Lomé to São Tomé, 12 -15 Oct 07

Small dugout, big fish

It rained most of the time the first couple of days but it cleared up on the Sunday, so we decided to go on the complimentary boat trip to a nearby island. The sea was full of charming little dugout canoes used by the fishermen of the village nearby. There is an impressive cave under the island with swifts’ nests hanging from it. Our boatman pointed out a narrow opening to the other side and suddenly he was rushing towards it, skilfully steering us through it with just an inch to spare each side.
On the way back to the beach, we passed near a dugout canoe under sail. It turned out that the fisherman had caught a marlin half the length of the boat and was towing this big fish along the side. He told us proudly how he had caught the fish. It must require great skills and strength to catch such a big fish from a small boat with simple equipment. We also admired how he handled such a small sailing craft, steering with a paddle with one hand, and adjusting sheets and bailing water out with the other.
Later we watched the 50 – 60 kg marlin being hauled up on the beach near Club Santana.