Kongou Falls is sometimes called 'the Niagara of Africa' because it stretches so wide across the river. Standing near it, the roar of the water is so loud you have to shout to be heard. A fine mist floats through the air, making everything nearby damp and glittering green.
The Ivindo River is one of the most important rivers in Gabon. Its waters are clear and slightly dark brown from the tannins of fallen leaves – like very weak tea. Hundreds of species of fish live in it, including some that are found nowhere else on Earth. Local people have always fished and paddled on the river.
Because the waterfalls make the river impossible to cross in a boat, the forest on each side has been left almost untouched for thousands of years. This means huge old trees tower over the water, and rare animals like forest elephants, bongo antelopes and countless rare birds shelter in the surrounding trees.
Getting to Kongou Falls is itself an adventure – visitors travel by dugout canoe along the river, listening to the distant rumble of the falls growing louder and louder until the whole white curtain suddenly comes into view around a bend.