Beautiful Nigeria: Esa Cave, Iyin-Ekiti, Ekiti State

Located in Iyin-Ekiti in Irepodun/Ifelodun LGA, Esa cave is capable of containing about thirty four thousand people at a time and it is believed to have shielded the people of the town during the internecine wars in Yoruba land.

This is a great site to explore the rich Yoruba history.

Esa Cave is beside a mountain that is about 10,000 feet above the sea level.

The original owners of the cave are the Ijoro family of Okesale area of Iyin Ekiti.

The Cave was manned by their fore-fathers who discovered that the Cave exists there and they lived there for many centuries.

The cave is located at a distance of about 6 kilometers away from Iyin Ekiti in Irepodun/ Ifelodun Local Government Area of Ekiti State This is about 3 kilometers away from Ado-Ekiti, the state capital.

The Cave still maintains its natural look while evidence of long use still exists.

It has demarcated rooms separated by low height walls made from mud bricks which had become strong and difficult to pull down. Also, small boulders used as ‘pillows’ by old occupants still remain in the Cave.

The cave has an age long history of having been the safe harbor for the Iyin and Ado-Ekiti warriors during the inter-township fight with the Ikere-Ekiti people of Ekiti state.

The warriors and the people would run to the cave for safety till the land is restored back to normalcy.

On the long run many of the people decided to stay back and live in the cave instead than running about anytime there is a war.

Gradually a lot of Iyin Ekiti people abandoned their main town and started living in the cave till about the 1930’s when few of them begin to return back to their town.
“Esa Cave in Iyin-Ekiti is one of those viable sites.

It can accommodate 3,000 people apart from other sites within its vicinity that can be a good resort.

Esa Cave is the third most viable resort after Ikogosi and Arinta Waterfall in Ekiti.

It has the strength to boost local economy through revenue generation and job creation.