Before starting this article, I would like to thank Mr. Ouattara Kassoum Dramane, the Director of Administration and Human Resources of OIPR (The Ivorian Office Of Parks and Reserves).I have never been so proud of an Ivorian administration before interacting with this gentleman.

Context 

A few years ago, I told myself that once I move back, I will visit all the parks and reserves of Côte d’Ivoire. Indeed, some parks lack appealing visual content, and it is almost impossible to find information on how to access them. My goal was to visit them and help develop their tourism potential. I hope to increase not only domestic tourism but also attract potential foreign tourists.

Among all the parks, I was more curious about “Iles Ehotiles National Park“. One of the reason is that it was difficult to find compelling content ( visuals and written ) for a place that was, however, just minutes away from Assine one of the famous destination.

An obstacle course

So I talked to my friend Manuella , and we sent an email to the various directorates of the OIPR. About 20 minutes later: SURPRISE! We received an email from Mr. Ouattara Kassoum. It was the first time I had such a quick answer from an Ivorian administration. He was glad that young people were interested in ecotourism and gave me the contact of the communication officer who unfortunately was not so receptive. I’m sparing you the phone calls we had with him and the secretary of the southern OIPR office.

Back to square one, we contacted Mr. Ouattara, who this time put us in direct contact with the manager of the Park Colonel Bakayoko and even kindly proposed to put us in touch with each park manager. Colonel Bakayoko meanwhile entrusted us to his colleague Mr. Gueu, who put everything in place so that we could make our visit on the desired date. These were kind and helpful. I was pleased to see that some people still take their work seriously and were passionate about their jobs.

So here we are, Saturday, October 28, on the way to Etuessika a village located 9km from Assinie-Mafia. The road to assinie was smooth, but things got tough on the way to Etuessika. I will recommend that you use a 4X4 if you plan on going there, it will help a lot.

After a few phone calls between the manager and us, we finally arrive at Etuessika. We got to the speedboat that we rented for the occasion and started the tour.

History of the Park

” Iles Ehotiles National Park “ is a set of six islands emerging on the Aby lagoon and covering an area of 550 hectares (excluding the lagoon). These islands are Assokomonabaha, Nyamouan, Balouate, Meha, Elouamin, and the sacred island of Bosson-Assoum.

The Islands were erected in a park on April 25, 1974, under the initiative of the local populations who, taking into account the archaeological vestiges, their culture and history reached out to the government. This park, therefore, has the function of promoting the tourism potential of the region, preserving biodiversity and the natural environment. It was classified as a Ramsar site in 2005, which is a wetland convention.

The islands are also home to rare and endemic plants from Upper Guinea and species that are rare or endangered in Côte d’Ivoire.

A visit like no other

We started the visit by the Balouate Island which is the island of bats. The bats appear only after dark, so it was going to be difficult to see them. So we went to the Meha Island through the island: Assokomonobaha or Assoko which is the largest island.

Lack of luck for us is the rainy season; So the soil is thoroughly wet and marshy which makes the island very difficult to visit. Despite our feet sinking entirely into the water and mud, we didn’t get discouraged and continue the visit. We learned a little more about the history of the Ehotiles (which means Head Cutter) and the island.

After this visit, we went to the botanical yard, where our tour was unfortunately interrupted by the rain. We took refuge under a shed and picnics while waiting for the rain to stop. After that, we still wanted to see a little more. It is then under a shining sun that arose a few minutes after the storm that we go to look at the embouchure.

Not being able to visit the rest of the islands, we decided that we are going to get back there during the dry season. Feel free to write me if you want to join us.

The more we are crazy, the more fun we have.

Useful Information

Visitor’s kit

• A 4X4
• Platic Boots
• Sunglasses
• An umbrella ( Just in case )
• Food
• Your Camera

So see you soon for a new discovery?