FOCUS ON TOURISM IN NORTHERN REGION - TOURIST VIEW OF MOLE PARK

By Lisa Bogler

On a walking tour through Mole National Park, Ghana‘s largest national park, visitors can come across all varieties of animals from Kingfishers to elephants.

After a five-hour drive in a full bus from Tamale to Mole National Park along a bumpy road, me and my friend finally arrive at the car park outside Mole Motel. It is dark already and we cannot see much so we just ask for a room, take some food and settle down for the night. 

Next morning in daylight we actually see where we are. 

The motel is situated on a hill overlooking an immense area of bush. The view is beautiful and we are about to walk straight through this landscape on our walking safari. We and a group of five other tourists are guided along the little paths that lead through the park, over salt lakes and across little streams.

 The first species of the 94 recorded mammals we meet are warthogs, strolling around a group of houses in search of food. Jumping around them and up and down a tree are monkeys, loads of them. Our guide Adam teaches us their scientific names but we forget them instantly as we are too fascinated by our surroundings. Leaving the monkeys behind we continue our walk and come across more monkeys, antelopes, soldier ants and birds. As we cross a stream, we suddenly stand in front of an elephant, half hidden by a bush he is feeding on. The guide tells us to stay at a safe distance, but the elephant is friendly, flaps his ears and does not interrupt his lunch. As excited tourists that we are, cameras are turned on and pictures taken. One of the elephant‘s tusk is only a stump. It is the right one, which elephants use when they eat. The left tusk is used in fights with other elephants. 

After a while we set off to a platform next to a pond with crocodiles. We only get glimpses of shadows in the grass at the pond‘s bank and watch birds gliding through the air instead. Around the water, the landscape is more green as compared to the brown dry ground with the few thin trees we are crossing now. Old footprints of elephants show that the ground becomes muddy when it rains. Some patches are burned black as the park staffs sometimes burns the bush to keep it clear for visiting tourists. It also helps to prevent big fires spreading across the 4577 square-kilometre big reserve and lets fresh grass grow that the animals like. 

The guide leads us up a hill and then we are back in front of Mole Motel. Some monkeys made their way to the guest rooms in hope for a snack from the one or the other tourist who are eating at the restaurant or sunbathing next to the pool. It is a peaceful and quiet place that we reluctantly leave but it is time for us to go. We keep this trip in good memory.