Although I deeply love oceans, deserts and other wild landscapes, it is only mountains that beckon me with that sort of painful magnetic pull to walk deeper and deeper into their beauty. They keep me continuously wanting to know more, feel more, see more. - Victoria Erickson

17 October 2019, Larabanga to Sawla, 70.47km
Aliza Wazum Guest House 30GHC (R86)

It was a beautiful ride to Sawla.
It poured with rain in the early hours of the morning, the wind so strong I had to get up and close the windows. Lying awake after the downpour had stopped, I heard a kid (of the goat variety) calling plaintively for its mother in a high-pitched “eh-eh-eeh”. Getting no answer, it moved to a new location and called again, and again, and again... In time, it was answered by a deeper-pitched “eh-eh-eeh”. Then it called and mom called and it called, until at last mother and kid located each other and silence fell.
We were on the road before 06:00, hoping to beat the heat, and in Sawla before noon. The road passed through the lower reaches of the Mole National Park, a signboard proclaiming: “You are entering Mole-Bui Wildlife Corridor” and warning not to approach elephants too closely. We did not expect to see elephants, and did not do so, but we did feel we were in the park. No villages, no people, very little traffic. Riding the African bush on a rain-washed morning, feelin’ good. There is a fly, though, that makes sure you don't get too much pleasure out of the quiet road through the park. It has a mean bite, one that BURNS. And it bites through your clothing.
Later though, Charl began to feel ill again, lethargic and mildly nauseous, but made it to town OK. On the outskirts we stopped for a lunch of plain rice and fish in a spicy hot soup. In the evening, we took a yellow-yellow (tuk-tuk) to the fancy Sawla View hotel and restaurant, hoping for a good meal. We were amused to see “chicken buggers” and “beef buggers” on the menu. Charl’s beef and french fries was good, my pizza a disappointment.
We have been seeing boards outside villages advertising the fact that this is an “Open Defecation Free Community - facilitated by the USAID wash for health project”. Confusing wording, but the image of a person squatting in the open with a red cross drawn through it, explains more clearly. We have seen rows of public toilets on occasion, and assume these are part of a move to persuade people to poop indoors. But we also see people coming out of the bush clutching a plastic teapot of water, which tells its own tale. It’s tough in the third world.

For today's route see below photos
For overview route, click on ROUTE tab above…