Trek to the Abaryeme cliffs and remote villages

About thirty minutes walk from Logba Tota, the impressive Asbaryeme cliffs stretch for over a kilometre and are several hundred metres high. When it rains, there are splendid cascades from the massive overhang. At the base are large rock shelters believed to be have been used since prehistory. There are huge mahogany and silk cotton trees, and many small cocoa farms tucked into the montane rainforest. 

Walk on for a few kilometres through the mountains and you will find some of the remotest villages in Ghana - tucked away in idyllic forest with delicious exotic fruit dripping off every tree. You don't need to take a packed lunch - its growing all around you! Walk on just a bit further and the paths will take you right into Togo.

Akpeteshie - an illicit still in the mountains
Amanda inspects the woodpile Rob meeting the village elders
A cocoa pod - the fruit can be eaten and the dark kernel contains the cocoa which is dried and powdered Amanda and Moussa sampling the local delicacies

An added attraction in the high villages are the small unlicensed stills making the real Ghanaian "mountain dew" - a schnapps like liquor called Akpeteshie distilled from palm wine which is about 75 percent proof, straight from the still and quite delicious. ( see below) Palm wine is made from the sap from a species of palm tree. It takes about a week or ten days to ferment, and is very bitter - undrinkable to most people. The naturally fermented palm wine is then heated in a steel oil drum, the steam is condensed in another drum filled with water, and the resulting liquor then flows into the plastic drum. It's incredibly simple, and highly effective.  This may be the most remote "bar" in the world!

steep, well made trails link the smaller villages. the Asbaryeme cliffs near Logba Tota granny helps with the childcare simple kitchen
Climbing a coconut tree to bring down some fine nuts with a long bamboo pole and steel hook. domestic african dogs and goats
The fruit of the cocoa pod is also delicious, a little like passion fruit. a pineapple growing wild in the bush an illicit still in the hills making Akpeteshie, the local fire-water, from palm Wine Rob enjoying a tot of the real mountain dew Akpeteshie - this stuff is HOT!
coffee beans drying in the sun magnificent large gourds have many uses, and can even be used to make drums. a village school - no more than a mud hut really

Recommended gear: travel light. Temperatures vary from C20-30 degrees in the rainy season, otherwise hotter. A poncho is a good idea in the rainy season from June to September. A bush hat is useful. Light boots are preferable to sandals just in case you encounter a snake, though reptiles will usually slither off to hide when they hear you coming. High performance well ventilated tropical bush shirts and long trousers are vital to deter the midges and mosquitoes, though they are very selective about who they eat: whilst Amanda was plagued with midge bites, Rob got away scot-free.

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Logba home

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Logba Tota village

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Waterfall and cave trek

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Trek to the Volta valley

bullet Logba Tota primary school (videos and sound