Our visit to Akosombo Dam was eye-opening. It's amazing what humans can do when really determined. But it's equally amazing how careless humans can be about their actions. Creating a massive lake is certainly a formidable achievement! And creating that massive lake without really weighing the potential consequences... well, that's just human.
One of the first projects carried out by the fledgling nation of Ghana was the construction of Akosombo Dam, along the Volta River, near the town of Atimpoku. A massive undertaking, the dam required four years to construct and cost dozens of human lives in the process. As a result of this audacious enterprise, Ghana now has the largest man-made reservoir in the world: Lake Volta.
We pulled up to the gates of Cedi Glass Beads directly after arriving at the Volta Region from Accra. It had been an easy, quick journey, leaving us with plenty of energy... and we immediately realized that we'd need it, after being welcomed by the shop's enthusiastic owner. He wasted no time, jumping straight into a lengthy exposition on the craft of bead-making, then marched us straight over to the ovens.
Our final trip in Ghana would be to Lake Volta, to the east of Accra. Formerly British Togoland, the Volta Region is now Ghana's easternmost state, populated mostly by the Ewe people, who also form a majority in neighboring Togo. We wouldn't have a chance to visit the region's capital of Ho, or even see much of the region, as our time had grown short. But we did make it to the lake, and visited the dam which makes Volta largest natural reservoir in the world.
