Things to Do in Gambia in July

High water in July lets you step straight onto Kunta Kinteh Island (James Island) and the crumbling Fort Bullen without sinking past your ankles. The run from Banjul to Albreda becomes a lazy wildlife cruise through mangroves where hippos grunt and crocodiles bask on roots that are high and dry later in the year. Boats leave around 8 AM for the best light and to dodge the afternoon storms.

Fishing boats glide in between 6-8 AM when the sky turns rose and the painted pirogues seem to glow. July's catch, barracuda, red snapper, rays the size of doors, lands in heaps while salt air mixes with woodsmoke. Bring a guide who speaks Wolof and knows the captains; he'll slip you into the auction where deals are sealed in seconds.

July turns Abuko's 260 acres (105 hectares) into dripping emerald jungle. The paths stay muddy. But the canopy gives cover when storms roll through. Colobus monkeys bark from the treetops long before you spot them, and the wet-leaf light that filters down is the rainforest mood that dry-season visitors never see. All 270 bird species are busy courting and nesting.

July dishes up cashew nuts, dripping-ripe mangoes, and domoda (peanut stew) at its yearly best. Serekunda's covered lanes keep the rain off while turmeric, dried hibiscus, and benne (sesame) perfume the thick air. Taste domoda ladled over rice at the same market stalls where women have stirred the same recipe for three decades.

The sacred pool stays topped up in July, so the resident crocodiles are always on show, they sometimes vanish when water levels fall. The 100-meter (328-foot) stroll through Bakau village becomes part of the show: kids offer to spot crocs for coins, and the compound's traditional healer may be grinding leaves under the ancient baobab.