Escape From Accra

Friday afternoon I left Accra with three visiting American medical students for Wli Waterfalls in the eastern Volta region of Ghana, near the border with Togo. The waterfalls are the highest in Western Africa, so we were pretty excited! There were some lessons on travel in Africa to learn though...

FRIDAY
3pm: Board bus. (want to avoid the questionable “tro-tro’s” here. They crash too much!) Our guidebook said that the bustrip to Wli would take approximately 3-4 hours. Should get there in the early evening….

9pm: Typical Africa. Just reached HoHoe, still 20km from Wli. Dark. Need taxi. I’m a pretty intense bargainer. When I tell a potential taxi that, “Listen we can just walk if you won’t give a fair price,” I get a few funny looks from my companions. (Hey! I did finish a half marathon last weekend.) Drivers do not call my bluff. Tactics pay off and we get a ride for half the original (inflated) asking price.

10pm: “Roads” were more like mud moguls. Slow going. Arrive at hostel. Very nice hosts. Soft beds. Running water. Ahhhh.

SATURDAY
8am: Breakfast at hostel, hooray. Set off on hike to falls.
(Pictured: view from hostel, wow!)



8:30am: Asked to pay for “guide” to falls. Not sure how much we’re being ripped off, but willing to support the community. Pay 9 cedi each. Oof.

10am: Guide fails to mention that hike is a direct climb up the side of a mountain. 75 degree incline at least. Beautiful hike, but could use rappelling gear. Guide starts giving us dirty looks for being “too slow.”

11am: Guide snidely remarks that he’s part of a business, that he makes his money by taking “several” groups up the trail each day. We’re costing him money by being too slow.

12:30pm: Reach upper falls. Beautiful! Huge! Guide glaring at us. Begin descent to lower falls.




2:30pm: Lower falls! Beautiful! Swimming! Woo!



3pm: Guide has left us in a huff. We refused his demand of 2 cedi each for “tip.” We’re not going to be ripped off again, besides he glared at us all morning. Head back to hostel.
(Pictured: guide leaving in a huff.)


3pm-10pm: Chill at hostel. Arrange taxi for 3am to make 4am bus (the only one!) back to Accra.

SUNDAY
2:45am: Waiting for taxi.

3:20am: Still waiting. Guard at hostel tells us he’s the only staff available, and he’s sure taxi will come. Tells us not to worry.

3:45am: Still waiting. Very worried.

4am: No taxi. Miss bus. Return to bed frustrated. Wonder if we’ll be stranded at hostel until next bus (on Tuesday). Don’t have enough money for that...

8am: Reign in temper while discussing situation with hostel host. He seems apathetic. Doesn’t know why taxi didn’t come. Assures us that we can pay 200 cedi to hire a car back to city. Great--now hostel thinks we’re made of money too.

9am: Germans staying at hostel steal taxi from us when we’re not looking. Blast you Germans!

10am: Get taxi to HoHoe. Find kind driver willing to drive us all the way to Accra for reasonable price (no where near 200 cedi).

2pm: Home!!

Lessons learned:

-Ghanaians think travelers are made of money. We will be overcharged by about 300-500% for most anything unless we make some hardlined negotiations. But we should carry up to 50 cedi emergency funds on trips, in case we get stranded somewhere...

-Funerals in Ghana are the most happening parties around. Despite a dearth of fellow travelers and no “nightlife” to speak of in Wli, there was a funeral that sounded like a rave raging from Friday night when we arrived to at least Sunday morning, 24 hours a day.

-Ghana has a beautiful countryside.

-Hiring a car/driver may be the most efficient and ultimately cheapest way to get around.

-Beware German travelers!