When any body who knows Enugu very well hears of Akwuke, one of the things that comes to mind is the sand beach of Nyaba at Akwuke. This is where my adventure has taken me to this time around but am not alone. I was joined by Abiola, A corp member serving in Enugu, Very curious, enthusiastic and adventurous person, A lover of nature and tourism.
We met at the picnic ground in Ezeagu and in the course of our chat he discovered that i been on a solo tour and hike, being a like mind, he indicated interest in joining me. My next destination was the Ikirike Hill at Idaw River but he had already visited there about a month back. After my Idaw River Experience which seemed to have been the most remarkable at that time, we embarked on what he described as a mind blowing experience. We took off from Imt bus stop and made our way to Akwuke town, although located in Enugu south, Akwuke has a very bad road. Not minding the unmotorable nature of the road we made our way to the sand beach area.
Also Read: The Hiker’s Diary: The Tale of an Adventurous Hiking in Akwuke, Enugu
Akwuke sand beach area has no ocean or big river but it was indeed a beauty to behold, it wasn’t better than i imagined and wasn’t less than i imaged. Something about the place appealed to my soul. While we took a walk around the area i told Abiola about the story i heard on how the water came into existence.
I know some of you might want to know but don’t quote me anywhere as the story isn’t mine. According to the story, ”Centuries ago, the towns around the Akwuke area woke up to this mysterious big river that ran through their community, they are all amazed and astonished by what they saw but their happiness was cut short when the chief priest announced to them that the Agbara of the river appeared to him and demanded a human sacrifice from the people if they want the river to remain. Shocked by what they heard and the outrageous demand of the so called goddess, the community gathered at the village square for deliberation. After their deliberation they unanimously decided not to offer any human sacrifice but agreed on animal sacrifice if the goddess will accept but the goddess insisted on human sacrifices but the community rejected that. Angered by their decision, the goddess said she was going to take her river away but she will leave her trace with them to remind them of what could have been. That when the town becomes popular because of traces she will leave that they should imagine what could have been if the river had remained”.
Away from the tale of Nyaba river, but come to think of it, if this tale was true, how popular do you think this place could have been? The river known as Nyaba is the most visited in Enugu because of its terrain. The area know as nyaba and Akwuke beach has hosted more nollywood movie than any other location in Nigeria, also more popular than most of the beaches in the atlantic coast. In Enugu, it is one of the top spot for picnic, camping and more. Well, Who knows what could have been.
See Also: A Guide To Hiking In Enugu, Where To Go
After exploring the sand beach area we headed for the hills, on our way we passed through one of the fulani settlement but unknown to us there was no root to the hill as people don’t visit there. With the direction of a fulani farmer we met on the way we journeyed through the forest till we made our way to the hilltop but it wasn’t easy, we practically to tore the bushes and it took us close to one hour to get to the top.
Also Read: My First Solo Hiking: Through The HillTop Settlement Of Enugu
At a point the rain started but it never deter me, I didn’t want to ask Abiola if he wanted to continue because i don’t want to feel guilty, as the saying goes what you dont know cant hurt you but am not sure that statement is true.
i was determined to make it to the hilltop even though that wasn’t what Abiola bargained for when he decided to follow me but when we got to the top he seemed more excited than i was.
It seemed like a whole new world up there, Enugu like never seen before. the weather was different, the cool breeze was magical, it was simply out of this world. The environs was beautiful and one can see the whole Akwuke beach and and some part of Nkanu from the hilltop. We spent almost 2 and half hours on the hilltop just enjoying and admiring the beauty of nature.
Also Read: Going The Extra Mile: My Iva valley Hiking Experience
When It was time for us to head back i started a video and allowed Abiola to lead the way unfortunately i can’t be able to upload it now. While heading down, Abiola keep moving west but to me it seemed funny at first, he was following anywhere that seemed like a part forgetting that we never came up through any footpart. When it was obvious that we have completely lost our way Abiola demanded that i give him my phone to use the google map to find our way out, I had to stop my video coverage i termed ”Lost” my jourgel Experience” We wandered inside the bush for close to five hours, even when we started using the google map it didn’t help as it also kept telling us to move west. I don’t know if the google map was reading Abiola’s Mind.
While Abiola was certain the direction the google map was giving us was correct, I knew heading that way was going to either take us to the lake we spotted from the hill top or take us deeper into the forest. After much debate and deliberation he asked that i lead the way, While we headed south east wards, we heard the sound of a tipper and followed it and found our way out. we spent about 4 hours plus trying to find our way out as we ket moving west. The time we spent looking for our way out for me is the highlight of my experience, although Abiola was getting agitated and i also became a little agitated when i realized it was already 6:pm but i have already started looking for a comfortable tree i was going to spend the night in because i wasn’t going to sleep on the ground not after what soldier ant did to us.. The experience was remarkable and indeed the most memorable of all my hiking experience.
When we got to Akwuke sand area we met some guys who came around to take some picture, We had a little interaction and they said they want to experience what we experienced, we gave them drictions and two days later i got a video of their own adventure to the hill with some of their corper friend.
