‘Never smile at a crocodile’
On Saturday (26th January) the
Ghana volunteers reunited in Paga, in the Upper East Region of Ghana, to
celebrate Ben’s 26th birthday. We met Team Tamale and Team Bolga at
Paga Crocodile Pond, a popular tourist attraction that is apparently filled
with some of the biggest crocodiles in the world.
There is a myth that the first man to settle
in the area had his life saved by one of the crocodiles, by leading the traveller
to the pond to quench his thirst after a long journey in the African sun. Filled
with gratitude, he then declared the crocodile ponds in the area ‘sacred’ and declared
that all crocodiles in Paga were to be treated as royalty.
Alternatively, there is another myth to the
famous crocodile pond. The story goes that a hunter was trapped between the
pond and a lion. In order to spare his life, he made a deal with a crocodile
that he and his decedents would never eat crocodile meat. Imagining that there
is a talking crocodile in this story, just for my own amusement, the crocodile agreed
to help the hunter cross the pond to escape the lion. At the other side he then
found a village and his home where he settled.
(DearGhana.com)
Even today, it is seen as a taboo to hurt or
kill a Paga crocodile. According to travel site, UnitedPlanet.org it is also
believed that “the soul of every native in the village [in Paga] has a
corresponding crocodile in the pond.”
Paga Crocodile Pond is the only place in the world where you can touch
and sit on a crocodile due to their – what we may find, unusually - tame
behaviour.
When we entered the pond we were directed to
a huge crocodile lying still beneath a tree. It didn’t move for a good five
minutes, leading us to believe that it wasn’t real until birthday boy, Ben approached
it and perched at the end of its tail. Its mouth slowly opened revealing it’s
garish teeth. Confirming it was actually alive and kicking, the team slowly shuffled
back.
Everyone was pretty brave stepping up to the
beast of a reptile. Team Sandema did well; Tracy posed with the tail and Will looked
pretty cool straddling the croc. I however wasn’t as keen and lasted long
enough for a photo opportunity and jumped off as fast as I could.
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| Jenna looking a little nervous |
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| Strike a pose, Tracy! |
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| Poppy puckering up with the crocodile |
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| William Stewart, Crocodile Hunter |
What was more fascinating to watch was the
crocodiles that kept creeping in and out of the water behind us. The guide /
crocodile master / guy with the stick lured one of the crocs out of the water
with a live guinea fowl. Attracted by the noise the croc slowly crawled out of
the water, creeping closer and closer. Looking pretty hungry the guide threw
the guinea fowl towards the croc and it was demolished in a matter of minutes.
It was an amazing opportunity to come face to face with the crocs, but a subtle reminder of how dangerous these animals are!
It was great to see the other volunteers and we had a fantastic time at Paga Crocodile Park. It’s made us even more excited to visit Mole National Park in a few weeks time to discover more of Ghana’s wildlife.
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| Going.... |
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| ....going..... |
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| GONE! |
It was an amazing opportunity to come face to face with the crocs, but a subtle reminder of how dangerous these animals are!
It was great to see the other volunteers and we had a fantastic time at Paga Crocodile Park. It’s made us even more excited to visit Mole National Park in a few weeks time to discover more of Ghana’s wildlife.
Jenna
References:
http://www.dearghana.com/attractions/paga-crocodile-pond/
http://www.unitedplanet.org/additional-excursions-ghana
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