Dhow !

Every year in November there is a dhow race sponsored by the governor of Inhambane Bay, a delightful spectacle that draws great crowds and support.

Dhows have long been part of Inhambane's economy and identify.



The seamanship and boatbuilding skills of the marinheiros (sailors) and the pescadores (fishermen) of Inhambane are an ancient part of its culture.

Inhambane still has the biggest fleet of working dhows on the East African coast, and there is traffic between Inhambane, Vilanculos and Beira.

Dhows were a vital form of transport during the civil war when the roads were unsafe and impassable.



Originally used by Arabs, early dhows had a lateen sail - a triangular sail on a short wooden most using a long yard arm rigged at a 45° angle, not a very efficient method.
They couldn't sail close to the wind and relied on the prevailing trade and anti-trade winds.

During the height of the slave trade, some dhows were enormous - up to 200 tons in ocean-going fleets that were the backbone of the slave trade.

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Inhambane, Out & About (2)

Enjoy some rural retail therapy

Browse through the local mercado which sells a colourful array of spices prawns, fish, vegetable and cashew nuts.
Buy local fabric or curios and crafts, coconut bags, fabric, wooden bowls.



Take a dhow to Maxixe and back

A dhow ride is a must when you're here.
Maxixe is the most southerly anchorage for dhows, known as barcos as velas or ingalaoa.
When there are enough people to fill it, off she goes, tacking across the Indian Ocean.

 

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Inhambane, Out & About (1)

Check out the charms of Inhambane town

Take in the old governor's house on the waterfront and the fascinating railway station (it has a workshop filled with old steam trains and memorabilia and men clanking away an old machinery).



In the old quarter of town is the 170-year-old Cathedral of our Lady of Conception where a rusted (a somewhat perilous) ladder leads to the top of the spire, offering grand views of town and harbour.

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Inhambane (4)

Although large ships seldom call here any longer, it still has the largest fleet of working dhows in the country, and is the third - biggest port in Mozambique.



The town itself has a population of about 50.000 people and straddles the Tropic of Capricorn.

Mercifully, pretty Inhambane lies just outside the cyclone belt, although it gets more rain than Maputo, mainly in January.
It's humid, and you'll be grateful for the Ocean Breeze.

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Inhambane (3)

Inhambane was an important cotton and ivory trading post, then later slavery became the town's economic mainstay.
Thousands of slaves passed through the port of Inhambane each year.

It was attacked by Gaza Chief Soshangane in the early 1800s but recovered.

With the abolition of slavery Inhambane changed forever.



Until independence, Inhambane was a busy harbour capable of handling coasters of up to 10.000 tons.
Cashew nuts, copra, cotton, oil seed, peanuts and sugar were loaded at Inhambane harbour.
More than a million migrant workers bound for work on the gold mines of the Witwatersrand set off regularly from Inhambane, by boat for Lourenco Marques and then by rail to Johannesburg.

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Inhambane (2)

What a sense of history there is here.

Inhambane is one of the oldest European settlements along the east coast and has that same sense of sad historical charm that parts of Zanzibar have.




Beautiful coastal trading posts built on the back of ivory, slaves, gold and diamonds.
This city dates back to the 10th century when it was a port of call for Arab traders travelling down the east coast.

By the 16th century, the Portuguese had arrived and by the early 18th century, they were well established here.

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Inhambane (1)

A day's drive (485 km) from Maputo, Inhambane is a lovely town in southern Mozambique.
The road is tarred and has almost completely been upgraded.
Inhambane is a sleepy and tropical spot.



Set on a peninsula overlooking Inhambane Bay, the town itself has a cafè culture, a local market and some beautiful buildings.

Inhambane also serves as a springboard to the coastal resorts of Barra, Tofo and Tofinho.
These resorts are right on the beach, with no town centres, just beaches and dunes and mangroves and wetlands, too delicious for words.

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Bush-to-Beach Route (4)

The border post is a pleasant thatch-and-stone building with air con and a small shop that just appears in the middle of the bushveld.
The border crossing is usually a fairly pain-free experience if you're prepared.



No commercial travel is allowed through Giriyondo.
After that, the road is a dirt track to Massingir village, which has a lovely market.
From Massingir, take the EN1 to Macia which passes through Chokwe.
It is tarred but is hideously potholed and requires serious patience and attention.
Chowke has ATMs and fuel stations.

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Bush - to - Beach Route (3)

The Giriyondo Road, H15, follows the mopane scrub-veld over the Makhadzi watercourse and through the flatlands to a gap in the Lebombo that marks the border with Mozambique.

It's a 9 km trip along the H15 to Makhadzi picnic site, which has a kitchen and ablution facilities - useful on the long and winding road - and a small interpretative centre.



Firewood, charcoal and cold drinks are on sale, as well as some rather desperate-looking ornaments made out of tin cans and mopane leaves.

The picnic site is just beyond the Makhadzi River crossing, where elephants often gather.

There are a lot of road humps between Makhadzi and the Giriyondo border post.

What little game there is along this road is skittish probably because of the poaching of the past.

The road passes through a gap in the Lebombo at Mbhandweni waterhole, a creek in the Makhadzi River guarded by a fine old fig tree.

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Bush - to - Beach Route (2)

Bush - to -Beach is manageable with a sedan with high clearance in the winter.
It's far nicer if you have a sturdy vehicle or a 4x4 though.

In some parts, a newer, better dirt road has replaced the original bumpy track from a few years ago on the South African side - but the Mozambican side is rougher, with some of the tar stretches badly potholed, resulting in a chassis - bending, sump - surfing ride which requires patience and vigilance.



The route between Letaba Camp and the Mozambique border post of Giriyondo includes the main Mopani Camp Road (H16) and the Giriyondo Road (H15).

Allow about an hour and a half from Letaba to get to the Giriyondo border post, the southernmost access point from South Africa into Parque Nacional do Limpopo.

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Bush - to - Beach Route (1)

Slow and rural, hot and wild.
The Bush-to-Beach Route takes you through the Kruger National Park, over the Giriyondo border post, into Mozambique's Parque Nacional do Limpopo, past the Massingir Dam and past Chowke before eventually coming to the town of Macia, inland from the coast, where the road intersect with EN1 to Xai-Xai or Maputo.
Phew.



It takes some ten hours from the Phalaborwa gate to Macia but it's a delicious journey from the African wilderness through rural Mozambique.

And from Macia all roads lead to paradise.



The Bush-to-Beach Route traverses a stretch of the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Park, which has seen fences going down between South Africa, Mozambique, Botswana and Zimbabwe to form the world's biggest transfrontier park.

Fed by the Oliphants River, the Massingir Dam forms the southern border of the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Park.

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Praia de Zavora

A 17 km sand track leads down to Praia de Zavora.

It's a new and upcoming dive spot, and still delightfully undeveloped and wild.


There is a lighthouse here too, at Ponta Zavora, where the coastline turns towards the north.

Zavora is good for game fishing and snorkelling, has great beaches and a fascinating underwater world.

Zavora Lodge is a self-catering spot, a little shabby round the edges but pleasant enough.

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From Xai-Xai the EN1 continues a further 57 km north to Lindela, a small roadside settlement that is a strategic junction here.

Notice the increasing numbers of coconut palms.

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Inharrime

Some 170 km north-east of Xai-Xai, you get to Inharrime after crossing over Lake Poelela.

Inharrime is a rather sad town: somehow, not the best looking of places, with a hotel and a garage.

It is of course the actual place where Vasco da Gama is said to have first landed in 1498, but the rich cultural consequence of that visit is found most intensely in charming Inhambane.

The best thing about Inharrime is that a little way out of town you get Praia de Zavora.

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Praia do Chongoene & Quissico

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Chongoene is 19 km east of Xai-Xai: 9 km on tar, 10 on sand, so a 4x4 recommended.
It's popular for swimming and snorkelling because of its barrier reef.

There is also an old shipwreck here, hidden under the sands.


Questa foto di Quissico è offerta da TripAdvisor.

There are still rumours floating around that someone is Going To Do Something with the old derelict hotel here.

North of Chidenguele, the EN1 winds inland and crosses into Inhambane province to the towns of Zandamela and Quissico.
Quissico, 128 km north-east of Xai-Xai, is built on a hill with an amazing view of the lagoon and the coastline. 

The capital of the Zavala District, it is a bus route stopover and pit stop.

It's also the meeting point of the Chope people's timbila orchestras and the annual timbila festival which happens in the middle of the year.

Lake Poelela, 40 km past Quissico, is separated from the sea by a narrow strip of land.




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Praia de Chidenguele

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Some 70 km north of Xai-Xai, easily accessible from the EN1, Chidenguele is a charming spot.
Surrounded by high dunes and coastal forests, this sleepy village has a small market, a great pao shop, cold cerveja (always) and a proud white cathedral and a lighthouse.


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Chidenguele means "the highest point" in Chope, and the name of the village is painted in white rocks on a hill behind the local soccer field.
About 12 km north along the beach is King's Pools, a fine spot indeed for snorkelling and for fishing out on the reef.

From the village of Chidenguele, head for Lake Inhambavale.
Ancient and steeped in history, this 20 km freshwater lake is warm and wonderful and great for water sports like kayaking, canoeing and windsurfing.


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The Boa Paz Lighthouse is another charming spot here.
You can walk or drive, pass three lakes until you get to the lighthousekeeper's shack.
From here it's a climb up to the highest dune in the area to check out what they call World's View.

A serious soul spot this.


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Xai-Xai & The Lagoon Coast (3)

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Xai-Xai is a long-standing holiday destination for Seffricans, and as far as I am concerned, the best places to visit are beyond Xai-Xai.
The town itself is not my favourite: at most it deserves an overnight stop.


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The most famous place is Praia do Xai-Xai (Xai-Xai beach), which has long, white curves of sand and coral reefs offshore.
At low tide the local women come and pick shellfish from the tidal pools.
At high tide, powerful waves pound the beaches.
Wenela Beach, a 1,5 km south of Praia do Xai-Xai is worth a visit to see the blowhole.
A reef off the beach has formed a large tidal pool which is good for swimming and angling.
When the tide is high, the water spouts into the air.


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