Seeing the Hippos

We fell in love with Button and Jenny, the two hippos at New Jersey's Adventure Aquarium. Our close-up view of these massive creatures reminded us of the canoe safari we went on in Ghana. Hippos live in the Black Volta River, and we wanted to see them in their natural habitat. 

But when we arrived at the river and saw young men bailing water out of two canoes, I almost second-guessed the wisdom of the adventure. For one thing, it was rainy season, so the river was swift and flooding its banks. Our guide said our chances of seeing the hippos were almost nil because, being buoyant, hippos cannot navigate a fast-moving river. Rainy season is their time to live in the flooded area on the shore. There, hippo mamas give birth and hide their male babies among the trees until they are big enough to defend themselves from other males in the pod. I was happy for the hippo mamas, of course, to be able to give their offspring a safe start on life. But when doubting the integrity of the canoe, I was less concerned about the hippo babies than I was for my own. 

Deciding the canoes were safe, we got in and hoped for a rare, rainy season sighting of a hippo. 

One bank of the river is Burkina Faso, the other bank is Ghana, a fun aspect of the trip. Even though it was a limited view, I was happy to see another African country.

If you notice the dense trees on the banks, you will understand
why our chances were so low for spotting hippos. Usually the river is much
narrower and shallower and the hippos are seen on rocky islands that
are covered by water in these pictures.

When he tired of swinging his feet into the river,
my baby played in the puddle that kept growing at my feet.

No hippo showed his face that day, but we enjoyed the experience enough not to regret our time on the river.

We also don't regret that this view of Button's tonsils was taken with a wall of thick glass between us. Some shots are best when you aren't in a canoe.