Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe)

[expedition_retirement]

 The final destination on the main portion of our trip was Victoria Falls. Located on the Zambezi River, which forms the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia, these falls are taller and wider than Niagara Falls, and, during high flow periods, about 1.4 BILLION gallons of water pass over the falls every minute! I had seen pictures and video of the falls, but nothing that I had previously seen prepared me for the reality of being there.

We arrived at our hotel in Victoria Falls just in time for lunch, after flying back to the airport in Kasane by bush planes and then transferring by mini-bus across the border from Botswana back to Zimbabwe. After lunch, we headed to the Victoria Falls National Park to visit the actual falls. After a brief introduction to the geography, geology, and history of the falls, we began our walk at the south end of the falls. At this end is the Devil's Cataract, which carries the largest volume of water, and is therefore the point of highest erosion, where the river will eventually carve the gorge back from its current position. It was from here that we could look along the length of the chasm, past the main falls, and see the rainbows created by the sunlight refracting in the spray from the falls. We then walked along the length of the chasm, taking in the changing views of the falls, until we reached the gap in the chasm wall that allows the river to continue downstream through the gorge. At this time of year the water flow is relatively low, so little or no water was crossing the edge of the chasm at this end, but we did get another chance to look back down the chasm towards the main and rainbow falls. We could also look the other way and see the historic Victoria Falls bridge, the brainchild of the colonialist Cecil Rhodes, which was completed in 1905 to allow the Cape-to-Cairo railroad to cross the river.

That evening, we were divided into three groups and transported to different private homes around Victoria Falls, where we met a local family for a "Home Hosted Dinner". We were warmly greeted, and introduced to some of the local traditions, and served a delicious dinner, while sharing stories about our different cultures. Our evening was filled with a lot of fun and laughter, and ended far too quickly.

Our second day in Victoria Falls, was left free for us to use as we pleased, so we opted to book a helicopter flight over the Falls and the Zambezi gorge. When we booked it, I worried that the 22 minute flight would be too short, but it ended up being almost perfect. The views of the falls from the air were stunning, and they provided a better perspective for appreciating the scope of the Falls than was possible on the ground. And the flight over the gorge downstream from the Falls provided views that showed how the geology here impacts the Falls and their development. The current transverse chasm is merely the latest in a series of such chasms that the river has crossed over time. These chasms are the result of fractures in the underlying basalt plateau. From the air, it is easy to see the older transverse chasms, which represent earlier locations of the Falls.

Finally, in the evening, we enjoyed a sunset cruise on the Zambezi River above the falls, watching elephants graze on the large island in the middle of the river, and taking in one last African sunset before returning to shore for our farewell dinner. In the morning, we would return to the airport, where some of our group would depart for home while the rest of us moved on to Cape Town for our post-trip extension.