Delta

The super sweet scotsman spoilt me silly in Sine Saloum (say that 10 times fast). After the epic stay in Souimanga Lodge, we headed towards the small village of Ndangane Sambou, to catch a pirogue (wooden boat) that'd take us on a small trip in the Sine Saloum delta.

The delta is a "watery wilderness", as travel brochures call it: the confluence of the Saloum, Diombos and Bandiala rivers near the Atlantic has created a wild, surreal network of snaking rivulets, estuaries, waterways, saltwater canals (known as "bolongs", locally), mangrove forests and islets covering an area almost 2000km2 upon which small villages are scattered. This brackish maze is a unique environment, home to over 80 species of fish and 100 species of bird.

We glided past the "Ile aux Oiseaux", which is home to over 40,000 nesting terns.

And a cute Mr Baobab.

The waterways and mangrove growths also support oyster farming.

It'd be shellfish of me not to share this information with you: that little islands made of shellfish mounds have piled up here, some believed to be over 2500 years old. It is unsurprising that this whole biosphere has been recognised by UNESCO as a heritage site. In addition to its unique biodiversity and layout and its significance to local communities, the delta is believed to have been the kindgom of the Serer people in the 13th century.

We snaked further into the delta, seeing all manner of birds in the mangrove thickets, and at one point, the boat stopped to allow us to dip into the water.

Within seconds Fraser was in the water, which was warm, making it feel like an open-air, lush bath, and did have a little bit of a current. We squished our toes in the mud underneath, checked the ecosystems in the mangrove roots, frolicked in the warm water, which was fun - although I wouldn't trade my tropical lagoons for this. It was quite an experience - swimming in our very own mangrove thicket and waterway!