Perched high in the Nimba Mountains close to Liberia’s borders with Guinea and Côte d’Ivoire, is Nimba Forest Ecolodge. We spent two nights here and found stunning scenery, with several quirks along the way.
On arrival we were welcomed with a refreshing fruit juice before being allocated one of ten individual lodges overlooking the mountains. Ours was the first in the row and named Nimba 1330m, as each is named after a nearby peak.
The room was arranged over two floors, with a very steep open staircase that looked daunting even during the daytime, let alone in the middle of the night. Upstairs there was a double and two twin beds, all with mosquito nets. We slept downstairs in what was a very low double bed complete with furled mosquito net which we left alone. There was also a safe, some useful shelving, a small dining table and two chairs, together with tea and coffee-making facilities. As the staircase emerged directly into the centre of the room, we had to take care not to bump our heads during nocturnal wanderings to the bathroom.
Considering the lodge could sleep six, the single, tiny bathroom seemed wholly disproportionate. Opposite the door was a pebble-studded basin with a foot pump providing cold water only. The toilet occupied one end and the shower the other, leaving very little wiggle space.
Meals were served in the open-plan bar and restaurant overlooking the swimming pool. The menu was a little limited, but the quality of the food was excellent. On our first evening we shared delicious calamari with a seafood dip followed by prawns in garlic sauce with salad. As neither was particularly large, there was still room for a chocolate ice cream.
Our first night was wonderfully peaceful, with only two or three other couples dining. By contrast, the following day brought a large influx of weekend guests including people with camper vans, and around fifty day-trippers from Monrovia. That evening the bar was packed and staff had to find somewhere for us to sit. Fortunately, things quickly quietened down when the day-trippers left, and we enjoyed dinner from the weekend specials board, sharing gambas followed by a fillet of fish with salad.
Breakfast had to be ordered the previous evening and consisted of juice, fresh fruit, toast, help-yourself coffee and what were intended to be poached eggs but arrived fried.
The swimming pool was another highlight. It was long and attractive although it was initially a little chilly. There were plenty of comfortable loungers, but no dedicated pool towels, so we had to use those provided in our room.
The lodge offered a good range of activities. Some, including a forest walk, historical tour and visit to the bat cave, were included, while others, such as an excursion to Mount Nimba Peak incurred an additional charge as a ranger was required. There was also a short walk to the Blue Lake, which was not quite as blue as its name suggests, but kayaking was available.
There was no doubt that Nimba Forest Ecolodge had a fabulous location amidst the stunning scenery of the Nimba Mountains and this helped mitigate the few niggles. But if I were returning, I’d avoid a weekend.
