[sporadic internet access is doing wonders for the order of my blog entries! A few short ones were posted where the upload speed was glacial, and the last week has been very busy with work. But even out of order they can give you a glimpse into my current expedition.]
Dateline: 16-17 April 2011 - Gabon
Gabon slid by for hours, or bounced, or oozed, threaded by constant AfroPop liberally mixed with something like House Music and the occasional Bob Marley or Papa Wemba. It was pleasant to me, a bit surprisingly. Somehow it threw me into the process and the brand new Land Cruizer had A/C so although crowded with six others and a little boy, the sun-saturated landscape remained interesting. At times the combination threw my thoughts back 22 years to Peru and the minibus we used to traverse the Andes into the Amazon – music all the time then too.
Iguela, my destination, is on the coast of Gabon north of Loango National Park. But to drive there we had to go far to the east in order to cross the Ogooue River, the 2nd or 3rd largest river in Central Africa, and the huge maze of a delta that normally I thread by boat. Although Gabon has a very low population density overall, I was surprised at how constant were the houses and tiny villages for dozens of kilometers east of Libreville. And the forest that once covered this region is now only low-stature second growth – not even the occasional giant of pre-independence times. It has been well logged and now an even population that keeps the cutting going for fuel and the construction of simple houses. It took nearly five hours of driving before the forest began to return in parts and the human presence became more patchy- at least in terms of houses.
Along this road I was more aware than anywhere else I have driven of the slanted poles along the road with bits of wire or cord hanging at the tip for displaying bushmeat to passers-by. Thank god the vast majority were empty, but I saw enough monkeys, a crocodile, and horrifically a live duiker hanging upside down in the sun – struggling against the bonds. Everyone groaned and exclaimed but they insisted there was nothing we could do. But now I am ashamed that I didn’t try to force a stop and at least ensure that the poor animal was put out of its misery. I think the others were concerned about being WCS employees and what the repercussions could be if we got embroiled in some mess. But still I should have tried.
Most of the two day trip was otherwise unremarkable excepting a couple of adjacent villages where I have never seen so many people wearing such deeply crimson clothing – head scarves, dresses, shirts, and shawls. Striking impressions on the mind’s eye against the verdant green forest.
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