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Fouta Djallon Highlands: West Africa's Water Tower

The Fouta Djallon plateau is one of Africa's most dramatic landscapes — red laterite highlands cut by deep valleys, waterfalls, and the source rivers of the Niger, Senegal, and Gambia

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1
Kinkon Falls Chute
One of Guinea's most dramatic waterfalls — the Kinkon river plunges 100 meters into a gorge in the laterite escarpment, surrounded by tall grass and red soil
2
Fouta Djallon Village Trek
Multi-day treks between Fula villages in the highlands — each village with its traditional round houses, herds of cattle and women spinning cotton on hand spindles
3
Source of the Niger River
The Niger — West Africa's largest river — rises in the highlands of Fouta Djallon near the town of Faranah; visiting the source reveals how a continent's artery begins as a trickle
4
Ugly Cattle Culture
The Fula people are West Africa's great pastoralists – their herds of zebu cattle move across the plateau along seasonal transhumance routes established over centuries
5
Dalaba Mountain Town
The mountain town of Dalaba at an altitude of 1,200 meters was the French colonial hill station - its cool climate, bougainvillea and stone buildings are still the nicest town in Guinea
6
Tinkisso River Valley
The deep valleys carved by the Tinkisso River into the plateau are extraordinary — red cliffs, emerald pools and small fishing communities at the bottom of steep escarpments