From OLUSEYE OJO, Ibadan
THE world is blessed with two special lakes that are positioned at the top of mountains. The first one, known as Hanging Lake, is in the United States, while Nigeria is home to the second named Suspended Lake.
The Hanging Lake is at Glenwood Canyon in the State of Colorado. It is about 11 kilometres East of Glenwood Springs and is a very popular tourist destination. But the Suspended Lake in Nigeria, also known as Iyake Lake, is at the peak of Oke-Ado Mountain in Ado-Awaye, a community which lies about 20 kilometres West of Iseyin in Oke-Ogun area of Oyo State. Despite its uniqueness, it is not yet a popular tourist destination.
While the Hanging Lake receives an average of 131,000 visitors every year, there is no record on the number of visitors to the Suspended Lake in Nigeria. Hanging Lake is also one of the most popular hiking destinations in Colorado, with approximately 2.5 miles round trip, and two hours of hiking time.
However, a walk from the base of the Oke-Ado Mountain to the point where the Suspended Lake soars, is more than hiking. For visitors to the Suspended Lake, it is usually an agonizing time. There are 369 steps that lead to a level on the mountain, before visitors would begin a pleasure walk to the lake. The walk is, however, characterized by passing through a bushy route, that only those who enjoy good health can venture.
The Hanging Lake on the other hand, is reached via a trailhead, located along the Glenwood Canyon Bike and Pedestrian Path that runs along the north side of 1-70 in the bottom of the Canyon. The trail follows Dead Horse Creek, a tributary of the Colorado River and ascends some 1,000 feet in elevation for 1.9kilometres from the trailhead to the lake. In 2011, the lake was named as a National Natural Landmark by the US Government.
A recent visit by Daily Sun to Ado-Awaye in Iseyin Local Government of Oyo State revealed that the Suspended Lake is the largest and most popular attraction on the Oke-Ado Mountain. From Ibadan, the reporter stopped over at Iseyin, after travelling on a road dotted by potholes and craters for approximately 100 kilometres, before connecting Ado-Awaye, another 20 kilometres west of Iseyin town.
The car that conveyed the reporter from Iseyin, North of Ibadan to Ado-Awaye screeched to a stop at the Agelu Junction in the Suspended Lake town. The road that leads from Iseyin to Ado-Awaye is smooth and good, except for two points. The reporter beckoned to a commercial motorcyclist, who took him to the base of 369 steps that lead to the lake.
There was no signpost at Agelu Junction to call attention of visitors to the Suspended Lake in the town. But there is a signpost erected by the Oyo State Tourism Board few metres to the base of the mountain. The inscriptions on the signpost read: “Ado Awaye Suspended Lake Tourist Centre, courtesy of Oyo State Tourism Board.”
An elderly man, Mr. Adediran Adeseun, a member of staff of the Oyo State Ministry of Tourism and Culture, said it would take about 45 minutes to get to where the suspended lake is located on the Oke-Ado Mountain, which is at the back of Ansar-Ul- Deen Primary School. On the first level of Oke-Ado Mountain, the reporter came across an outcrop of rock, known as Ishagi Rock. It is a hanging boulder of rock, which stands precariously on the precipice.
The Ishagi Rock, which is at about step number 180, is held in high esteem by the natives of Ado-Awaye. They believe that every prayer offered to the Supreme Being through Ishagi Rock always receives speedy answer. Those who believe in its spiritual power usually go to feast around the rock. But the feasting is always done with chicken and specially roasted beans (Ewa Ishagi).
But the 369 steps do not take tourists to the lake, as it ended half way. As at now, the steps are not very strong and erosion has washed off many of them. At the point where the steps stopped, the tourists passed through a narrow path and conveniently climbed other levels of the Oke-Ado Mountain, before getting to the syncline that houses the Lake. Some green shrubs nestle at its side.
The lake looks serene. The water in the lake is turquoise and is about 12 feet in diameter. It is known for its clearness, neatness, size and spiritual significance. It is regarded as the main god of fertility of the Oke-Ado Mountain, which spreads from Ado-Awaye town to the surrounding plains and stands magnificently above the verdant rainforests. town to the surrounding plains and stands
The villagers believe that the lake is a bottomless gorge. According to them, there exists beneath the lake another world that looks like the earth, and whoever transits into the world by diving into the lake will never return to this world. This probably prompted the villagers to make it a taboo for anybody to bathe or swim in the lake. It was said that whoever swims in the lake will be drowned and the person’s body will never be seen again.
But people from different parts of Nigeria and foreign countries have been visiting the lake. Some of them “scoop out water from the lake and go away with it. Some do wash their faces and some drink it for spiritual purposes,” Adeseun told Daily Sun.
At about two metres to the lake is a small hole filled with water. The hole is known as ‘Agbomofunyake’. It is said that if anyone dips his feet into the small hole, the person will be sucked through the rock into the bottom of the bigger Iyake Lake.
As the reporter stood and beheld the wonders of nature, some small black birds flew to Iyake Lake to drink water. The tranquil lake is regarded by the ancestors of Ado people as so powerful that whatever prayer is made with its water will yield supernatural results.
A rocky plain, which can be developed into a picnic or camping site, was sighted in the vicinity of the lake. As gathered, the plain is used by some religious organizations for spiritual exercises. They do camp on the plain for three to seven days.
The interesting points on the Oke-Ado Mountain are not limited to the Suspended Lake, Agbomofunyake and Ishagi Rock. There are also crests of rock, which the villagers described as ‘Esekan Iku’ (on the verge of death). The rocky outcrop can be climbed to gain a full view of the whole range of the hills, lying towards the border of Nigeria with the Republic of Benin. Also, the scenery of the place is beautiful to behold.
But beyond the aesthetics are the shrines of various gods of the town, which include Iyake, Isata, Ishagi, Igbe and Oduduwa.
Ado-Awaye was formed by two settlements Ado and Awaye more than 200 years ago. According to oral history, the ancestors of Ado people migrated from Awori land to settle at the top of Oke-Ado Mountain as a result of the Dahomey War that ravaged the Yoruba land in the 18th Century. The gods of the mountain were said to have kept the ancestors of Ado people safe till the war subsided. When they descended the mountain to settle at the foot of the hill, they met with the Awaye people, who had settled near the mountain. So, they agreed to live together, hence the name Ado-Awaye.
On touching the base of the mountain after two hours of eventful hiking, Daily Sun also toured a building constructed by a former Military Administrator in Oyo State as a rest house for tourists. The military administrator embarked on the construction after he climbed the mountain to see the lake. The house was meant for tourists to relax, and freshen up. It was the only significant thing done to promote the lake before the advent of the current democratic experience in 1999. But the building has become decrepit. The roof of the building has been partially blown off by storm. Reptiles and other animals seemed to have taken over rest house.
The administration of former governor of the state, the late Alhaji Lam Adesina, that came into power in 1999, also developed interest in lake. But the interest must have stemmed from the fact that the deputy governor in the regime, Chief Iyiola Oladokun, hails from Ado-Awaye.
The administration provided steps up the hill, which made it easier to climb the mountain. But the contractor stopped work on the construction of the steps when Lam Adesina lost the 2003 governorship election to Senator Rashidi Ladoja. None of the administrations that came after Adesina did any concrete thing to upgrade the centre.
Oladokun, in a telephone interview said: “As a native of Ado-Awaye, I grew up to know that the Suspended Lake was known beyond Nigeria. We used to receive expatriate visitors. My family house is very close to the base of the hill. They used to park their vehicles in front of our houses, and asking our parents to look after the vehicles so that small children would not throw pebbles at the vehicles.
“It used to be a weekly affair then. They would come, go to the lake, swim in it. Our uncles and brothers used to be the guides then. That was how it was until we too grew up, and I had the opportunity to be in government. But the government has been doing some things about it before I got into government. The hall that is at the base of the hill was built during the military era.
“Our plan then was to complete the steps that were to be two lines with railings. We also planned to renovate that hall and build chalets for tourists to spend some time. They can climb the hill in the morning and come back to rest. If you get to the Oyo State Tourism Board, the plans then are there.
“Since then, one has been agitating that government should complete the project to make it attractive to both local and international tourists. We are hoping that the place will be opened to local and international tourists to come to Ado-Awaye and behold the wonder of nature and enjoy themselves.
“In the past, birds used to enter the lake with straws to build their nests and would come back empty handed. I have witnessed it myself. There is nobody that went to the bottom of the lake and come back again, but I know that some white men used to swim in the lake.
“The Federal Government showed interest in the project sometime ago. Fund was reportedly allocated to the project, but it was purportedly diverted to another project in Ibadan during military administration. Under the civilian administration, officials of the Federal Government also visited the place and made several promises to the people, which are yet to materialize.”
If fully developed, how much does he envisage the place could generate for the government? Oladokun responded: “I cannot put a figure to it. Tourism is based on people’s experience. If you visited a place today and you are very much pleased with what you saw, you will recommend it to others.
“That is how tourism develops. There must be something in place before you start estimating what could be the income. I am very sure if the place could be developed to a very good standard; definitely it will attract visitors and will generate revenue for the government or whoever invests in it.”
Meanwhile, the Oyo State Government promised that the Ado-Awaye Tourist Centre would be redeveloped. A top official of the government, Alhaji Olalekan Alli, told Daily Sun that the state Bureau of Investment Promotions (Public Private Partnership) is looking into the redevelopment of the lake “and they have some interested investors already.”
He said the investments of Governor Abiola Ajimobi administration on tourism and hospitality, particularly during his first term arose from the realization of the need to diversify the economy, and be less-dependent on income from oil. He assured Nigerians that all tourist centres in the state would be developed:
“That is why the moribund, abandoned and neglected Agodi Gardens, Ibadan, has been transformed to a world-class resort. This is one of the things we have done and there are still other things that we’ll do and investors are actually coming to make investments. In the same manner, we are looking at the redevelopment of the Ado Awaye tourist centre. We are endowed with such places. The Ikere Gorge Dam is also at Iseyin. We are talking to Federal Government on this. We are seriously hoping that when the Federal Government sees our seriousness, believes in our purposefulness, it will make it possible for us to partner with them.”
Mr. Wale Ojo-Lanre, who has been covering tourism for more than two decades, said any government which provides the basic amenities needed at Ado-Awaye Suspended Lake will open a road for investment in that town because heavier traffic to the town will trigger the need for hotels, restaurants and so on:
“The enhancement of Ado-Awaye Suspended Lake will generate employment and mobilize wealth for the people of the state and the town in particular. This is because tourists passing through the state to Ado- Awaye will have to spend money within the state. There is the need not only to rehabilitate the present ones, but to ensure that the steps get to the top of the mountain. There is also the need to construct rest chairs along the way to the top.”
The Suspended Lake needs perimeter fencing to guard against accidental fall into it by tourists. This will also protect it against pollution. People that want to scoop water from the lake may be asked to pay fees. In the same vein, the rest house can be rehabilitated and some rooms there leased out as shops to cater for the needs of tourists.
But if there is any vision that the Alado of Ado-Awaye, Oba Folarin Oyetunji Abilawon I, has for the Suspended Lake, it is how the state government would replicate the transformation of Olumo Rock carried out by the Ogun State Government on the Suspended Lake:
“The Suspended Lake is a great thing that God gives us at Ado-Awaye. Though government has acquired it, we want the Oyo State Government to develop it like other tourist centres in order to attract people from all walks of life. We have only two in the world. There is one in the USA, and the other one in Africa is at Ado-Awaye.
“We need standard chalets for tourists to rest. Some people will come and they would like to stay for two to three days. Now, we don’t have where they would stay. Apart from renovating and completing the steps that lead to the Suspended Lake, we want the government to provide elevators that will convey people who may not have enough strength to climb the stair cases.
Source :Sun News Online 
but regardless, there's a lot of truth in it
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