Back from the Omo
It was tough at times and we have come back with all sorts of (minor ailments), but we did it! The lower half of the Omo, on raft.
It was a lot more camping than we had expected, but we found great spots to spend the nights, nearby hippos, crocodiles, baboons and hyenas and each site was marked out for us by a magnificent fish eagle.
The group was good.... five guests, Fred and myself and Geof, Chris and Nick, all British, all in their sixties and all with great stories to tell. The rowing crew was Gary, Eddie and Claude from the US and Roberto from Guatemala and the Ethiopian lads were brothers Robel and Zekarias with Danny and Jonas. Thanks guys for looking after us so well and giving us such a memorable experience.
We made camp every night, collected firewood for the camp fire, chopped up meat and vegetables for the fireside dinner, lasagna al forno and bread, incredibly were were baked in Dutch ovens, the vegetables stayed fresh through the whole twelve days and we hardly saw a single can. Early starts were greeted by coffee or tea and fresh fruit, followed by cooked breakfasts of pancakes or omelettes or potato and tomato mash and lunch consisted of fresh bread. Mmmmm..... No alcohol though!!!
We had rapids, flat bits, large bends, eddies, rocks, clear side streams, waterfalls, the accompaniment of birds and beasts and local people to help out every now and then with camp. There was the moon and Venus and Mars and a sideways Orion to keep us company.
Misty mornings, sunny days, rainy evenings (but only AFTER we had set up our tents!).
Forested mountains, riverine forest, scrubland, desert roses and baobabs on the banks. Later, cleared banks ready for farming where the Omo River people plant their crops, every day different, mostly spectacular.
There were the odd disappointments too, the late starts as breakfast was prepared, slightly too few stops for waterfalls and not much opportunity to meet the Omo river people, but on the whole it has been a great experience.
Two weeks right out in the wilds.
Some photos on flickr and some more stories later.
It was a lot more camping than we had expected, but we found great spots to spend the nights, nearby hippos, crocodiles, baboons and hyenas and each site was marked out for us by a magnificent fish eagle.
The group was good.... five guests, Fred and myself and Geof, Chris and Nick, all British, all in their sixties and all with great stories to tell. The rowing crew was Gary, Eddie and Claude from the US and Roberto from Guatemala and the Ethiopian lads were brothers Robel and Zekarias with Danny and Jonas. Thanks guys for looking after us so well and giving us such a memorable experience.
We made camp every night, collected firewood for the camp fire, chopped up meat and vegetables for the fireside dinner, lasagna al forno and bread, incredibly were were baked in Dutch ovens, the vegetables stayed fresh through the whole twelve days and we hardly saw a single can. Early starts were greeted by coffee or tea and fresh fruit, followed by cooked breakfasts of pancakes or omelettes or potato and tomato mash and lunch consisted of fresh bread. Mmmmm..... No alcohol though!!!
We had rapids, flat bits, large bends, eddies, rocks, clear side streams, waterfalls, the accompaniment of birds and beasts and local people to help out every now and then with camp. There was the moon and Venus and Mars and a sideways Orion to keep us company.
Misty mornings, sunny days, rainy evenings (but only AFTER we had set up our tents!).
Forested mountains, riverine forest, scrubland, desert roses and baobabs on the banks. Later, cleared banks ready for farming where the Omo River people plant their crops, every day different, mostly spectacular.
There were the odd disappointments too, the late starts as breakfast was prepared, slightly too few stops for waterfalls and not much opportunity to meet the Omo river people, but on the whole it has been a great experience.
Two weeks right out in the wilds.
Some photos on flickr and some more stories later.
Labels: Ethiopia, Trip to Middle East and Africa
posted by Charles Roffey and Fred O at 16:59
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home