Elarmékora is a name to look for on a map of central Gabon, and most people will not find it. It belongs to the Lopé-Okanda landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage site where the equatorial rainforest breaks into patches of open savanna along the Ogooué River. This odd mosaic is a relic of ancient climate swings, when the forest shrank and grassland spread, and the people who lived here left a record of it in iron-working sites and rock engravings dated to thousands of years ago.
The hill itself is known for engraved rocks, carved with circles, lines and shapes whose meaning is lost. Nearby valleys held Bantu-speaking farmers whose ancestors moved across this region over the course of millennia, carrying ironworking with them, and the passage left a mark on the languages of much of Africa. It is a place that rewards slow looking, and a local guide is a very good idea.
The surroundings are rich in wildlife. Lopé National Park is home to forest elephants, buffalo, red river hogs and one of the largest groups of mandrills in the world, the big baboons with blue and red faces that gather in troops of hundreds. Gorillas and chimpanzees live in the forest, and birds fill the canopy with noise. Rain falls in two seasons, with the longest dry period from June to August, which is the best time for travel.
Roads are a mix of tarmac and laterite, with long gaps between settlements, and the railway that cuts through the area is the main artery of the interior. Fuel is hard to find away from the main towns, so carry extra and plan stops with care. Heat and humidity are high all year, and rain can turn red tracks to slick mud. Cash is needed for everything, and lodging is simple, often a basic guesthouse or a lodge run for park visitors. Move slowly, be friendly at checkpoints, and take advice from locals.