August 1, 2013
The Tavoro Falls are three waterfalls in Taveuni Island’s Bouma National Park. The lower waterfall, at about 80 feet high, is the biggest of the bunch. The middle waterfall, a 30-minute uphill hike from the first, is the second largest. It’s a somewhat strenuous trip but worth it for the fantastic views of the coastline and ocean.
The third falls, the smallest but split and very pretty, is where the hike gets really interesting. The trail is more rustic and overgrown, and it involves a lot of clambering over slippery rocks and boulders. At best, it’s a long, slippery, and difficult trip, and people who’d gone were very divided on whether or not it was worth it. After it rains it gets even worse, to the point of being un-doble. Both our driver and a park attendant warned us not to do the upper falls today; and we reluctantly took their word for it. (Well, for me it was reluctantly, but Rich’s inner god* was doing the Irish jig.)
The trail started near the pavilion at the park entrance, and it was a pretty easy walk to the lower Tavoro Falls. Taveuni was living up to its reputation as “the Garden Island” here; this place looked like a tropical botanical garden.
We were amazed when we arrived at the lower Tavoro waterfall. Located in a spectacular tropical setting, it’s surprisingly large with a big pool at its base. Seeing this, I let go of any disappointment about not being able to go to the highest falls. This was about as beautiful a waterfall as we’d ever seen. Below a gallery of our walk and the falls (click to enlarge and scroll) –Cyndi
*Smart-ass reference to Fifty Shades of Grey. It may be hard to believe, but statements like this are scattered throughout the book.
