biting. It is amazing at all the items that are being sold by the road and we are loaded to the gills with snacks in a four-seat pickup truck.
After crossing over the Black Volta River again, it was not long when Steve turned onto the Mole Road. The last time, 13 years ago, that we went with the Taylor’s on this road, it was a three-hour drive on a dirt road. This was not your typical dirt road then and it would test your endurance. Today, it is a paved road with a few pothole issues (if it is not maintained will be a major headache) that takes only a little over and hour to get to the park. Shocked beyond belief! Kandie informed us that when we get into the Accra airport to begin our flight back home, there might be a person with a clipboard wanting to ask questions about our experience in Ghana. Kandie wants someone to give a major complaint about the deplorable conditions of the major roads and especially stress that if the country really wants more tourists to come to Ghana, then the roads must be better maintained. We will see if the clipboard lady appears when we get into the main airport.
When we arrived at the park, it was exactly noon. The trip took only 4 hours where Steve thought it might take 6 hours. We checked into our rooms that are bungalow type buildings overlooking the valley of Mole National Park. We also scheduled to take the Mole truck guided tour at 3:30. It lasts for 2 hours. He had our lunch at the restaurant at the hotel and had just enough time to take a nap and prepare for the trek in the truck. Steve was so exhausted from the go, go, go travelling as he is doing all the driving that he fell asleep at the lunch table while we were all talking. He set his alarm for his nap and said that he was really sleeping well when the alarm went off. Poor Steve, such is the life in Ghana. As Kandie says, we will rest after we get to heaven.
When we arrived at the checkpoint for the tour, there was only one other person taking the tour with us. His name is Morris and he has been in Ghana for a month by himself. He is from the Netherlands and speaks perfect English. Steve and Kandie talked to him about their work in Ghana and he was fascinated. Who wouldn’t be in view of 25 years of experience here. After loading into a pickup truck that has three rows of bench seats, each row elevated above the one in front of it, and a large canopy over the complete sitting area, we are off on the trek. We only went about four minutes until the guide stopped the truck and got out with his gun. He knew that elephants were in the area and he was scouting out where they were. These elephants know our guide named Paul but he has to take a gun with him for safety reasons. This national park is a designated area of land in the west of Ghana with villages and thousands of acres of land where the wildlife roam free. It is their home and we are allowed to visit with caution. Paul, the guide, found two elephants named Nash and Major. Nash had very long tusks and was much older than Major, whose tusks were broken. They were eating the new vegetation close to the ground and then spraying themselves with the moisture from the plants as they were foraging. The guide said that they eat constantly to maintain their needs. They were constantly flapping their ears as this is the way they keep cool. After spending several minutes standing near the elephants, we got back on the truck and travelled miles into the park on dirt roads. There was various other wildlife in the park seen from the truck and we never got out of the truck again. It is an experience that does not get old even though you have been there before. The first time Pam and I came to Mole it was a complete walk for two hours. I could not imagine walking the distance that we travelled in the truck on foot. Kandie said that we would have died in the process of the heat and distance, not to mention what we would have missed seeing in the area where the truck was taking us.
After the trek, we came back to eat our supper (which we ordered ahead before we left from our lunch). Our food was already prepared and within minutes the food was on the table. We were able to sit on the back porch area and watch the sunset over the far horizon. That is an experience I will not forget as I did a time lapse of the sunset. Kandie thought that my arms were going to fall off having to hold my cellphone so long. God’s scenery is more than can be explained.
We are now in for the night and it is 7:28 pm here in Mole Park. May the Lord watch over all and keep the prayers coming for the work of the Lord in this land.
Jimmy Clark
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