Recently, our family had a great opportunity to take an embassy trip out to Banc d’Arguin, Mauritania. Banc d’Arguin is a large UNSECO World Heritage site located on the coast between Nouakchott and Mauritania’s second largest city Nouadhibou. It is a major breeding site for over 108 migratory bird species such a pelicans and flamingos, and also contains some of the richest fishing grounds in the world. As a result of the rich fishing grounds, you can also spot bottlenose dolphins and monk seals year round. When the embassy Community Liaison Office sent off a flyer asking if anyone would be interested in a 3 day tour to Banc d’Arguin, which would include guided tours of the National Park, a boat ride, bonfire, and sleeping in traditional Mauritanian tents, Nick signed us up immediately. I’m really glad he did.
Perhaps more infamously, Banc d’Arguin was also the shipwreck site of the French frigate Medusa. In 1816, The Medusa was travelling from France to Saint Louis, Senegal (then the capital of French West Africa), to deliver the new colonial governor. While on the way it beached itself in Banc d’Arguin and became a total loss. 147 of the 400 passengers decided to make a raft (the rest hopped on other boats in the convoy), and the plan was they would be towed by the other boats in the fleet. Shortly after towing began, the boats realized this was impractical and cut the raft loose to be left to their own fate. Over the course of 13 days, anarchy ensued. Dozens were washed over during storms. Some were executed by officers for causing trouble. Some injured were purposely thrown overboard. When near starving, cannibalism started. 13 days later the raft was discovered with only 15 of the original 147 on board. The event is famously depicted in a painting by Theodore Gericault entitled “Le Radeau de la Méduse“. It is one of the largest paintings on display in the Louvre.
On that happy note, lets hop into the trip itself. Getting to Banc d’Arguin from Nouakchott involves a 3-4 hour journey by road. With about 2 and a half hours on the N2, the road that runs North to South through Nouakchott from Western Sahara into Senegal. The remaining time is spent over desert landscape that was both beautiful and felt like it could have been pulled out of a Mad Max film. Here are some photos of the road conditions and a map of the N2 running through Mauritania.
Driving through this terrain even on the paved road made me feel so isolated from humanity. The embassy has a rule that anyone travelling in Mauritania needs to be in at least a 2 vehicle convoy, and seeing first hand how barren and isolated the country is, you immediately realize why. Heading to and from the camping site had at least one vehicle get stuck in the sand, and if they were out here all alone, who knows when rescue could or ever would arrive. Cell service is non-existent. I would fathom there are pieces of this desert that humans have likely never seen, or if they have, the number to traverse the landscape can be counted by the handful. It was a humbling feeling.
Eventually we traversed the heart of Banc d’Arguin and found ourselves at one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. A piece of coastal property on an inlet that had gorgeous calm emerald green waters. Here is where we camped in a Mauritanian tent and made our home for the weekend. At night there wasn’t a light to be seen and the entirety of the galaxy was yours to take in.
There is something about falling asleep and waking up to the sound of lightly crashing waves that is just really soothing to the soul. I fully admit neither Nick or I are big campers, but we found this trip to be remarkably relaxing despite not having any creature comforts on hand. A glass of wine and a good view make for a good weekend in any circumstance.
The following day we were afforded a wonderful tour of the area in the small coastal village of Iwik. Here we took a boat tour of this portion of Banc d’Arguin on a traditional fishing boat. Banc d’Arguin is home to just a small handful of fishing villages that have government protection to continue to fish in their traditional way. It’s all sailboats and no advanced gear allowed. It was amazing how much bird life and biomass there was in just the small area we toured.
From there, we headed back to camp and enjoyed a peaceful afternoon and ultimately went up to the top of the plateau near the campsite for one of the most unforgettable sunsets I can remember. It was so clear and you could see so far that it made me understand why people used to believe (and I guess some still do) that the Earth was flat.
From there we had another restful night in our tent, and the following morning packed up and headed home. Overall, this is probably one of my favorite things we have done as a family since coming to Mauritania. We got to see a place of extreme beauty that few humans in the course of history have ever seen or will see, and are already planning a trip back.
Thanks for stopping by and reading. On another good note, I finally am starting to work for the embassy and will cover that a bit more in a future post. Cheers! -Angeli
