In short
Djidji Falls are very impressive, gorgeous… and hard-to-access falls that are surrounded by pristine rainforest. The main part of the falls is some 150 m wide and some 40 to 70 m high.
44.5%
GPS coordinates
Location, address
Alternate name
Name in French
Height
Stream
UNESCO World Heritage status
Map of the site
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In detail
Ivindo National Park
The pristine rainforest around the Ivindo River in the central part of Gabon is a beautiful area with hills, powerful rivers, numerous great waterfalls and a very high biological diversity. In 2021 this national park was included in the UNESCO World Heritage list. This forest is rich with flowers and butterflies – numerous species live only there. One of the many values there are nearly unique old-growth forests that consist mainly of trees that belong to Caesalpinioideae subfamily. These trees frequently have beautiful flowers.
Well known are the enormous waterfalls on Ivindo River – Kongou, Mingouli, Kuete-Mango (possibly the most beautiful), and Tsengue Leledi. These falls belong to the most spectacular and powerful waterfalls of the world but are little known because this region is not a popular tourist destination.
Description of Djidji Falls
Djidji Falls have formed on Djidji River (called also Dilo River and Dji-Dji River) – a tributary of Ogooué River that flows parallel to Ivindo. Similar to the grandiose Kongou Falls, Djidji Falls are formed on Archaean crystalline rocks.
It is quite hard to reach this beautiful waterfall – there are almost no tourist amenities nearby (there, reportedly, is a simple shelter and little used trail), the waterfall is located far from villages and roads – there is a forest road and the remote, abandoned Massouna village some 9 km to the north-west from it, as well as rather dubious tracks closer to the falls.
Djidji River some kilometres before the falls divides into two streams (1.). On the north-western stream, there is a single waterfall. This is some 40 m high descent with several steps, a mighty stream roaring in a narrow ravine. But the most impressive is the main waterfall on the second part of the river some 500 – 600 m to the south-east. There the river is divided by islands into numerous smaller streams. These streams reach the rim of an enormous cirque, the width of all streams together is around 150 m, the height exceeds 40 m (1.) and might be even 70 m (2.). All these streams flow down along the rocks, joining into a single stream again. Rainforest surrounds the streams – the scenery is gorgeous!
References
- La Descente de la Rivière DJI-DJI, Carnets de Voyages au GABON. Accessed in the 4th January 2024.
- Parc National Ivindo. Plan de gestion, 2016 – 2020.
Linked articles
Wonders of Gabon
Gabon is a sparsely populated country where 85% is covered with equatorial rainforest. Highlights of this country are impressive ecosystems including unusual relict rainforests which persisted during the ice age thanks to the fog from cold ocean streams nearby. In the country are located also impressive waterfalls and rapids.
Waterfalls
Some of the most fascinating and awe-inspiring natural monuments are waterfalls or locations where a river abruptly changes its elevation.
Wonders of Africa
Africa has many outstanding wonders and some of the most surprising ones are the heritage of Egyptian civilization, the vernacular architecture of the Sahel region, tropical ecosystems, and others.
Recommended books
Gabon (Bradt Travel Guides)
Gabon, the land of the surfing hippo, is a West African country home to truly exceptional biodiversity. 30,000 gorillas stalk the jungle, manatees and humpbacks are present around the country’s 800km of coastline and Gabon’s 13 national parks offer wildlife-watching experiences unlike any other. Bradt’s Gabon is the only English-language guidebook available and includes a comprehensive section on the country’s birds and bird-watching alongside chapters on history and culture.
