Hadithi Hadithi?
When the Europeans scrambled for the fertile land in East Africa, they marked different territories ideal for farms. In the central region of Kenya, places like Sumo, Thigoto and E-Naiwurruwurr. One of the foreigners was a geologist who visited E-naiwurruwurr and was attracted to the location because of a magnificent waterfall. The white man was impressed by the stupendous thundering of the waters and the surrounding area, and named the place after himself – Thomson Falls, a name that took hold, was recorded in history and even added to the list of physical features in Kenya. By 1929, the area had grown into a town, and as the Europeans who had settled in the area couldn’t properly pronounce e-naiwurruwurr, the town became known as Nyahururu. That same year, a railway line was completed for a soon to be cargo train that would carry agricultural produce from Nyahururu to Gilgil town 35 kilometres away.
There’s a saying that goes: the higher you go, the cooler it becomes and when thinking of Kenya’s towns with high altitudes, one must take into consideration Nyahururu town in Laikipia County. Here, the phrase can be recoined to: the higher you go, the more beautiful it becomes, as the town is Kenya’s highest major town, located 2,360 metres above sea level.
Nyahururu has been a centre of attraction since the turn of the last Century. In the 1900s European explorers were drawn to this area because of the surrounding plateau that offered a chance to capture the most scenic views, the fertile soils and adequate rainfall that prompted the sprout of farming activities, and a majestic cascade of water that flowed from the Ewaso Ng’iro River those rose in the western side of Mount Kenya. Towards the end of that century, the Falls had been visited by more explorers and visitors, and even featured in the American thriller film The Man in The Brown Suit.
To date, Nyahururu is still one of Kenya’s most beautiful towns thanks to the Falls. Recently, the Falls were renamed Nyahururu Falls from Thomson Falls in the spirit of Kenyanizing or decolonizing what has always been ours. Around the ‘wall’ where the water falls are a number of trees that stand guard as the water descends into a gorge, leaving a vibrant pallet of colours similar to that of a rainbow. The consistent presence of water ensures that the surrounding areas of the Falls have access to water at all times, hence the growth of maize north of the area and potatoes in the south with an array of flowers throughout the region.
Tell us, have you been to Nyahururu (former Thomson) Falls?
#KeWaterfalls