Question:
What do you get when you have two Kiwi’s, a Canadian and an Irishman on a dhow (boat) looking for Dugongs in the waters off Mozambique?
Answer:
A failed mission but a lovely day all the same.
Through the clearest of clear waters, you can see the bottom of the bay beneath the dhow as you make the hour long trip out to Magaruque Island. Magaruque is the third largest of the six islands that make up the Barazuto Archipelago. It can be walked around in about two hours and your feet will tread on the cleanest white sand that feels like velvet.
Armies of salmon-pink crabs looking for their own “take-out” can be seen the length of the waters edge and scuttle back into the ocean at the last possible second as you close in on them. The far side of the island is home to ocean-ravaged trees, a long time uprooted from their original home. There are also some decent sized sand dunes which I struggled to race up and failed miserably to run down due to a failed appreciation of their height.
Technically “winter” time in Mozambique, out to sea curtains of rain darkened the horizon but there was only a sprinkle on our island as we snorkeled along the reef and feasted on a lunch of fish, rice, vegetarian stew, crayfish, and fruit. It was cooked on a make-shift braai set up on the boat and served on a wooden table that materialized out of the bushes behind us.
The sail is hoisted when it’s time to head back to Vilanculos, purely for our benefit and visual effect. The motor continued to chug us slowly back to shore unaided by the wind.
NB. Although there are Dugongs in the waters off Mozambique they are fairly rare and apparently don’t exist around Magaruque Island where we visited.
There are various Dhow trips to the islands on offer and differ in price depending on which island you head to. Bazaruto is the biggest island, Dugongs hang out around its shores and apparently it has the biggest dunes. You can book a trip through your accommodation or directly at the businesses that run them.
Tourist Information
Worth noting is that there is a Tourist Information place in Vilanculos. Jonas, the very helpful gentleman that I met working there. He told me with pride that there are no other Tourist Information places in Inhambane, potentially no others in Mozambique. Vilanculo town is fairly small. If you find the tiny little church that looks like you could only squeeze 20 people inside, the Tourist Information place is behind you to the right. Jonas will help you to book any of the touristy things available in the area and will also help you to book one of the big buses (as opposed to a Chapa) that head down the coast to Maputo at 5am.
I went with Sailaway Dhow Safaris and the cost was around 3000 meticais ($55) for a day trip, including lunch and soft drinks. Snorkelling equipment is provided. We only went to Magaruque Island which is a private island, hence no cooking/fires on the island.
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