On Friday afternoon I went to the Nile Falls. I had heard this was a shadow of its past glory following the construction of a new Hydroelectric plant, however I disagree – it is still spectacular even in the dry season and well worth a visit. First you drive about 1 hour down a tough road and then cross the Nile upstream by boat- already a large river as it leaves Lake Tana. On the other side you then walk 10-15 minutes across seemingly flat countryside before hearing and seeing the roar of the falls as the river collapses over a 100 feet cliff. This must have been one of the most spectacular falls in the world as depicted in the 1 birr bank note, as you see that now half the cliff is dry where the extra water fell before the diversion of much of the flow to the power plant. Despite this it is still amazing and probably the best water fall I have ever seen. If you walk down to near where the falls hit the surface below then a spray covers the ledge and a colony of small flies and insects thrive from the wet conditions. You get completely soaked rather quickly which can be pleasant as it gets hot and almost tropical at Lake Tana.
