Travel Guide Bertoua

Bertoua is the capital of the Eastern region. It lies on the border between savannah and rainforest. Here, the atmosphere seems more authentic than in areas of the country that attract more tourists. The town's inhabitants are the Bayas, living under the leadership of Chief Aïba Ndiba. Most of the region's industries specialize in wood harvesting and processing. Long isolated, the town has been gradually opened up thanks to the development of the road network, linking Cameroon to the Central African Republic in particular, and to the inauguration in 1976 of a regional airport, which has since been closed. Today, Bertoua is enjoying a major revival thanks to the Chinese windfall from the construction of the Lom Pangar dam. The town itself has no real tourist attractions. This is to be found in the surrounding forest, but many points of interest are difficult to reach, such as the Pangar Djérem reserve or Lake Mobéké.On the way, you'll pass through a number of villages, all laid out in the same way: houses lined up along the track and inhabited by Bantu people. In each village, the inhabitants, protected from the sun by small bamboo arbors, sell pineapples, plantains, macabos and avocados along the roadside.Around Bertoua, you can visit a number of settled Pygmy villages, such as the Mayos and Mbiang encampments. Sedentarized Pygmies are not in the majority, as many prefer to maintain their traditional way of life and still live in the forest from hunting, fishing, gathering, cultivating crops and harvesting honey. Surrounded and protected by the forest, which is their habitat, their spiritual mother and their source of food, they have long lived without any outside contact. Youngsters are introduced to forestry activities from an early age and take part in camp life. They remain excellent musicians, but above all they are great connoisseurs of plants and their healing powers. Many Cameroonians, lacking the means or confidence in "Western" medicine, still prefer to turn to pygmy healers. T However, visits to pygmy camps are not recommended. Over time, and as tourists of all kinds have passed through, the Pygmy way of life has been altered by their relationship with money and access to industrial substances such as alcohol and cigarettes. Pygmies expect visitors to bring them money or alcohol, or both, which makes for a particularly unhealthy relationship, and leaves a bitter taste in the mouth for a healthy, honest and simple culture now in perdition. The best thing is to leave these fragile populations alone. The road network is extensive, connecting Bertoua to the capital via 2 routes: Yaoundé-Nanga Eboko-Bertoua and Yaoundé-Abong-Mbang-Bertoua. To get there, you can also take the train from Yaoundé to Belabo, then a bush cab to Bertoua.