Chutes du Félou

The Félou Falls are the main reason to make the journey to the Kayes region. Fifteen kilometres upstream from town, the Sénégal River drops 13 metres down a wide, irregular set of rocky steps over a width of nearly a kilometre. In the wet season (July–October) the falls are in full flow and genuinely impressive; in the dry season the water splits into multiple channels through the black rock formations, creating pools where it is possible to swim or wade. The spectacle is different at each season.

The falls are reachable by road from Kayes or by pirogue on the river. Local guides are available and recommended — the terrain is uneven and the falls cover a wide area. The surrounding landscape is scrubby Sahel savanna, hot and flat, but the falls themselves have a grandeur that is entirely unexpected. Come in the early morning before the heat becomes serious.

things to do sight
A story
The Chutes du Félou mark the farthest navigable point upstream on the Sénégal River from the Atlantic — the point where 19th-century steamboats and pirogues had to unload their cargo and transfer it overland. This made Kayes the indispensable transshipment point for all goods moving into the West African interior, and explains why the French chose it as their first colonial capital of what became French Sudan. A small hydroelectric plant built here by the French in the 1920s still generates power for the region.

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