A DAY AT EZEAGU WATERFALL

Photo credit: Wemove Tourism via Facebook

One could get lost going there. There is no street number, no address. There are no fancy signs pointing to the route, save for a small signpost a few meters from it. That one too does not point to the waterfall. More or less, my dear, you have to find it by asking the locals for directions. They are as friendly as the place we are heading, so no fear.

From a few meters away, one can hear the roaring sound of the rushing water. It could be somewhat frightening, thinking of a large volume of water making such a deep sound, as though a powerful nature-king were laughing heartily at you.

The entrance too is not for the faint of hearts. A strip of six or seven long bamboo sticks are lodged across the first strip of water. The stream below it is not deep enough to scare you. One could actually swim across; not more than six feet deep. But if you are like us, who cannot swim, then walking is the other option.

Ezeagu Waterfalls is not a waterfall — noted. It's not even close to being one. There is no flow of water from a cliff. There are no large screaming dangerous signs. The waterfall is a fairly large stream, clean and appealing. We can't tell how old this place is. There are trees, trees, and more trees. Yet there is sunlight.

The water is about four feet deep in most places. Other places are more shallow, or very deep. To guide visitors, there are bamboo trunks jutting out of the water. These are warnings, that the stream is deep in those parts. Under the water are a lot of rocks and pebbles.

It is a wonder how the trees survive those rocks. Large tap roots are all you'd see on first sight. The tree roots are thick and probing. They reach out into the far ends in search of nutrients. Water already is abundant. They must be pretty old, for only age can turn tree roots into thick, sturdy wooden stools. Obviously, they are the only seats for visitors, those roots. Some of them are covered in green slimy matter. The rest are tough and amazingly, dry. It can only be described as amazing, the way the tree roots merge with the heavy rocks. One is standing on a tap root, next thing, he is standing on a rock. It is rock and root at the same time, and trying to tell one from the other is too tasking for a simple fellow who'd only come to enjoy the ambience of the natural environment.

The rush of water is a sight to behold. Water is colourless until it's so big and so beautiful. It is then white, and lustrous, and can almost reflect the sunlight hitting it from above.

There is a local guide who tells us that the water is clean, and it's a natural gift. He says they clean the environs periodically and they are proud of it. One does not need to hear this. The water is sparkly. There are no overgrown bushes around, and the blessing I have described here is better seen than heard of.