Go wild in Gola Forest

After years of conflict, Sierra Leone is embracing tourism and more visitors are going to the country each year. Adventurous tourists are heading into the wild interior and the beautiful Gola Forest, which is home to 56 species of mammals, including chimpanzees, leopards and forest elephants, as well as more than 2 000 different types of plants and 274 species of birds.

In 2009, a transfrontier Peace Park was established in the upper Guinea region of West Africa, joining the Gola Forest in Sierra Leone with the Lofa and Foya forests of Liberia. A UK-based NGO, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, has been working alongside local conservation groups to protect the forest and its endemic species and contribute to sustainable tourism.

Over the past year, some tourism infrastructure has been developed in the 75 000-hectare forest, which now has 21 kilometres of trails and three community-run guesthouses on its perimeter. Go backpacking through the forest with a local guide, who will help you track elusive primates. It costs US$10 (about R80) a night to stay in a guesthouse, US$5 (about R40) for a day pass to the forest and US$5 a day for a guide.

For more information, web www.golarainforest.org; to book a stay in Gola Forest, e-mail golaforest@yahoo.com.