Day 20: Epupa Falls

I woke to the sounds of the waterfall and a haze of spray. No curtains to open, just a view; water and rocks, greenery and palms and the mountains of Angola on the opposite bank.

The falls are not the highest or the widest I have seen, not as impressive as Victoria falls, but the first fall does feed into the narrowest gorge I have seen. Epupa is a Herero word meaning ‘foam’ and is known as the Monte Negro Falls in Angola. The River drops in a series of waterfalls spread over 1.5km, with the greatest drop (right outside our room) being 37m.

At breakfast we saw a huge croc sunning itself on a rock. George and Sue then headed upstream on a birding expedition and the rest of us set off around 9, on a hike downstream to explore the falls. The thin gorge around the first fall is framed with fig trees, makalani palms, but most impressive are the baobabs that cling to the cliff walls, similar to a rock fig.

The first part of our hike took us along a narrow mountain path, with a good 100m plus drop into the gorge below, the path dropped down to an area of boulders that we had to negotiate up and down. We saw other sections of the falls and tributaries of the river, it was stunningly beautiful. An hour later we walked down a dune to the river edge. All thoughts of modesty and croc infested waters went out the window. We stripped down semi-commando and headed into the cool water for a swim – I could have stayed there forever.

We continued down stream for another ½ hour and had a water break (lucky dad had his back girls - family joke - it was so useful to carry water in). We found a path back that avoided the boulders but not the cliff hugging track. I was relieved the kids weren't with us (miss you all). We arrived back around 12, I so loved this hike.

We then headed up for a well deserved drink and lunch. Back at our hut we saw a water monitor and common waxbills. There are also lots of big agama lizards scurrying up the trees and behind the rocks here.

In the afternoon, Gray and I went for a drive upriver. As we passed over the mountain and saw the green valley meandering through it, Gray said that in the army they had flown in Pumas and a Dakota, at tree top height along this valley. Being in this area is bringing back a lot of army memories. We  drove on in the shade of the makalani palms and saw vervet monkeys and Ruppell’s Parrots.  We also passed Himba villagers with their goats and pigs. 

As the sun was beginning to set we headed up a mountain overlooking the Kunene and the falls, it was amazing to see the area from above; more tributaries, islands and waterfalls than you see at ground level. The others joined us for drinks and to watch the sun set. George and Sue had had the most excitement of the afternoon, while out looking for birds they had a rinkhals rear up at them.

Another great dinner followed, lots of laughs and an early night.

I loved our stay at Epupa falls, the camp was run by Koos Vewey, a very interesting man, who does a lot for the area and the local community.