Freetown to Bissau: Trekking, Waterfalls and Dirt Roads in Guinea's Fouta Djalon Highlands

Our Freetown to Dakar trip started off with a couple of nights in the Sierra Leone capital, with time to explore the city and beyond while we waited for visa applications to be processed. Above is the view from the hotel some of us stayed in, looking out over the sprawling city landscape and the Atlantic Ocean. The Freetown peninsula is dominated by the mountains with the city squeezed in between the hills and the sea.  

Below are some photos from the Railway Museum in Freetown which some of us visited on a guided tour of the old town. It was great to see these old locomotives so lovingly restored after being saved from being cut up for scrap metal!

Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary is located just a short drive for the city centre in the surrounding hills. The sanctuary provides a refuge for chimps from across the region, mainly to those rescued from very poor conditions in captivity. The chimps are rehabilitated to live in more natural conditions, though it has not yet been possible to reintroduce them into the wild.

From Freetown we drove across the border into Guinea and spent the night camping next to a river near Coyah, offering a great opportunity for a swim and to wash away the dirt after a sweaty drive day and border crossing! The following morning we headed into Conakry to apply for more visas for the journey ahead.

While in Conakry we finally managed to pay a visit to the Conakry Refugee School, having been approached back in 2014 regarding a possible visit. The school was initially set up to provide an education for English-speaking children fleeing conflicts in neighbouring Sierra Leone and Liberia. The UNHCR stopped funding the school some years ago, leaving an English-speaking refugee community in Guinea without access to education. Friends of Conakry Refugee School is a charity based in the UK, and since 2005 has provided support to the school by subsidising school fees for students and sponsoring those whose families cannot afford an education. Among numerous other valuable initiatives they provide a meal for the students each day (which has greatly reduced the schools drop out rate); they enable older children to take their exams; and in recent months they've worked hard to reduce the impact of the Ebola outbreak on the local community.

On our Dakar to Freetown trip in November 2015, we dropped off some supplies at the school which FRCS had sent to us in the UK before leaving for this seasons trips. This time we were able to visit the school for the first time and see their valuable work in action. Below, Al is making a donation to the school (on behalf of the passengers) which was given to help with school fees for those children whose families struggle to afford them.

From Conakry we made our way north up a winding mountain road to the Fouta Djalon highlands. On the way we encountered several broken down trucks blocking the road ahead, so we settled in for a long wait. Fortunately we were on the move again before we'd even finished our first game of Scrabble!  

We enjoyed some stunning views from our first bush camp on this leg of the trip. Alexi and Zoe are in the photo above. 

We experienced 2 days of stunning views on the bumpy roads leading into the Fouta Djalon. Below is a photo of Mike, Steve and Jan washing off the dust as they swim in the Konkouré river!

Above is a photo of Zoe, Jan and Chris as they headed off on a trek. Below, Lexi, Zoe, Melissa and Alice in the surrounding hills.

Another stunning drive on a rough road took us further into the Fouta Djalon region. Above is a photo of some of the peaks we passed on the way, and below is a shot of Jan boarding the ferry with Aminah to cross the river.

Guinea's Fouta Djalon is a real highlight of any visit to the region. This stunning part of the country offers an incredible variety of scenery, with many special places tucked away among the mountain terrain. 

Above is a photo of us exploring a slot canyon: Al climbing among the vines, Mike squeezing out from a gap, and Alice peeping out from a hole in the rock. Below is a photo of Jase and Alice swimming in a deceptively deep pool.

We spent several nights sleeping in the compound of a local family, trekking by day and enjoying local food and warm hospitality in the evenings. 

We experienced hot weather during our time here and luckily had plenty of chances to go swimming. Below shows a spot we spent several hours at over lunch, with whirlpools, waterfalls and rocky chasms.

Above are some of the characters we met in the village we stayed in. Below, Alice swims in a deep channel. 

Above, Lexi, JP, Pauline and Alice crossing a river. Below, Alice looks out over the valley below.

The pictures above and below show Hyena rock. Below, from left to right, Mandy, Mike, Chris, Douglas, Alice, Alice, Zoe, JP, Lexi, Nathan, Melissa and Jan.

After our week exploring the beautiful Fouta Djalon we had several drive days as we journeyed west towards the border and into Guinea Bissau. This road is being rapidly improved though is still extremely rough in places. Above is a photo of Aminah on a ferry that's soon to be replaced by the bridge being built alongside. 

On the drive we passed through a plain with an extraordinary quantity of termite mounds. None of us could quite work out why they'd all chosen to live in the same place but nonetheless it made for some great photos!

On entering Guinea Bissau our first stop was Saltinho Falls. Here we enjoyed an afternoon washing and cooling off in the water, a most welcome relief after a couple of days on dusty roads. When last here in November the water was a raging torrent and far too high to swim, but now we're at the end of the dry season the flow is much reduced which makes for relaxing bathing, as this photo of Jase in a water channel shows.

Above, Alice, Mike and Zoe cook up a colourful barbecue feast at our campsite by Saltinho Falls.

Guinea Bissau is the world's biggest exporter of cashews and as a result they're the country's most valuable export. We drove past mile after mile of cashew trees as we travelled through the country (as shown in the photo below). As can be seen, the nut is at the bottom of the fruit and this part grows first, but it's not ready to eat until the actual fruit ripens. Once ripened the fruit can be eaten too and the juice squeezed out to be made into a spirit. 

The photos above and below were taken at an unusual sculpture display we passed on our way into the capital. It represents the world, and speaks of the troubles Guinea Bissau has been through over the past few decades.

We're now in Bissau, a very small and friendly capital city, enjoying some time to relax and wander among the fading colonial architecture and the busy fishing port. Next we're looking forward to heading into Senegal's Casamance region for a week, to experience some incredible dancing and culture and to explore the beautiful Atlantic coastline. 

As always, many thanks to passengers Mike, Alice and Lexi for the photos!

Loving being back on the road in West Africa!

Our first trip of the season started in Dakar a few weeks ago after the long drive down from the UK. It's great to be back in the region we know and love so well and running trips again after so long away due to the sad events of the past year!

A warm  welcome to  Janet,  Wendy,  Kathy, John, Theo, Tim, Mehmet, Baz, Sam, Martin, Steve, Ray, Roy and Adrian, it's great to have you with us! Above are shots taken on Ile Goree, which many of our passengers visited as a day trip from Dakar.

Not far from Dakar we passed this truck being towed along. It looks like it's seen better days and the truck towing him didn't look to have been having a much easier time of it either! Fortunately the driver didn't appear to have been hurt in the crash.

The first truck lunch of many to come! An easy drive day bought us to our first bush camp, and the first night of torrential overnight rain. It ought to have finished raining a few weeks ago, but the rains this year have come late and are lasting longer than normal. We're hoping the dry season we plan our trips around comes soon. C'est l'Afrique!

Gambia is split in half by the River Gambia, and with no bridges over it, a lengthy wait for a ferry is an inevitable part of overland travel here. 

Tendaba Camp is a real highlight of the time we spend in The Gambia, with a great selection of birds viewed from the camp and on the numerous boat trips our passengers took. A comfortable spot to settle into the relaxed pace of life!

Konteh Kunda School of Music have only just opened, and we were delighted to be one of their first groups to visit. Established to celebrate and promote the Griot tradition and musical talent, and to provide a school for foreign students, we were overwhelmed by the warmth of the welcome we received and the energy of the music and dancing we witnessed. Above and below are shots of a Kora and Balafon performance soon after our arrival.

We danced for much of the evening to Djembe drumming, before witnessing an indoor performance from the family. Several of us also took part in Kora lessons.

A short drive down to the Casamance region saw us back with Simon and Khady in Abene. It was great to be back after so long and to see everybody again, and the Koumpo dance we witnessed on the first evening was as stunning as it has ever been!

The Koumpo is a forest spirit, particularly feared by local children, and often used to warn those in a village who may have digressed, such as children picking mangoes too early. A spike comes out of the Koumpo's head, which he plants into the ground and spins around on - a truly stunning sight to witness!

Kafountine is a busy fishing port that attracts workers from far and wide. Dozens of boats come in on a good day, and the men unloading the fish are paid per crate, which explains their frenzied pace of work!

Some of the catch is sent to market by refrigerated truck, but the vast majority is smoked, or salted and air dried. Dried fish provides a main protein source for many of the countries which make up West Africa.

The beach in Abene gave a great afternoon's relaxing, and Jase and Baz managed a quick surf!

Another night in Abene and another night of great music and dancing! We were joined by the same stilt dancer who'd given our previous groups such a great performance 18 months ago, but this time with a new costume he'd just finished making!

After a short stop in the main city of Casamance, Ziguinchor, we were back to the coast, visiting local villages by boat, looking for wildlife, and enjoying stunning sunsets. 

We're now in Bissau city, as relaxed and friendly as ever, enjoying some rest and western luxuries before the rough road east into Guinea begins. The heavy rains won't have helped the roads, but should make for some stunning waterfalls! 

Many thanks to Tim, Theo, Baz and Wendy for letting us share some of their photos!