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In March 1864, travelling north along shores of Lake Albert,
Sir Samuel Baker and Lady Florence Baker arrived near here in
two long dug-out canoes propelled by local oarsmen. Their aim
was to confirm that the Victoria Nile flowed into Lake Albert
and that the Nile then flowed north out of Lake Albert on its
long journey to Egypt. It took them 12 days to make the journey
along the shoreline, stopping frequently to change oarsmen and
to take on provisions.
They had many adventures on the way; a violent storm nearly
sunk both canoes, they were attacked by crocodiles, saw a great
herd of elephants bathing in the waters, and suffered from a shortage
of food. Baker writes “After the tenth day from our departure
from Vacovia ( Buhuka) the scenery increased in beauty. The lake
had contracted to about thirty miles in width, and was decreasing
rapidly northward; the trees upon the mountains upon the western
shore could be distinguished. Continuing our voyage north, the
western shore projected suddenly, and diminished the width of
the lake to about twenty miles. It was no longer the great inland
sea, with the clean pebbly beach that formed the shore, but vast
banks of reeds growing upon floating vegetation prevented the
canoes from landing. These banks were most peculiar, as they appeared
to have been formed of decayed vegetation, from which the papyrus
rushes took root; the thickness of the floating mass was about
three feet, and so tough and firm that a man could walk upon it,
merely sinking above his ankles in the soft ooze. Beneath this
raft of vegetation was extremely deep water, and the shore for
a width of about half a mile was entirely protected by this extraordinary
formation. One day a tremendous gale of wind and heavy sea broke
off large portions, and the wind acting upon the rushes like sails,
carried floating islands of some acres about the lake to be deposited
wherever they might chance to hitch.”
They had passed fishing villages all along the lake shore and
almost certainly would have stopped near where the village of
Wanseko is now. Gone are the floating masses of vegetation but
the huge fish remain and still provide food for the villagers
to this very day. From here the Bakers sailed on to the mouth
of the Victoria Nile and the magnificent Murchison Falls.
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