If you’re looking to strike out on your own and explore an area you know literally nothing about, Africa is the place to be … especially if you’re from New Jersey. While I’ve recovered from the trauma of the market attack in my last post, this weekend I got to experience something even more terrifyingly awesome: a canopy walk.
A brief explanation about the country of Ghana: this place has it all. It’s a coastal country on the western side of the African continent, full to the brim with gorgeous port cities (including Accra, where I’m currently living), beaches galore, European castles and rainforests – and THAT’S just on the coast! Ripe with history, Ghana has been a major player on the African scene for a long time. Starting as one of the major kingdoms of West Africa in the 15th century, Ghana was the first African country to declare its independence and is currently one of the most stable and developed on the continent. But enough of the history lessons – back to the rainforest.
On Friday, our group piled in our little white van and hit the road for Cape Coast, another costal city about two and a half hours away from the capital. Our first stop was to Kakum National Park, the home of a Ghanaian rainforest. Fun fact: they do not like when you call it a jungle, nor do the guides appreciate poorly sung renditions of “in the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight!” while attempting to speak to the group at large. While the self-important forest ranger with an extremely thick accent may not have a true appreciation for The Lion King, he did inform me that the very forest I was standing in was home to forest elephants (who knew those existed?) and multiple species of monkeys. I was in African heaven! I have to say, I feel a little shortchanged because I won’t be going on a safari while I’m here, but that just about made up for it. No, I didn’t get to see the majestic “forest elephant” in his natural habitat, but I feel like being in the same vicinity as this wild beast was enough for me.
After a brief scolding, my group and a huge passel of children on a field trip started the hike up the mountain. It was only about a ten-minute hike, and when I say hike I mean “steep walk up a manicured path.” But let me tell you … a steep walk up a manicured path in an African rainforest is hard work. When we got to the wooden shack/holding pen area that led to the entrance of the canopy walk, however, I totally forgot that I was out of breath and dripping with sweat. When my professor said, “canopy walk” I had visions of Indiana Jones-like movie scenes, complete with swinging rope bridges. Frighteningly enough, this image and the actual bridge I came face to face with were eerily similar. To complete my walk I would have to traverse seven “bridges” with a platform attached to a tree between each. These “bridges” were literally metal ladders bolted together with wooden boarded secured on top of them and rope nets on either side. While the guide assured us the bridges were safety checked each morning, one look told me this guy was full of it. But did that stop me? No, absolutely not.
For those of you who are afraid of heights, NEVER consider a canopy walk. I don’t know why you would, but don’t. I don’t have a problem with heights, but as soon as my foot hit that first bridge I wanted to cry. Or possibly pee in my pants. I swear I was debating whether it would be more beneficial to run back to safety or just throw myself off the bridge and call it an accident. But the beautiful thing this trip has taught me is that when you’re uncertain of what lies ahead of you, take a deep breath and push forward. So that’s what I did.
I may have been petrified, but I was lucky enough to have a once-in-a-lifetime experience. As I crossed the bridges, (which were 500+ feet above the rainforest floor, mind you) I was blown away by the sheer beauty of the forest. Hundreds of miles of untouched wilderness stretched away before my eyes. Not North Carolina mountains wilderness, either. Pure African rainforest, with trees and vegetation I had never seen before and may never be lucky enough to see again. If I had turned tail and run, I would have seriously missed out. So make sure you take chances, because the bigger the risk, the bigger the reward (generally). And next time you freak out hanging up Christmas lights for your parents because the ladder is “too high” and you’re “scared of heights,” think of me swinging perilously above the rainforest floor on a rope bridge, and consider yourself lucky that you can at least see the solid ground.
*Photography by Carly Brown