Travel Guide Nioro Du Rip

It is a town located 59 km south of Kaolack on the N4 national road, and about 30 km from the Gambian border. It is also the most used road to go to Casamance via the Transgambienne, the last stage before Farafenni in Gambia. It was the capital of the Rip, the kingdom of the marabout Maba Diakhou Bâ who put up fierce resistance and hostility to both the animist kingdoms and the French colonial penetration. There are remains of a serere cult that is found nowhere else, and which is described as solar, similar to the dolmens and cromlechs raised in Western Europe. Cut from laterite, large circles and numerous alignments of stones show that civilization began very early on this side of Africa too. The road between Kaolack and the Farafenni Bridge is very good. No more long hours of waiting for the ferry to cross the river and the disastrous road that followed. Inaugurated in January 2019, the Farafenni Bridge remarkably spans the Gambia River over a length of 1,000 metres, thus extending the Transgambienne from Senegal. Access is fluid on a pleasant road, and checks at border crossings are fairly quick. However, you may be asked for many baksheesh, so be firm and refuse. Count around 2,500 FCFA for the right of passage. To go to Nioro du Rip, you will find bush taxis in Kaolack, at the garage located in the Ndagane district.