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This building is located at Idanre not Akure

I and my goons use to smuggle exam questions out of der dat year. We use to pass our exams wella.

who Messi help?

Egungun be careful na express you dey go. Follow your heart

Trying to dominate the conversation.... I hate am D. I. E

Our visit blew my mind, I thought of writing
an article based on the lessons I learnt from
climbing the hill. I hope you can also use the
lessons learnt in improving your personal
life, others, and business.
Happy reading!
The Idanre Hill, or Oke Idanre is located in
the Ondo State of southwestern Nigeria.The
hill of Idanre includes such cultural sites as
“Owa’s Palace, Shrines, Old Court, Belfry,
Agbooogun foot print, thunder water (Omi
Apaara) and burial mounds and grounds”.
It resides 3000 ft above sea level and houses
a unique ecosystem upon which the
culturalAroAro landscape has
inteAroArograted.
On getting to the entrance of the hill you will
see a great tree at the entrance of the accient
city of idanre called the IRAYE TREE, then
you can now get prepared to take the steps to
the great city beyond the hills of idanre.
(wikipedia.org/wiki/Idanre_Hill#/search)
Climbing Idanre Hill to the top involves 662
stair-like steps which is a strerous task that
scared tourists a way.
According to our Tourist guide, Tolu who
took us around historical site on the hills. He
told us the hills home the residents for
centuries before the they decided to relocate
to settle down at the valley on the hills. He
said the residents decided to “come down” to
the valley in 1928.
From another source, Baba Ori-Oke told us
that Idanre used to be called “Ife Oke”
before their relocation and its derived its
“new name”, Idanre which can be translated
or literally means “This is magic”.
The following are the lessons I learnt from
climbing the Idanre Hill viz:
(1) Team Spirit
(2) Believing in Yourself
(3) Tenacity
(4) Motivating and Inspiring others
(5) My fears
6) Procrastination failed
(7) Being a Coach
( Fun
(9) Helicopter view
(10) Resting bay
(11) Climax

Join me in Reading......

(1) TEAM SPIRIT
I discovered climbing the Hills could have
been a strerous pursiut for individual who
comes personally to catch fun. For me and
other club members who teamed-up to form
a group. Team spirit really help us to
overcome some hurdles in the course of our
exploration on the hill. Our team name is : PROGRESSIVE COMMITTEE OF FRIENDS IDANRE.

2) BELIEVING IN YOURSELF
Climbing the hill could have been an
heacleanian task by mere sighting the
gigantic monument which at the top
measured to be 5okm and cannot be
explored in a day but for 3 days.
When we are welcome to the entrance of the
hill, I had a personal goal. My personal goal
is to get to the top of the hill irrespective of
the challenges I encounter on my way up.

(3) TENACITY
Tenacity is been Tenacious. Tenacious is
holding together; cohesive; not easily pulled
asunder; tough. Being tenacious, helped me
to the top despite the discouragement from
my inner mind that almost stop me for
pursuing one of my life dream.

4) MOTIVATING AND INSPIRING
OTHERS
I motivated and inspired one of my friend
and a club to make it to the top of the hill
despite his pessimist nature. My friend, said
he would just do 100 steps out of 662 steps
and return to the valley.
I gave him hope and inspired him that he can
do it and to my amazement, my friend made
it to the top of the rock before me.

5) MY FEARS
My fears doesn’t come to pass about the
bodily pain and fatigue I may suffer after
climbing the 662 steps and walking on top of
the hill. After the climbing and returning to
the valley that housed the Idanre township.
After the excursion to the great hill, No skin
pain!

6) PROCRASTINATION
Procrastination failed to hold me back.We as
individuals deals with procrastination in our
everyday lives. Some people may argue that
they don’t procrastinate in their lives but one
way or the other unknown to them.
I would’ve procrastinate by giving my
friends excuse like ” can’t we make the next
time instead of now?”,
A friend whose Mother came Idanre nearly
gave me some procrastinating excuse like”
we cannot make to the top of the hill”, due to
time constrain and other stuffs. I listen to
him but follow my mind!

7) BEING A COACH
I became a life coach, when we all got to the
top of the hill by teaching my fellow
members real life experience from climbing
the hill to the top and I implore them to
always remember that despite all odd they
made it.

FUN
In everything you do in life always have fun
doing it. Having fun helped me and others to
achieve greatness.

9) HELICOPTER VIEW
Helicoper view is a term mostly in the field
of Human Resource Management. Helicopter
view means a general oveview of sometime.
Been on the hill-top gave us helicopter view
of the ancient city and the inhabitants.

10) RESTING BAY
The Management of the tourist created a
resting bay for people who to relax from
climbing the hill.
In application to real-life issues, there is
always a resting bay for you to relax and
reignite your drive for excellence.

11) CLIMAX
At last,we came down to the valley of the hill
and now you are at the valley of the article.

Visit after Lockdown

Idanre Hill, which was tentatively listed
as a world heritage site by UNESCO in
2007, is not living up to its rating, writes
OLUWOLE JOSIAH
Idanre Is a sleepy town of about 129,000
people located beautifully at a valley
spanning 1,914 square kilometres. For a
first time visitor, the visibly striking
features of the range of mountains with
several peaks along the undulating
expanse set the stage for an excellent
experience with nature.
However, the people are seemingly
oblivious of the intimidating heights of
rocks encircling them in a conical order,
as they go about their daily activities
ignoring the awesome natural edifices.
People in Idanre are largely farmers. This
differs from what is common in other
climes, where the location of a tourist’s
site defines the occupation and vocation
of the population around that location.
As one drives into the town, the tarred
road is halved by cocoa seeds. Most
farmers have turned a part of the road
into sun-baked ground.
It is difficult to perceive any tourism
indicators at the entrance to the town,
which is home to some interesting
ancient histories worth selling to the
world.
“The town can be described as a close
locked up by the heights of mountains.
There is only one road leading into the
town. It is the same road that you will
pass through if you are leaving the
town,” a visitor, who craved anonymity,
said.
SUNDAY PUNCH learnt that during the
pre-colonial era, some of the indigenes
had lived on top of the Idanre hill,
known among the people as Oke Idanre.
A tour guide with the Ondo State Tourism
Office, who wished to be identified
simply as Richard, said, “In the past, the
Idanre people lived on top of the hill,
which offered a plateau-like
environment, and served as home to the
various ancient Idanre communities. It
also provided a ready protection for the
people against invading armies. The
people lived on the hill for 800 years
before the quest for development forced
them down to the valley in 1928.”
The hill’s flat surface is 3,000 feet above
sea level. It is accessible by an
intimidating 660 steps laid in concrete
along the side of the hill. Climbers are
furnished with several resting places to
make climbing a pleasurable adventure.
Richard also said, “The steps were 460 in
number when it was first constructed in
1954, but with the intervention of
UNESCO in 2007, when the hill was
tentatively listed as a world heritage site,
the steps went up to 660. The ancient
community of Oke Idanre are in three
quarters, occupying a land area of 5km
radius.”
Idanre hill still retains the Old Igboore
Standard School, located in the first part
of the hill, known as Udega, established
in 1896 by Gilbert Carter, who was a
colonial visitor to Nigeria in 1894. It also
boasts of the legendary Omiapaara
(Thunder River), the Arun River,
supposedly possessing healing powers;
the court, and the mausoleum, where
kings were interred.
Although the practice of burying dead
kings on the hill is no longer in vogue,
the Idanre still bring their dead
traditional rulers up the hill to perform
the last funeral rites on them before they
are finally interred.
An interesting feature of the hill is the
inscription on one of the gigantic rocks,
similar to ancient hieroglyphics. The
letters are clear, but unintelligible and
unreadable: a perpetual mythical
mystery in the midst of the mountain
jungle.
Richard said, “The letters had been so
designated because no one has been
able to read them.”
Another notable site on the hill is the
ancient palace. The inner court of the
palace is beautifully decorated by
sculptural carvings used as pillars along
the length and breadth of the court. The
carvings, which depict the loyal servants
of the ruling kings at different times, are
in dire need of renovations and
preservation.
However, the tour guide said the
architectural design of the ancient palace
had been adopted in the construction of
the new palace down the valley. This
could be confirmed by an aerial view of
the new palace from the top of the hill.
At the courtyard are some dried skulls of
cattle slaughtered every year to
commemorate the anniversary of the
Idanre king. The number of skulls
represented the number of years a
particular king had spent on the throne.
“This place still holds great cultural value
to the people of Idanre. Any time they
want to perfect certain cultural rights,
either during festivals or coronation of
chiefs, the Idanre people will ascend the
top of the hill and return to their ancient
home,” the guide said.
The Orosun festival is a notable one
associated with the hill. The Mare festival
is a recent creation which is sports
oriented and involves mountain
climbing.
Idanre is no doubt an exciting tourist
site, with a potential to compete with
other national and international tourist
attractions across the world. The
historical sites still present there
underline this. However, it seems not
enough attention and appreciation has
been paid to Idanre Hill’s tourism
potential.
The tourism officer in charge of the site,
Mr. I. Idowu, said the site lacked the
basic infrastructure befitting a tourism
destination.
According to him, lack of perimeter
fencing and a welcoming facade reduces
its value as a tourism site.
“Whenever we have a large number of
people coming in, the community
benefits because the people buy
beverages from them. We are supposed
to have accommodation, restaurant, bar
and a car park. Then we can do a good
publicity for Idanre Hill. But these are
lacking for now,” he said.
Idowu’s lamentations are evident in the
dilapidated chalets, poorly kept
surroundings and littered environment
on the hill.