A hike to Ilha de Quirimba

Just south of Ibo and a couple of hours hike away at low tide is Quirimba Island. We decided to go here for a day trip, hiking there in the morning when the tide was out and returning by dhow in the evening when the tide had come back in and walking would be impossible. We hired a guide who led us through mangroves which we would most likely have been lost in forever without him. Part of the time we just had to negotiate the mangrove roots in water, but a lot of the time we found ourselves squelching and sliding through shin high mud. This proved to be very amusing and somehow none of us fell down or got eaten by hiding beasts.

Before we reached the biggest mangroves we past an area full of small crabs with one big clawed arm. They scuttled away as we passed, apparently not really up for attacking our feet.

When we eventually made it out of the mangroves we found ourselves presented with the hugest stretch of white sand that had been left uncovered by the withdrawing tide. At high tide none of the sand would have been visible but at the time we were crossing it, the sand was visible almost as far as you could see with the ocean so far away in the distance. The difference between high and low tide was immense.

It was hard to know at which point it would have been considered that we had moved from Ibo onto Quirimba. Perhaps when we left the mangroves, or half way across the sand, or perhaps at the edge of the beach on the far side. Who knows?!

Anyway, as we crossed the sand we also had to cross rivers the sea had left,which came up to higher than our waists. This provided another opportunity to practice the African style of carrying things, as we put our bags on our heads to keep them dry.

When we finally reached what was most definitely Quirimba, we made our way down the quiet sandy main street of that section of the island. Here a few people were sitting in the shade of their doorways, some with a little selection of things to buy.

I'm not really a big fan of hats but here at times I've had to use my one and only sun hat. Apart from being at least 5 years old, it was originally a cream colour but after accompanying me on this whole dusty trip is now absolutely filthy. Despite this I got quite a few requests from people we passed to let them take it off my hands. One lady also asked for my top but even if I wasn't in an area where a lot of people were Muslim and everyone dresses very conservatively, I'm pretty certain I wouldn't have agreed to take it off and then walk around topless for the rest of the day. Both the hat and the top remain in my possession.

An afternoon of exploring, swimming and eating was very much enjoyed. We found an old church where the walls were all crumbling and the few tiles that were left on the almost completely collapsed roof looked so precariously balanced that they could fall on an unsuspecting person at any time (we didn't linger in there too long). We found lots of children who either had extremely imaginatively made wire toys or detailed and life like miniature cars they'd made themselves out of the sand. If somehow I'd managed to make anything like that I would have been so proud I'd have wanted to keep it forever. They however played with them smashing them up as they collided them into one another, clearly in the knowledge that they could easily repeat this extremely skilled construction at any time they wanted.

Our journey back to Ibo was somewhat interesting. When we set off the wind was blowing in the wrong direction and so we kept having to change sides in the boat as the sail was also moved from side to side. Each time this happened the boat would tip right up which I did find somewhat terrifying. Not too long after we left the sun set, and we sailed in the darkness under a sky so completely full of stars there seemed almost no space left for just sky. Our captain sailed us in the moonlight across the area of sea where we'd walked in the morning, and then through narrow channels in the mangroves. All of us, including our guide, were expecting to be dropped at Ibo where we could just quickly walk onto dry land. For some reason, whether this be to do with the tide being too low or just the captain wanting to get back to Quirimba, we were dropped in the middle of the mangroves with what we eventually discovered was a full hours walk to the dry land on Ibo. Trying to walk through the mud and water between the mangroves at low tide was one thing, and not all that easy at that, but doing the same at high tide and in the dark was quite another. Unable to see where we were going or spot all the stones and roots in the mud and high water beneath out feet, the journey was a slow and often painful one. We kept ourselves in high spirits though, discussing the anacondas and crocodiles we imagined were waiting for us and did eventually make it to shore with just a few minor injuries and many laughs to accompany them.