Epupa Falls

Kunene River, far north-west Namibia · first went 2017

Palm trees, a river the colour of tea, and Angola just across the water.

Epupa is where the Kunene stops behaving and breaks into a hundred channels over the rocks. You get there on a long road through Himba country, and then suddenly there are makalani palms and the noise of water, which after days of dust feels like cheating.

I've been twice, in 2017 and again in 2020. The second time I knew the rule and still had to be reminded by a local: don't swim. The crocodiles don't care how far you've come.

Plan a trip here

Opens the planner with Epupa Falls as your finish. Set where you start and how many days, and it works out the route, fuel, night stops and weather.

Get there

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Good to know

Fill up in Opuwo. It's the last proper fuel.
Watch the sunset from the hill above the falls.
Book a campsite on the river if you can. The lodges fill up.

The trip it's from

Destination Epupa FallsNamibia · Fish River to Kunene · 7 days. Open it, change it, ride it.

Places change. Check opening times and conditions before you go.