senegal – Snapping The Globe

The Lions Next Door

Having been on safari in Tanzania, I knew that the Bandia Reserve in Senegal, had its shortcomings.

While I absolutely loved visiting and had done so three times, there was the glaring fact that it was missing some of the animals that captivate thrill seekers…the big cats. Because it is a private reserve comprising just over 8600 acres and is surrounded by fencing, the animals that do reside there…giraffes, deer, ostrich…would be sitting ducks. There are a few hyenas that reside in the front of the park, however, they are in their own enclosure and not free to roam.

On my last visit to Bandia Reserve, I did learn something…Ranch de Bandia, a lodge which offers lion experiences, had opened recently adjacent to the reserve. Offering up close interactions with lions, it was meant to fill the gap where The Bandia Reserve was lacking while still offering a Safari experience with big cats and a place for visitors to call home while surrounded by African wildlife.

Located only 70 kilometers from Dakar (45 minutes), it is an easy drive from the city and also located near the resort town of Saly, a popular tourist destination. Since we were staying near the downtown area, we decided to do both activities (Bandia Reserve and Ranch de Bandia) in order to make the most of our time and the drive.

Arriving in the late morning to Bandia, we quickly realized that early arrivals and late afternoons are probably best for animal spotting. The midday hour is when most animals are inactive due to the heat and it was on this trip when I saw the least amount of wildlife. We still managed to see enough to make our trip worthwhile, however, the park’s rhinos remained elusive on this trip.

*Hyenas in their enclosure at the front of the park*

*Many kinds of deer and elk reside in the park*

After our safari at Bandia was complete, we headed back thru the entrance gates and over to Ranch de Bandia, across the highway.

Preparations had already been made by our tour guide, Mass Kane, so we were all set to take off on our 30 minutes of exploration into the lions’ territory.

Loading up into the park’s specially equipped vehicles, we noticed pieces of meat still sitting on top of the truck’s iron mesh that enclosed it. Flies were everywhere, attracted by the smell and the bloody mess, but if this was the way to attract the lions, we had to get used to it.

Entering the gates of the enclosure, we could hear the roars of an angry cat in the distance; Malik, a territorial lion protesting our arrival. Moving through the second set of gates, the sound of his roars became much louder and as we turned onto a small roadway, we spotted him behind a bush in a clearing. Realizing that he would soon partake of a meal, he came forward, jumping onto the hood of our vehicle and then climbing onto the roof. It was an amazing experience to have such ferocious, yet beautiful creature that close to us. As he shifted closer to the back of the truck above where I was seated, I could smell his musky scent and feel the mud from his paws falling down into my hair. All in the experience, right? I was definitely going to need a shower when I got home!

Moving back to the front of the truck, he interacted with the driver and guide who, through an opening in the front mesh, doled out his afternoon snack. Finally, growing tired of us, he jumped off and headed back into the trees, seeking shelter from the afternoon’s heat.

Starting up our truck, we drove through and then exited the enclosure into another area. A small bit of travel ensued before we finally spotted the first of two female lions. One, named Savannah, stood under a tree watching us warily before approaching, yet still maintaining a bit of distance. We drove along the road with her staying nearby until we came across her mate, Madibah, a proud male. Promptly, Madibah jumped into the hood and waited for his treat, while Savannah waited patiently nearby. After he was satisfied, he climbed onto our roof and Savannah took her turn, giving us some great photo opportunities with the assistance of our guide.

While I don’t recommend it, we did get some pretty decent shots of Madibah by holding our phone’s camera through an opening at the top of the vehicle. After trying it once, (seeing another friend successfully photograph Madibah this way), I was roared at, causing me to quickly pull my phone inside. On a trip a week later, another friend had Madibah grab her phone from her, biting it and hurling it from the vehicle onto the muddy road.

I wonder if Apple Care covers that!

Our thirty minute adventure soon came to a close and we headed back to where we had started.

What I did learn later, however, is that in addition to the adult lion encounter, Ranch de Bandia also offers a baby lion encounter. This was not an option offered to us nor to any of my friends who visited near that time, leaving me to wonder if it is something that has been added recently or if there were no baby lions at that time.

A visit to both parks is something special for visitors to Senegal. An opportunity to see many animals in a protected reserve is unique to the area and should not be missed! And if you travel with my friend and tour guide, a great dinner on the beach in nearby Saly can wrap up your day’s adventures!!

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Ranch de Bandia

Lion cub activity, 1000-1530, daily, 15 minutes. 25,000CFA per person. 18 years and over only. Mandatory dress required: trousers and closed shoes.
Lion Safari, 0900-1630, daily, 30 minutes. Children ages, 3-10 years, 10,000CFA per person. Adults, 20,000CFA per person.
Compulsory vehicle rental for the safari, 20,000 CFA for a maximum capacity of 7 people.

The Motherland Experience

http://themotherlandexperiencetraveltours.com
Telephone: +221 77 295 24 24
Owner: Mass Kane
Email: Kanemass@hotmail.com

Camels and the Capital

After an eventful day visiting the Saloum Delta in Senegal, we were still yearning to explore more than we had ever experienced in this beautiful African country.

Our friend and tour guide Mass gave us another option…one he had described to me in the past. A place that he said he wanted to take me to show me the contrasting beauty that existed in the northwest coast of the country.

It would be a long day…longer than the day spent visiting the Saloum Delta, but we were ready to tackle it for the adventures that lay in store.

*Sights along the way to the Lompoul Desert*

Three and a half hours after our early departure, we woke from our napping to realize that we had turned onto a small, hilly road, leading to the Ecolodge de Lompoul. This lodge is situated in in the Lompoul Desert, a small desert with distinctive orange sands piled into high, extraordinarily shaped dunes. Located about 145 kilometers south of Saint-Louis, the country’s former capital, the area is stunningly beautiful and offers accommodations in the form of tented lodges. As we pulled into the Ecolodge’s perimeter, we noticed the row of tents to the left and the main tent containing the restaurant on the right side.

The main thing we saw, however, was the magnificent sand dunes that stretched out beyond the tents, all the way to the Atlantic Ocean!

While the lodge offers quad bikes to rent and ride throughout the desert (which would have been fun), we had opted to do a more traditional activity…riding camels!

We jumped onto our camels and headed out into the barren landscape. It was hot but a faint breeze, from the nearby ocean, cooled the air as we plodded on through the desert. It was quite beautiful and serene. While we wished that we would have had time to ride all the way to the water, it was still quite some distance. Instead, we concentrated on the shifting sands and even spotted a dung beetle!

With our ride over, we headed back to the camp to have a cool drink before hitting the road again. One thing we wanted to do before we left, however, was check out the accommodations. Peeking into the first tent, we discovered a pretty nice setup. There were beds on the left, protected with mosquito netting and the floor covered with a nice carpet. A couple of chairs and a table filled the remaining space. Behind the table, to the right, there was a dividing cloth and behind it, a basin and primitive shower and a toilet. While the tents have running water, they do not have electricity. They were extremely clean and we were impressed! Had we known the setup, we might have decided to come here the day before and spend the night!

Finally, we were on our way again, this time enroute to Saint-Louis or Ndar, as it is known to the locals. Saint-Louis was the capital of the French colony of Senegal from 1673 until 1902. From 1920 until 1957, it served as the capital of the neighboring colony of Mauritania.

*Sights between Lompoul and Saint Louis*

Driving into the city, we marveled at the colonial architecture and as we crossed the iron Faidherbe Bridge, which links the island of the city of Saint-Louis to the African mainland and we were excited to realize that we were getting ready to see life in the city. But first, lunch!

Lunch at Flamingo Restaurant was delicious and our appetites were filled with not only the grilled gambas, but with the outstanding view of the muddy Senegal River rushing under the Faidherbe bridge and the faint landscape of Mauritania in the distance. With our lunch complete, we walked outside and jumped into a horse drawn cart for the real treat! A tour of the island!

Riding through the streets, I remembered thinking of how much it reminded me of my trip to Cuba. Buildings were largely in disrepair, but I could still the beauty that once was.

Once an important economic center, it still has some important industries including fishing and tourism, mainly due to its status as a UNESCO world Heritage site. While sugar production plays an important part of their commerce, we could see how fishing is what is the most dominant.

As we crossed from the island of Saint-Louis onto the Langue de Barbarie Peninsula, this was where the role fishing plays in the community was most apparent. The village of Guet N’Dar was bustling with activity and colorful boats lined the river banks. Multihued clothing and fishing nets, attached to lines strung between buildings, fluttered in the sea breeze, while strings of bobbers littered the grounds. Near the end of the peninsula, trucks were lined readied for loading of the day’s catch.

Elsewhere, goats languished in the sun while older residents sought out shade from the afternoon’s heat. The children played in the streets, sometimes oblivious to our presence and at others captivated, running alongside our cart, yelling ”Toubab” (white people)!

As I sat on my perch, riding through the streets, I could not help but be mesmerized by its simplistic beauty but I also felt as though we were intruding on these people’s daily lives. True, they rely on tourism, yet you could feel their watchful eyes, wondering why we were truly there.

Eventually, we returned to Saint-Louis where we stopped for a moment to admire L’eglise Saint-Louis-en-I’lle, the 18th century Catholic Church which bears the distinction of being the oldest church in West Africa. The first foundation stone was laid on February 11, 1827 and was brought to fruition by Anne-Marie Javouhey, founder of the Order of Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny and Captain Roger Baron. The stone was blessed by the apostolic prefect Girardon father and opened to it faithful on November 4, 1828.

With so much to see and experience in Saint-Louis, I could have stayed for days soaking it all in, but alas, there was a long drive back to Dakar to think of.

Bidding our adieus, we took our tired, sweaty and camel-smelling bodies to the waiting van for our return trip. Indeed it was an amazing adventure, one that I will build upon on a future trip! A night in a desert tent will definitely be something in my future when I return, but as of this day, I will think back fondly of our trip to the north of Senegal to the vast desert, the former capital and its people.

For more pictures, check out Facebook, Snapping the Globe and Instagram, @snappingtheglobe.

The Motherland Experience

http://themotherlandexperiencetraveltours.com
Telephone: +221 77 295 24 24
Owner: Mass Kane
Email: Kanemass@hotmail.com

Lompoul Eco-Lodge

Restaurant Le Flamingo

https://www.hoteldelapostesaintlouis.com/le-flamingo/
Hours: 1200 noon-0200

Baobabs, Bats, Birds and Boats

Three whole days in Senegal!

That much time in Senegal nowadays is a rarity for me and I was excited for the possibilities it held. Until…we found out that my company had changed our hotel at the last minute due to a problem with our regular one. The one we were being moved to was in the middle of nowhere! Nothing to do but hang at the overly crowded pool and stare out of my dusty window at the highway.

Thank goodness, I have a good friend who operates his own tour company, The Motherland Experience! After contacting Mass Kane, my friend Amy and I quizzed him for some different tour ideas since we both have done quite a lot within the country.

We perused a few different options that he presented and finally decided on the Saloum Delta. Located on the southwestern coast of Senegal, this is the area where the Saloum river meets the Atlantic Ocean. What interested us most was that we were told that if we made it there on time, we might be able to participate in the drum mass at the Catholic church. Now that was something I was wanting to see…and hear!

Leaving early in the morning, we began the long drive, past the resort town of Saly toward Fatick. In Mbour, we stopped quickly so that we could get a glimpse of the Grand Mosquee de Gandigal-Est. Though we could not get closer than the front gates, past the tall palms that line the front walkway we could see that it was a stunning piece of architecture with its twin minarets reaching skyward. A little further, we drove down a narrow dirt road to check out the Catholic Church’s steeple towering over the trees. Attracting a great deal of attention, a group of young girls came over to say hello. Wanting to practice their English, they giggled and asked me my name and insisted we all take a picture together!

*Catholic Church and local school girls*

Continuing on our way, we reached Fatick, where witnessing large crowds walking through the muddy streets and congregating in a large field, we learned that the community was hosting a festival. While I am sure that it would have been interesting to take part, we had a destination in mind, so after stopping to watch a few minutes of a wrestling match in the field, we headed out.

A short time later, we pulled over again.

Now, there are baobab trees everywhere in western Africa and I have seen some gigantic ones during my times there, but the tree located here? It was one of the largest baobab trees I had ever seen. Mass wanted us to see this magnificent beauty so we all jumped out and began to take pictures. On one side of the tree, we noticed a hole…the entrance to the inside of the tree! Many of the baobab trees are hollow and as they are considered sacred, they are often used for burials of the village elders, but we were invited to climb inside as it was empty. Well, I am not one to pass up a challenge, so I readied myself, hike up a leg and attempted to follow the directions of the Senegalese men offering to help me inside. It is was not the most elegant of entrances and I actually got stuck for a moment, but finally after wiggling a bit, I made it in!

Very dark and damp, it seemed more like a cave and realizing that I was feeling drops of what felt like water, I looked up. Well, what do you normally find in caves? Bats! Hundreds of bats were circling above me and were attached to the inside of the tree. And that water? Well, you know…not water.

Getting out of there as fast as I could, I prayed that I didn’t contract any airborne illnesses from the bats and headed over to the nearby stalls to check out some of the local crafts for sale.

Finally, we were on our way once again and after a few short miles, we arrived at the Somone Lagoon. Herding us down to the boats, Mass greeted the boatman and we were on our way through the Saloum Delta.

The delta is the perfect place to see a variety of wildlife and birds among the mangrove trees. We glided through the calm waters admiring nearby houses and wharfs. As the boat eventually slowed, we pulled up to a small beach onto Morloth Island. On the shore was a small hotel with woven hammocks swinging in the breeze under a grass hut. This looked like a place I could hang out for a couple of days!

Quickly guided to the rear of the structure, we were loaded onto a horse-drawn cart with a few other visitors. Heading out, we bumped along the dirt road until we reached a small, quaint village.

The narrow road, lined by high walls, protected the cinderblock structures behind them and after a short ride, we were pulling into the main part of the village. A white, weathered gazebo stood in the center, obviously the place for village gatherings and we spotted a minaret towering above the village mosque. Children walked together in groups and many local artisans attempted to attract our attention to sell us their wares. A little ways up the road, we were shown the marriage trees. These trees had grown adjacent to each other and intertwined. With their tall roots extending from their bases, it was a great spot for photos.

A short walk led us to the Catholic church, Missionaire Du Sacre Coeur. This is the scene of the famous drum mass that we had heard of, but sadly, we learned that we were too late. The Sunday services were complete and with it the sounds of the local instruments. Disappointed, we stepped through the doors of the church, admired the stark simplicity of the interior with its pointed arches, heavy wooden pews and small stained glass windows which encircled the worship space. Designed for a smaller congregation, it was intimate and even more of a disappointment that we did not get to participate in the Sunday services.

Setting out to make the return trip, we first stopped at a large, covered pavilion; the craft market. Unlike any craft market I had ever experienced, these ladies were intent on each vendor getting a crack at selling their wares. While, I like to peruse all commodities in a normal market for the best selection, we were each greeted by a village woman and ushered over to a chair. The woman then proceeded to show me what she had. Only. I wasn’t allowed to look at what was being offered to anyone beside me or anywhere else in the pavilion. Since I have been to Africa so often and have so many mementos, it would take something extremely unique to have me open my wallet…and on this day, I saw nothing of the sort. Leaving with my merchant a bit unhappy, I decided to concentrate on the the musicians who filled the afternoon with song. Though we didn’t get to partake in the drum mass, here we listened to the beats of the local soul and watched one woman bust out her moves! She definitely had the rhythm!

Hopping back onto our cart, we were driven back to our starting point so that we could take our boat back across the delta. Here, we would have a delicious lunch to ready us for the long drive back to Dakar.

Although a long day, the trip to the Saloum delta was filled with the colorful sights and sounds of western Africa, along the way and at our destination. Definitely an experience I won’t ever forget!