Review: Fourteen Falls, Thika

Kenya is one of the finest places in the world to live in. We are blessed with a myriad of natural scenic masterpieces that cannot be matched. From rare wildlife to breathtaking sceneries, Kenya has a lot to offer. However, as always we Kenyans rarely notice how blessed we are. People are traveling from across the globe to come and view the spectacles that happen to be in our beautiful country, yet most of us remain ignorant and confined to a single place. Luckily, as a person who was literally raised in the bush, I always tend to get anxious whenever I spend too much of my time behind a computer screen, inside four walls and surrounded by a concrete jungle. As my way of unwinding, I always find a place nearby where I can visit or walk my dog and enjoy some nature, away from all the noise and pollution.

Recently, some friends of mine decided that we should visit the Fourteen Falls in Thika. I was actually embarrassed that I had never been there, even though I consider myself an explorer and I went to college just an hour from the place. For those of you who do not know, The Fourteen Falls are one of the most famous waterfalls in Kenya after the Thompsons falls. It is located about 65km from Nairobi and about 15km South of Thika town. The name comes from the 14 successive waterfalls which form an amazing natural spectacle of a giant 80-foot water fall that feeds the Athi River with millions of liters of water. You can hear the water falling from hundreds of meters away. After losing our way for a short while in Thika town, we finally landed on the Thika-Garissa highway on our way to have a good afternoon adventure. The Fourteen Falls are shrouded by a line of trees on both sides of the river with the close Kilimambogo Hill providing a perfect scenic background. As you take the right turn towards the rough-road that leads to these falls, you can tell the change of geography as you leave Kiambu County towards Machakos County. After our co-driver started doubting their Google Maps reading skills, we confirmed that we were on the right route from a local Good Samaritan and we forged on.

The Fourteen Falls was so far living up to its expectation since as promised, we could hear it from what I could estimate as a mile away. We arrived a few minutes past midday ready to have some fun. There were some officials (I could only assume that they were county government officials) at the gate charging sh. 400 per parking. We paid hastily and proceeded to find a nice parking spot away from the scorching sun. What we saw from the inside was a bit worrying, there was nothing. Just individual groups of people crossing the river and some seated under trees trying to eat. The most unmistakable quality and general aura of the place was the strong stench coming from the huge river in waves. So far, no one had mentioned it, but I could see the hope disappearing from everyone’s eyes. We were already here, so we might as well try and enjoy our afternoon. We decided to go take a closer look and one of the local ‘guides’ was quick to come and offer us services. I asked him about the smell and he told me it was because of the hyacinth that had started growing on the water. I was very skeptical about his knowledge in biology so I decided not to take that as the answer. The whole place did not have any benches or tents where visitors could escape the midday sun; there were no warning signs of any kind even though there were children in the area and a group of people crossing the 60m wide river. Something seemed off, the whole place screamed of neglect. We started wondering what the charges at the gate were for.

After some deliberation, we decided that we had to see how this neglected and defiled piece of nature looked from the other side. We had not realized that we were going to get the adventure that we were looking for after all. Crossing the Fourteen Falls is not an easy thing to do. The river is filled with slippery and sharp rocks. The water is also moving fast as it nears the 25m fall. We therefore decided to take a guide with us, a wise decision I must add. In order to cross the river successfully, it is easier to do it as a unit. By holding each other and facing the direction from where the river is flowing, you can move sideways easily. After a streak of jumps, falls and a few minor accidents, we finally reached the other side. We climbed one of the rocks and the view was spectacular. It was totally worth it to cross over. We watched as some of the local ‘daredevils’ made the 25m jump from the top of the falls to the bottom.

The smell, however, ensured that we would not have a good time, so after a few pictures and perseverance, we decided to make the long and smelly way back. We reached the other side with one mission in mind; leave and do not look back. After tipping our nice guide, we drove back home. A little embarrassed because we were let down. We had such high expectations but the Fourteen Falls was a clear picture of how we despise our beautiful nature. The awful smell from the river is as a result of Nairobi residents dumping their waste in the water which has made it toxic. The smell itself is enough to ensure even bacteria finds a hard time living in there. The foam that forms under the waterfall is also unnatural and reeks of filth. The polythene bags trapped amidst rocks and bushes in the river are also an eye-sore and a huge environmental concern. It was especially more hazardous when one of these polythene bags wrapped itself around one of my friend’s legs. She ended up screaming, almost falling. She later fell when she stepped on a slippery stone, falling into the river, thank God for our strong grips. This is a plea to the local government in Thika to restore the Fourteen Falls to its rightful place. It would not take a lot; just a little investment on security measures like life-jackets, chilling spots for visitors, emergency services and a campaign to stop polluting the river’s water from upstream, which is another matter altogether as you can read here. There was no way that water could support any kind of aquatic life, just the same way the bad smell does not come from the hyacinth.

I would love to re-visit The Fourteen Falls, I hope next time, we will have made some progress in making the reputation of this scenic masterpiece match its state, because for now, it is not quite there yet and it will make you sad. But I would recommend a visit to this place, even if just to see why we need to do more to conserve our environment.

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