Victoria Falls - The World’s Largest Water Curtain
When you tour Victoria Falls and see the world’s largest curtain of falling water, you will certainly be left in awe of its breathtaking view. The waterfall is 1,708 meters wide, and drops about 128 metres into the 120 meters wide Bakota Gorge, forming a thick spray of mist that rises over 150 meters. It is because of this dense mist that the locals call it Mosi oa Tunya - the smoke that thunders.
Victoria Falls is one of the world’s natural wonders placed along the Zambezi River and it separates Zimbabwe and Zambia, but the greater part is on the Zimbabwean side. The falls is made of five different ?falls? which are: The Devil?s Cataract, Main Falls, Rainbow Falls and Horseshoe Falls all in Zimbabwe and the Eastern Cataract situated in Zambia.
The Devil’s Cataract, whose name is derived from the close by island in the Zambezi River, is about 70 metres deep. Main Falls is, on the other hand, the most spectacular of all the falls with water falling 93 metres into the gorge below. Shaped like a horse shoe, Horseshoe Falls is about 95 metres deep and it offers excellent view of Rainbows Falls. A spectacular view of the Cataract Falls can be found by descending 73 steps into the close by Eastern Cataract Falls situated on the Zambian side of Victoria Falls.
Victoria Falls can be approached from either the Zambian side or Zimbabwean side, although the former is less spectacular. The best time to have full view is midway through the dry season when the water volume decreases. However, the falls are less thrilling towards the end of the dry season as the flow is at its lowest.
The Zambezi basin above the falls experiences a rainy season from late November to early April, and a dry season the rest of the year. During the month of April when rainfall is highest, Victoria Falls has over 500 million litres of water falling over its crestline each minute. The minimum flow occurs in November and it is about a tenth of the April flow.
Victoria falls is twice as high as the Niagara Falls in Canada, and twice as wide as Horseshoe Falls, also in North America. These waterfalls are second only to Iguazu Falls of South America in both dimensions (height and width). They lie in two national parks - Victoria Falls National Park of Zimbabwe and Zambezi National Park of Zambia. Victoria Falls National Park is in the southern banks of Zambezi and provide the best view of the waterfalls.
The best months for viewing the falls are July and August. This is midway through the dry season, which is also the cold season. Temperatures during this season range from 20 degrees Celsius to as low as 5 degrees Celsius at night.
Some of the fun activities you can undertake at Victoria Falls include white water rafting at the gorges, and guided canoeing safaris either on the upper Zambezi River or further downstream from the falls. Still in the Zambezi River, the Sunset cruises give visitors an opportunity to observe elephants crossing the Zambezi, and also see hippo ponds, thus a nice adventure. Along the banks of the Zambezi, you can also participate in game fishing.
A walk across the Zambezi River Bridge that connects Zimbabwe with Zambia while towering over the gorges that are down river from Victoria Falls is a thrilling adventure. Zambezi River Bridge was the brain child of Cecil Rhodes, the 6th Prime minister of the Cape colony, who was for the idea of the construction of a railway line from Cape Town through the Zambezi River to Cairo, Egypt. It is 250 metres across, with the main arch spanning 156.5 metres at a height of 128 metres above the lower water mark of the river in the gorge below. The bridge was officially opened by Professor Francis Darwin, son of Charles Darwin in 1905.
Named in 1855 after the queen of England by David Livingstone, Victoria falls is now a UNESCO Heritage site. Visitors to the falls can get there by road or by air. By road, visitors can approach from Bulawayo in Zimbabwe or through the Kazungula Border Post in Zambia. To get there by air, you have to use Victoria Falls International airport. The airport has flights to and from Harare, and other regional as well as international destinations.
