Second attempt to locate Cousteau in Senegal. Chapter 2.
Tuesday, 13 February 2018 10:31 |
-URDAIBAI RESERVE- Sunday 19 November Knowing that procedures are often lengthy at the border crossing into Gambia, I arrived at the Karang checkpoint first thing in the morning. I then made my way to Barra to catch the ferry which would take me across the mouth of the River Gambia and on to the capital, Banjul. I was planning a quick journey to Jiboro, a checkpoint next to the Senegalese region of Casamance. Despite the fact that there are only 100km between the two points, I was obliged to stop at 8 different police controls. To my surprise, I was only asked for “a financial contribution to the police” at one of them. My previous experiences had required numerous donations!
Mosque next to the road Access road to Koubalan I soon reached Baila, a small village next to a vast area which is flooded by the River Casamance. Roy Dennis had informed me that an adult osprey, Azul DF, had frequented the area but that its satellite device had stopped emitting a signal. Acting on Roy´s request, I tried to locate this individual. Exploring the zone, I did spot an osprey in the distance but I was unable to see whether it was ringed or carried a device due to the intense heat shimmer. The temperature was around 35º. The wintering area of Cousteau Having had no luck locating Azul DF, I continued my journey south. I had set my heart on finding Cousteau and I was going to start my search in the area which had been indicated by the Argos satellite. After passing through Bignona, I drove down an extremely bumpy dirt track, which, much to my surprise, was full of small buses laden with people and goods. The track ran through a wetland which was surrounded by a wooded landscape. On the way I had the pleasure of photographing a sacred ibis (Threskiornis aethiopicus) which was fishing and some hooded vultures (Necrosyrtes monachus) which had been attracted by carrion. African sacred ibis Hooded vulture I finally arrived in Koubalan, a village situated on the edge of the marsh. It was there that I hoped to locate Cousteau. I parked the car and took a look around. Koubalan
Black crowned crane Spur-winged goose and Ruffs next to the rice field My heart skipped a beat! Even in the poor light I could see that the ring it wore was surely yellow! Time was running out. Soon it would be dark. In the distance, drums began to sound. I drove back to Koubalan in order to get to the nearest part of the riverbank as quickly as possible. However, this was a serious mistake. As soon as I got out of the car I was surrounded by a swarm of children shouting “Lulu” (“White man” in the Diola language). By the time I managed escape from them and get down to the water´s edge, the ringed osprey had disappeared. It was getting late so I decided to take the main road back to Ziguinchor and look for accommodation. There my luck took a turn for the better. On my arrival, I attended a local dance performance which was led by the Naisse, one of the three masked dancers in the Diola culture. |