Daboya

Daboya sits on the White Volta northwest of Tamale, and its reputation rests on cloth: the narrow strips woven here, dyed in indigo pits sunk into the ground, are sewn into the smock, the pleated northern garment worn across the savanna regions and at national occasions. The dyeing is done in the traditional manner with locally prepared indigo, and the pits, the drying grounds and the looms can all be seen working in the town. Daboya was also a salt town, with saline ground worked for centuries and traded across the region, part of what made it a place of consequence in the pre-colonial economy. Access is by ferry across the White Volta or by a long road round.

What you actually see

• Indigo dye pits - the sunken pits where the cloth is dyed.
• Strip weaving - the looms producing the narrow smock cloth.
• Smock assembly - the strips sewn into the pleated northern garment.
• The salt ground - the saline area worked historically.

When to go

November to March in the dry season, when the ferry and the roads are most reliable. Weekdays are when weaving and dyeing are in progress. Mornings are cooler.

Honest expectations

Access involves a river ferry that runs on its own schedule or a long detour by road. There is no visitor infrastructure and arrangements are made informally in town. Not all workshops are active on a given day. Accommodation is in Tamale rather than locally.

Nearby

Tamale lies southeast; Salaga is east.