Finally, climbing Olumo Rock is off the bucket list! It has taken a while to get here but I’m glad its finally done. Went on this tour with LOML and friends and it was such a great experience.
Olumo rock is one of Nigeria’s numerous historical sites and tourist attractions largely tied to the identity of the dwellers. It is often said that your visit to Abeokuta is not complete without climbing the Olumo rock because the city derives its name from the rock. It was a place of refuge and safety for the Egba people hundreds of years ago.
If you tour with a knowledgeable guide; there’s a story behind every path, crevice, and station. There are the shrines and obvious signs of the traditional African belief and worship but the focus for me was the wonder of how these awe-inspiring collection of rocks and boulders came to attain significance. Some of the narration could also have been embellished and shrouded in myth but it didn’t take away from the exhilaration of being there, exploring grounds where a people sought sanctuary and called home centuries ago.
The summit provides incredible views of the whole state and from here, a knowledgeable guide can point out other historical and notable places such as the first secondary school, radio station, MKO Abiola’s family compound, the Ogun River and a host of others.
Our guide told us that most of what the Ogun government did to ‘upgrade’ the grounds was done four administrations ago but successive governments have not kept up the tempo. If only we could do more to protect, promote and package sites like this for the historical and tourist values they provide.
Finally, our guide on this trip is a man who claims to be a descendant of generations of guides on the rock called Ibrahim. He comes highly recommended if you choose to visit and he’s really great with the camera. He took a lot of the pictures we took, using our phone cameras as he spoke and pointed out landmarks.
