The Gambia - January 2024 - Day 7 - Brufut and Marakissa

Final day! We flew at around 9pm or thereabouts, arriving back at Gatwick at something like 3am. This is the ethos of the package holiday.... Before that though we had a lot more birding to do. Would Yankuba be keen?

The short answer was no. The longer answer was that we actually had to give him money for petrol to be taken to Brufut Woods, as all he wanted to do was walk around Kotu again. And then when we wanted to go to Marakissa as well he threw a fit, that it was too far, that we didn't have enough time etc etc. All of which was garbage as in fact we spent over two hours at Marakissa and still made the flight. We were surprised at his recalcitrance, but as Mick said, this was not his first rodeo. Maybe most clients just acquiesce for the sake of keeping things nice and friendly and he gets an easy life. Not us I'm afraid.

Western Plantain-eater

Laughing Dove

Anyway after a bit of dialogue at the creek during which I finally saw African Thrush, we headed the short distance to Brufut Woods. It's about half an hour away. Whilst habitation has encroached on all sides, this is still a great area for birding, and at a drinking station we were able to observe a pair of Violet Turaco at close range. Although we might have got other species there we didn't linger, mainly as the guides there just used the opportunity to have a nice loud chat, which didn't feel especially conducive to birding. Can you tell we were done with guides at this point? Anyway, we had a excellent walk both through the woods and along the outer edge, and were shown another Long-tailed Nightjar at a day roost. The best part however was walking though some of the lanes and low-level agricultural areas on the opposite side of the road to the woods. Here we found Fanti Sawwing, Red-necked Falcon, Greater Honeyguide, Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird, Brown Babbler. more African Thrush, and Northern Black-Flycatcher. 

Violet Turaco

Mourning Collared Dove

Moving on to Tujareng we walked all the way from the final houses down to the ocean, seeing Mottled Spinetail, Double-spurred Spurfowl, Shikra, Blue-cheeked and Little Bee-eaters, Tawny-flanked Prinia, Singing Cisticola, Splendid and Variable Sunbirds, and Yellow-fronted Canary. It was a strange place. There were some occupied dwellings, but also a zoned area where people had built the walls of compounds and nothing more, and the interiors were a maze of vegetation with the odd cow wandering around.

Beautiful Sunbird

Wattled Lapwing

From here we went to our final and best stop of the day, Marakissa. This is a bridge over a river that then expands into a series of shallow loops to the east with easily navigable tracks on both sides. The west side is more of an actual river, and getting close to that part was more challenging, especially when we saw our first Black Heron on that side. This was an excellent location and we were more than happy to stay here until we needed to pack up and get to the airport. Seeing as there was no pressure to find additional species we spent most of the time trying to photograph the Black Herons (there were four in total), and to at least get something on the Black Crakes (five of these!) as they dashed between cover. There were tons of Waders that I couldn't get close to, and lots of Herons that I did slightly better with, and lots of Yellow-billed Shrikes. A stop that I highly recommend for any itinerary. It's about 45 minutes from the airport and thus works well as a final stop.

Black Crake

Black Heron

Hamerkop

Wire-tailed Swallow

Pied Kingfisher

Yellow-billed Shrike

Just after 5pm we returned to the car, packed the cameras away, changed clothes, and headed to the airport. Our goodbyes were less frosty than I had anticipated, and as well as a small tip I gave him my portable battery pack which he had been using more or less constantly since he discovered I had one. It could easily be replaced and he clearly found it genuinely useful, and it would presumably be harder to get one here. He also asked if we also get him a new mobile phone once back in the UK and have it sent out with the next lot of visiting birders but I think that was a step too far. In summary he knew the birds, but he was also rather distracted for about half of the trip and not really interested in delivering a top-quality service nor working very hard. Not our business to ask, and unfortunate if indeed there was something wrong, but at the end of the day we were paying clients - and paying high amounts in local terms - so were disappointed that he became rather lacklustre. 

I don't use guides especially often but the ones I have used have for the most part been excellent, especially in Central and South America, and also on my first South African trip. Not only are they phenomenal birders but they work incredibly hard to get you the birds and make the experience unforgettable. That didn't happen this time. But at the end of the day we come home with 227 species and most of the main targets, so even when things are not perfect you can still see tons. My advice if going to The Gambia is to hire a less experienced guide rather than one of the established names. A bit of a gamble perhaps but they might be enthused and more keen in the interests of getting a good reputation and future business. As it stands I can't wholeheartedly recommend the guide we used but ultimately it was fine and we came away with what we wanted.

Anyway, to the final matter of the airport. It was hell on earth. There is an exit tax to pay, which must be cash (all major currencies accepted!) and there was the most crazy queue in order to ensure that everyone paid it, exacerbated by a seeming complete failure of the IT systems designed to record it. Eventually I made it to a little window where you can pay Dalasi, Euros, Pounds, Dollars, whatever - try and use local currency as the exchange rates are pure fantasy. Behind the grille more senior people counted up huge wads of banknotes and stuffed them into bags, it felt more like the back room of an illicit casino than an international airport, really quite sordid. Eventually I got my little slip of paper that said that sufficient cash had been extracted from me that I could leave the country, and was able to progress through security and to an outside seating area where we had a celebratory drink that we had survived the ordeal. I don't remember the flight home. Tui is basically long haul Ryanair and whilst you have to endure it there is no point dwelling on it.

I'd like to think my cash is headed here

Next up the inevitable trip list.