Enjoy cool breeze around Bungoma's Nabuyole falls

At the outskirts of Webuye town in Bungoma County lies Nabuyole waterfall which serves as a tourist attraction site in the county.

The site attracts both local and international tourists who flock the area, especially during the December holidays, to enjoy the breeze and relax their minds after a year long toil. The place is also popular among some local churches who use it for baptism and also to offer sacrifices.

Faith Simwa is a local tourist from Webuye who visits the site during weekends and reveals she finds the place a good one to relax her mind after a week full of work.

“The cool breeze from the flowing waters makes it attractive. I love nature and the serenity of this place draws me as I get to take it all in against a backdrop of chirping birds,” she says.

Faith believes the county government should step in to manage the site, saying it can provide good earning potential for the area.

“This place should be fenced off so that people pay to access it. Recreational places and hotels should also be constructed next to the site so that it lives up to international standards for tourists to visit the area in large numbers,” she says.

Edwin Kulabusia says he visits Nabuyole falls twice a year mostly during the holidays.

“I learnt about this place from my parents. The fall plays a very important role as it benefits people who reside around it. It has boosted the social and economic status of Webuye town and Bungoma County as a whole,” Kulabusia says.

For him, if the site is upgraded to international standards more tourists will flock the region bringing with them high returns for the locals and the county government.

For others like Stephen Mburu, a second year student at Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, they tour the site for educational purposes.

“We have been learning about waterfalls and it is time to see for myself in order to comprehend them better. Nabuyole is a beautiful place for learning purposes and recreation,” he says.

Bungoma Governor Kenneth Lusaka revealed plans by the county government to improve the site. He said his administration has already tarmacked the road to the site for ease of movement to and from.

“We want to develop the site as a tourist attraction center and also develop a hydro-power station from the waterfall,” he says.

Nabuyole falls, found on River Nzoia — seven kilometers from Webuye town, breathes life into an area, which otherwise has been dominated by people harvesting and crushing stones for survival.

River Nzoia rises from Chereng’ani hills and drifts downwards to Nabuyole village where it is divided into three tributaries with each tributary forming a waterfall.

The fall is surrounded by magnificent environment and a beautiful scenery that captures major parts of rich and unexploited beauty of western part of Kenya.

Nzoia Water Supply Company harvests water from the fall which is then cleansed and supplied to Webuye town and to residents who stay along the waterfall.

Some meters away from the fall are stones that residents use for construction. They use the manual skill of grinding the stones to ballast.

The fall has a wide array of fish which provide a food source for residents who go fishing at night.