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The scene was breathtaking; it was like nothing I had ever seen before. This time there was no water involved, but I still marvelled. The leafy foliage was so green and I couldn’t help but let out a loud “wow”.
I looked out of the window and my heart skipped a beat. I quickly pulled my head back drawing in breath. I gathered some courage and looked out again; it was as if the car was going to fall. The slope was so steep.
This was the middle of nowhere; I felt mixed feelings, of excitement and anxiety. It was beautiful yes, but I could not suppress the uneasy feeling. I looked around at my colleagues and the nervous laughter told me I was not in my own boat.
Travelling has always been the part I hate most about any trip. I hate the long hours in the bus or car; let’s not even mention the train. I was tired of people describing Boterekwa to me, without me having any knowledge of the place. I had heard so many versions of the place that I no longer really knew which version was accurate.
When an assignment which involved travelling to Shurugwi came up, I jumped at the opportunity. Finally, I was going to see with my own eyes the place which had almost become legendary.
The road snaked its way up the mountain side, I held my breath as the driver negotiated round a bend. It almost felt like I was in a roller- coaster, albeit a slowish one. I was caught between two feelings; I could not decide what was more exciting, the tricky meandering road or the lush green scenery outside.
The car got to the top of the mountain and began its descent . . . here the real roller-coaster began, I could feel my stomach heave, I let out a nervous laugh. One of my colleagues followed and soon the whole car was laughing. It was nervous laughing definitely, to suppress the uneasy feelings we all had.
The place gets its name from the Italian-constructed road which winds its way up the gigantic mountain. It was the beginning of the rainy season but the forest and mountain trees were all green. The place was beautiful no doubt; it sure deserves its fame. I took out my camera and began snapping away, the scene was too beautiful to ignore, I needed to record it for future reference.
Unfortunately, I could not stop the car to take pictures from a stationary point. Because of the steepness of the slope I had to be content with the mobile pictures. As we neared the bottom of the mountain I began noticing unusual pits and holes in the ground, it did not take me long to realise what it was. Excavations made by illegal gold miners are damaging the environment.
The high spirits that had carried me from the other side of the mountain immediately nose-dived. Some of the pits were so close to the road as to cause potentially fatal hazards to travellers. I dared not think what would happen if one lost control of his vehicle for a split minute, this was unacceptable. Evidence of land degradation by the gold miners got more pronounced as the slope became less steep.
This was a place of unique beauty which could with a little development be transformed into a major tourist attraction, but slowly being destroyed by uncontrolled illegal gold mining. Something needs to be done fast before Boterekwa becomes a very hazardous place in all meanings of the word. I turned to marvel at Boterekwa as we made the last round hiding it from view.
Online Reporter