Takwa Ruins

Takwa was a Swahili town of perhaps two or three thousand people, flourishing in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and abandoned around 1700, apparently when its wells turned brackish and the community moved to Shela on Lamu Island. The ruins sit behind mangroves on Manda, with a Friday mosque whose pillar rises above the walls, house foundations laid out along streets, a town wall and a large pillar tomb dated by inscription. Sand dunes have crept over parts of the site. Getting there is half the experience: a dhow from Lamu or Shela crosses the channel and works up a mangrove creek that is only navigable near high tide, so departure times are set by the tide rather than by convenience, and the walk from the landing to the ruins goes through the mangroves.

What you actually see

• The Friday mosque - the main ruin with its distinctive pillar.
• House foundations - the street layout of the abandoned town.
• The pillar tomb - the dated grave monument outside the walls.
• The mangrove approach - the dhow trip up the tidal creek.

When to go

Dry seasons for sailing comfort. Tide dictates everything: the creek is only passable near high water, so trips leave and return on the tide and cannot be rescheduled to suit. Mornings are calmer for the crossing.

Honest expectations

If you miss the tide window you do not go, and trips are sometimes cut short to get out before the water drops. The walk from the landing is hot and through mud in places. The ruins are overgrown in parts. Bring water and sun cover; there is no shade at the site.

Nearby

Lamu old town and Shela are across the channel; Manda island holds the airstrip.