Victoria Falls Zimbabwe 4.91

The Victoria Falls can best be described in superlatives: breathtaking, spectacular, grandiose. No wonder it is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. The famous explorer Dr David Livingstone was the first European to set eyes on the Falls in 1855, and named it in honour of the British queen at the time. However, among the locals it is known as Mosi-ua-Tunya (the smoke that thunders), which is far more descriptive.

The water rushes across a cliff of approximately a kilometer wide, thundering down a gorge with a depth of 108 meter. The characteristic plume of mist, 400 meters high, can be seen from 50 kilometers away. If you visit the Victoria Falls at full moon, you can even see a “moonbow”.

The famous bridge, completed in 1905, crosses the Zambezi River below the Victoria Falls. It was the brainchild of Cecil John Rhodes, who wanted “the spray of the Falls over the train carriages” that travelled on his planned Cape-Cairo railway. Rhodes died before the construction of the bridge even began, and today it is still the only rail link between Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Today the Victoria Falls is a popular venue for adrenalin junkies who want to experience the wide variety of action activities that are offered in the area. These include whitewater rafting in the gorges, bungee jumping from the bridge, kayaking, game fishing, horse riding and flights across the Falls. Another activity for the brave (or stupid, depending on your point of view) is a swim in the Devil’s Pool. This is a naturally formed rock pool, right on the lip of the Falls, where a rock wall prevents you from being washed into the gorge.

There are a number of Game Reserves and Parks around the Victoria Falls, including the Victoria Falls National Park, the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park and the Zambezi National Park. These are home to elephant, lion, vervet monkeys, buffalo, giraffe, antelope and raptors (including Fish Eagle with its evocative cry and breeding Black Eagle, Taita Falcon, Augur Buzzard and Peregrine Falcon).