Chutes de l'Impératrice

The Ngounié river spreads across a rock shelf near Fougamou and drops in a broad set of falls, not high but wide, breaking into channels around islands of rock with forest along both banks. They were named for the Empress Eugénie in the nineteenth century by French explorers. A track leads down to the riverbank and there is a simple lodge above the water, but nothing else has been built at the site.

What you'll find

• The wide falls - the river breaking into channels across a broad rock shelf.
• The rock islands - the outcrops the water divides around.
• The riverbank forest - woodland running down to the water on both sides.
• The nineteenth-century naming - the French explorers who named the falls.

When to go

June to September is the drier season with easier access. The rains raise the river and increase the flow considerably. Tracks are difficult when wet.

Before you go

The falls are wide rather than high, which disappoints some. The track down is rough. Facilities are one small lodge and nothing more.

Nearby

Fougamou is nearby, and Waka National Park is east.