Georgetown (2 days)

Georgetown is about 130 mi / 240 km from the coast in the fresh water region of the country. Your trip begins on a ferry across the Gambia River, along with more people than you’ve ever seen on one boat! Then you’re off for a six-hour jeep trip inland past traditional villages with their thatched-roofed huts and scores of kids waving as you pass. We took pens and lollipops with us to hand out as we drove by. You’ll have aching muscles from all the waving you do, but the smiles you get in return more than make up for the discomfort.

Along your route are the Wassu Stone Circles, one of several grave sites in Gambia and Senegal that are on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It’s like Stonehenge on a smaller scale, and it dates from around the 8th century CE.

Georgetown was founded in 1823 by Alexander Grant, who bought a village from the king and turned it into a refuge for freed slaves and a trading post for England. There’s an old slave market, several buildings from the colonial period, both English and French, and a lively market place. You’ll have dinner and spend the night and the next day will take a four-hour boat trip up the Gambia River. This is an area teeming with amazing wildlife: crocodiles, huge tortoises, baboons and hippos.

If you aren’t comfortable when it’s hot, we suggest you skip this trip. Inland temperatures are usually 10 degrees warmer than on the coast, and there’s no cool breeze from the sea. On the day we went to Georgetown, it was 32 C/90 F in Kotu and 40 C/104 F inland. But seeing those hippos made up for whatever discomfort we felt. We do recommend you have a good meal in Georgetown before you start the long trip home.