Kara

Kara is the main city of northern Togo, sitting below the Kabye hills on the north road with a large market, a university and the administrative weight of the region. It is the base for reaching Koutammakou, the Batammariba country to the west, and for the Kabye villages in the hills above, where terraced farming and iron working traditions continue. The Evala wrestling festival is held in July. The Kabye terraced farming on the hills above is among the more intensive systems anywhere in West Africa.

What you actually see

• The market - the trading centre for the northern region.
• The Kabye hills - the terraced hill country rising behind the city.
• The Evala festival - the July wrestling initiation in the Kabye villages.
• The base function - the point for reaching Koutammakou and the north.

When to go

November to March is the dry season. Evala falls in July, in the rains. Market days are busiest.

Honest expectations

The city itself is workaday with little for a visitor. Facilities are basic outside a few hotels. The drive from Lomé takes around seven hours.

Nearby

Koutammakou is west, and Bassar is southwest.