A VISIT TO MOLE NATIONAL PARK

By: Ryan Millward

Located in the Northern Region and covering an area of 4840km2, it is the largest national park in Ghana and one of the chief tourist attractions of the country as a whole. The park, situated in the heart of the pristine Guinea Savannah Woodland ecosystem, is host to an impressive 93 mammals of which include all the favorites such as elephants, lions, monkeys, hyenas and baboons; it is also home to 344 species of birds and a further 33 species of reptiles. Sure, while all the facts and figures draw the light on how exciting Mole National Park is to visit, they really can't tell the full story; the lush, wild African environment and plethora of wildlife must be witness to the senses and that is why the full story of Mole is best told by taking the journey up north and visiting the attraction.

Our visit remains a memorable one; stopping over in the nearby village of Larabanga the night before, we set out early in the morning on our rented bikes to cascade through the landscape on a dirt track before arriving at the park at 7am. The park runs two walks a day for visitors; the first, commencing 7am in the morning, shows tourists around the park in the light of early morning as the animals awake and birds sing deafeningly. The second walk takes place in the late afternoon at 3.30pm for people who want to catch the animals and wildlife in the closing half-light of day.

After paying 10 cedi to enter the parks gates and being split into groups, we were led into the wilderness by a long serving ranger and his trusty rifle; there really was an aura of excitement about it as we continuously edged further into the maze of greenery - infact it wasn't long before we bare witness to our first glimpse of the park's wildlife with a collection of baboons and warthogs surrounding the area around us. The animals remain surprisingly tame. The stereotype of baboons being vicious seemed odd as we walked by taking photos from what could only be a couple of meters away. Photos taken, both physically and mentally, we carried on further into the park to see what else would come our way.

Clumsily stumbling through the woodland, we made our way through the daunting army of trees and anthills, climbing up the paths and rocky ground and overlooking the vast landscape of Mole. The ranger further led the way like a true wildlife enthusiast as he paraded his rifle over his shoulder whilst creeping, listening and smelling anything he could to lead us into the path of more wildlife. It wasn't long before he did; through the trees a collection of antelope were visible. All females we were told. They galloped gracefully before spotting us. Heads turned, eyes made contact; we watched them for a while before they dissappeared into the green ocean of the jungle. It is rare to see male antelopes as they all fight for control of one area; in such, if you see two males together, more likely than not, they will be fighting for ownership of that land and all the female antelope that locate there. The male we did see, as expected, was alone; he stood intensely gaging the area out as we quietly passed through. That we did as we pressed on deeper into the park.

Antelopes, baboons, birds and warthogs; sure, while they are all nice to see in the environment, make no mistake - the main hope (baring the enormous odds of actually seeing a lion - the last one was spotted 3 months ago) is to see a collection of elephants. There are around 600 elephants living in Mole and they are regularly spotted by visitors with the guides expert tracking and knowledge of the area. With this thought we moved on down the hill to the lake and salt lakes where we had the best chance of locating them. Still humorously clutching his rifle, the long-serving guide lead us deeper and deeper into the park as he picked up recent tracks of elephants and hyena; we didn't expect to see many hyena as they are mainly nocturnal animals but the thought of seeing elephants in their natural environment was genuinely exciting.

Nervously we walked on toward the lake. Listening. Looking. Smelling. It felt like a true wildlife experience as we crossed paths with another group of tourists all bounded in the hope of seeing the large creatures. We edged further on. Passing through salt lakes and trees, looking for recent droppings or footprints. Eventually the ranger stopped suddenly. He looked into a collection of trees. Now, to the untrained eye, which I can say I very much am, it appeared as though nothing was there; but the ranger, still parading his rifle and standing with a stance of readiness, thought different as he sniffed his nose upwards and picked up the scent of elephant. We stopped for a few seconds more before making our way over a hundred meters or so. Before we knew it a large, dark grey shape was viewable through the trees. Elephants. We had found elephants. At first it was just one but as we approached further and made our way onto an open plain, we had within our sights a collection of 6 or 7 males.

They are fascinating creatures really; fundamentally they don't do alot, but what they do, they make it look interesting. Using their trunks to throw large clumps of mud over their backs. Snapping huge branches off as they stumble through trees. The elephants put on a entertaining show in the woodland for us as everyone dashed to take photos and be seen with the creatures. We stood, overwhealmed to an extent, in the African plains of Mole gazing at these joyful animals. 10 minutes later we were still watching. 20 minutes later we were still watching. 30 minutes later, yeah, still watching. Eventually they made their way back into the woodland and toward the lake. We followed.them some more like true stalkers before deciding to call it a day.

We had spent two hours in the clutches of Mole National Park and the visit was of great worth; as we sat eating at Mole Motel overlooking the never-ending canopy of trees that glided onto the horizon, the thought of how rare such an experience is passed through my head. A true taste of Africa was tasted. The animals and environment not only embedded into Ghana but also our minds. It is recommended that when in the north of Ghana, a visit to Mole remains compulsory; certainly as we passed another elephant and some monkeys on the way out, we can only recommend that you do.

Guide walks at the park are 3 cedi for one hour and 6 cedi if the walk reaches two.