The Victoria Falls

The Main Falls, Zimbabwe (left) and the Eastern Cataracts in Zambia (right)

At the western end of the Falls is a statue of David Livingstone, the first European to see the Falls, overlooking the Devil’s Cataract.  At the Devil’s Cataract, the river is eroding along a fault line in the basalt. Come back again in a few million years and the Devil’s Cataract will have eroded the basalt behind the current falls, creating a new Victoria Falls.  From the Devil’s Cataract we walked towards the Main Falls.  As we approached, the spray from the Falls was starting to soak us.  Keeping our cameras protected from the water we could see rainbows at the base of the falls and clear views of the Falls themselves when the spray cleared.  The trail finally led us to Danger Point, directly across from the Knife Edge and the Eastern Cataracts on the Zambian side.  Keeping clear of the slippery grass we took one last look at Falls, the gorge and the Boiling Pot before heading back to the hotel.

We didn’t have the time to take advantage of the wide range of activities available at Victoria Falls.  Maybe during the next visit it’ll be a whitewater rafting trip, or plane ride over the Falls, or a tigerfishing expedition.  Or maybe a walk along the park trails during a full moon.  I know one thing for certain: it won’t be a bungee jump.

For some brief history and geology of Victoria Falls read this article from our website.