Gandalf Around The World: Man, Côte d'Ivoire

2019-04-01: Man, waterfall, mountains and jungle.

On the way to Man:

Bamboo forest in Guinea

On the dirty track to Danané in Côte d'Ivoire

The rather bad road between Danané and Man

Lunch break arriving at Man:

Around Man:

There are beautiful hikes to do around Man (including the"Dent de Man") but as my back is not yet fully OK we will just drive by car to the Ypou waterfall and to the Mount Tonkpi with William, a guide who offers his services at the Cascades Hotel where we camp. We negotiated at 8,000 CFA instead of the 15,000 CFA he claimed (which is probably still too much).
We first have to cross the city to take a track that is pretty good on the first 1200 m until the waterfall.
We stop there by paying 500 CFA (€ 0.79) for parking on the edge of the track (with receipt) and twice 500 CFA of entry fees to the waterfall. We reach it fifteen meters below, passing first under a bridge of lianas not yet inaugurated by the mayor, so not usable :-). It seems that it was the spirits of the forest that built it in one night. Some people really seem to believe it!
The Ypou waterfall is supposedly to be the highest in Côte d'Ivoire. With only 20 meters it can not claim to seriously compete with the falls of Guinea. Anyway, they are very pretty down the rocks by a series of steps in the shape of a fan. On this Sunday the site is invaded by Ivorians who appreciate the freshness and lush greenery.

"Parking" at the Ypou waterfall

Lianas bridge at Ypou waterfall

Waterfall on Sundays

Ypou waterfall on Friday

We take the track that goes up to the famous Mount Tonkpi, with 1190 m, one of the highest peaks of a generally low country, except, precisely, this region in the far west.
The track changes character. A few years ago it was easy and well maintained, according to William. Today it has become very rugged. We are moving very slowy forward. This would not be a big problem for Gandalf who saw others, but we are more and more embarrassed in height in the bamboo forest. We have to clear the passage from the big bamboo shoots lying over the track several times. The two hours that William had announced to us for the excursion are pure utopia. It is already 5:00 pm and we are still far from the summit when we come across a very crowded section. Clearing the bamboos here would take us too much time and obviously we will not be able to reach the top in a reasonable time. We prefer to turn back.
Fortunately we have a guide who knows it! It really helped us a lot !!! ☹
It's pity ! Because the view from the top must really be exceptional to Guinea and Liberia over the hills and the rainforest. We are doing away with the pretty views of the surrounding valleys and the Dent de Man that the track offers us on the way down.

On the track to Mount Tonkpi

The "Dent de Man"

Pineapple and coffee

We are at 6:30 pm at the entrance to Man. We stop near the sacred forest of Gbèpleu with these sacred monkeys. A forest where no stranger has the right to enter but where it is possible to observe the monkeys on the edge. Just bring some bananas to attract them and bring them out of the forest. We do not miss the tradition by buying for 200 CFA of bananas.

The legend says that these monkeys are in fact villagers who were turned into monkeys by an old woman a long time ago. She turned humans into monkeys with each approach of danger to protect and shelter them. She transformed them into human when the danger is gone. Unfortunately after the last transformation at the arrival of the fierce Samory Toure in Man, he murdered the old woman who has not been able to restore human form to the inhabitants. The monkeys have since been considered as villagers and sacred.

We are asked 500 CFA each for the visit. One wonders why, because the site is absolutely not maintained.