Boti Falls, a sight good for the heart
It takes a healthy heart to fully enjoy the many attractions of the Boti Falls, a popular tourist site in the Yilo Krobo District of the Eastern Region.
Advertisement
To relish a moment with the cascading presence of the male and female Boti Falls, one must prepare to descend 250 steps into the forest and make the same journey back.
For many tourists such as Lilly, the Boti Falls is a good place to test the health of one’s heart.
"I have always felt healthy until I had to descend and ascend these stairs during our visit today", Lilly said.
She had visited the falls for the first time. She told the Daily Graphic that she had to stop many times to rest during the retreat.
One hour and a few minutes’ journey by foot to the Umbrella Rock, another attraction at the Boti Falls, is an equally laborious task, and certainly not for the faint-hearted.
Polly, a student from the Lancaster University in the United Kingdom, was among a group of students who made it successfully to the Umbrella Rock.
"I am very tired; I have never sweated before, especially with this weather”, she stated. Polly, however, described the experience as very nice.
Other Trending Stories
Other attractions
Sex organs, a natural rock depicting the male and female sexual organs, a snake-like palm tree, and yet another rare three-headed palm tree is some of the other attractions.
Visitors to the site will also see the twin-rock, the ancient cup and cave.
Indeed, the Boti Falls has many interesting but rare attractions likely to stun first-time visitors.
Background
Hitherto, the Boti Falls (waterfall) was known as ‘Pompom’ and its source can be traced 25 miles away to the Ahenkwa River.
According to the tour guide, Mr Larwer Binadeo, two rivers joined to make up the Boti Falls. "So reaching the top of the rock, they separate. When you face it, the right one is the male and the left is the female", he stated.
At the time of the visit, the male was flowing smoothly but the female dropped sparingly.
According to Mr Binadeo, the female was not flowing because it was the dry season.
History has it that the Boti Falls was discovered in 1906 and rediscovered again in 1950 by a hunter, Tetteh Ngua. Mr Binadeo said the late hunter then led a Roman Catholic priest to the waterfall.
"During the interaction, the white man asked him where the water was coming from. The hunter answered in Twi, 'obour no ti', literally translated ‘the top of the hill’.
Unable to pronounce the name correctly, the Roman Catholic priest simply called it ‘Boti’, and that name has remained till date.
The Boti Falls under-resourced
The Boti Falls is grossly under-resourced, given the magnificence of its attractions.
Currently, the only habitable rooms available to visitors at Boti Falls are an old two-bedroom self-contained house built by Dr Kwame Nkrumah in 1962 after he had visited the place in 1960.
Advertisement
Seven summer huts jointly built by Nene Osabutey, Mr Ofori and Mr Kofi Yesu at separate times to promote tourism are the only additional structures at the place and an arts and beads shop operated by Mr Simeon Jahdidia is the only place visitors to the Boti Falls can grab a local souvenir.
Drowning
Obviously, nobody likes comparison and those who know this truth have saved themselves from drowning while swimming in the Boti River.
The river appears very calm but according to Mr Binadeo, 14 people had so far drowned since it was discovered. The most recent, he said, happened on July 1, 2015 when a man drowned.
"Some people, especially those from Accra, like to compare this river to the sea but this is not good", Mr Binadeo stated.
Advertisement
But for a group of students from Lancaster University who were visiting the site, the place was very quiet and looked almost abandoned. Mr Binadeo, however, explained that visits to the place usually peaked at weekends, on holidays and quite recently, on Farmers' Day.