What is the height of victoria falls. Victoria Falls (Mosi-oa-Tunya)

Remember we already walked through some of them, and a few days ago I showed you where and promised to tell you more about the waterfall itself. Listen and watch.

Victoria Falls is located on the Zambezi River, the fourth largest in Africa, on the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia. This is one of the most spectacular waterfalls. In the language of the Kololo tribe who lived here in the 1800s, "Mosi-oa-Tunya" means "The smoke that thunders." And Victoria Falls is the name that David Livingston, a British missionary, gave it when he discovered the falls between 1852 and 1856. The first European to visit the waterfall was David Livingston. For the first time, he heard about the existence of a colossal waterfall back in 1851. The next few years were spent on organizing the expedition, and only in 1855 Livingston went in search of the waterfall.

To begin with, I strongly advise you to visit a virtual tour and fly over the waterfall. Click on the picture below:

Going down the Zambezi River, Livingston got to the waterfall. In a small canoe, he swam to the cliff and stopped on a small island, which after years will receive the name - Livingston Island. The first European was simply amazed at the picture that opened to him from the edge of the cliff.

Livingston later described his first impressions of what he saw as follows: “I crawled to the cliff and looked into a huge crack. Streams of water about a mile wide broke and fell down into the ravine. It was the most wonderful thing that I have seen in Africa. ”

Victoria Falls owes its name to Livingston, who decided to name this natural wonder in honor of Queen Victoria. Local tribes called the waterfall Mozi-oa-Tunya, which means “thundering smoke”.

In subsequent years, many Europeans visited Africa to see with their own eyes the Victoria Falls. People were not afraid of long-term exhausting hikes (scorching sun, dangerous diseases, deadly insects - that's what awaited travelers on the way), they were ready for almost anything to see this miracle of nature.

Victoria Falls is a breathtaking sight of awe-inspiring beauty and splendor.

The waterfall, by some parameters, is the largest waterfall in the world, and is also one of the most unusual in shape, and has perhaps the most diverse and easily observed wildlife in any part of the waterfall.

Although Victoria Falls is neither the tallest nor the widest falls in the world, its status as the largest is based on a width of 1.7 km (1 mile) and an elevation of 108 m (360 ft), forming the largest sheet of falling water in the world. The maximum flow rate is well comparable to other major falls.

The waterfall is formed by a sharp fall of the Zambezi into a narrow abyss, carved by its waters in the zone of fracture of the earth's crust. Numerous islets on the ridge of the waterfall divide the water stream into several branches. The dense fog and thunderous roar produced by the waterfall can be perceived from a distance of approximately 40 km. The boiling cauldron at the beginning of a winding gorge 80 km long, through which streams from the waterfall rush, is crossed by a bridge 198 meters long and 94 meters high. During a flood, the flow rate is approximately 546 million liters of water per minute.

There are two islands on the crest of the falls that are large enough to split the curtain of water even in full flood: Boaruk Island (or Stream Island) near the west coast, and Livingston Island near the middle. The main streams are called: Leaping Water (called by some Devil's Stream), Main Falls, Rainbow Falls (highest) and East Stream.

The depth of the chasm, called the First Gorge, ranges from 80 m (262 ft) at its western end to 108 m (360 ft) at the center. The entire volume of the Zambezi River flows through the 110 m (360 ft) wide outlet of the First Gorge for a distance of approximately 150 m (500 ft), then enters into a zigzag series of gorges, designated according to the order in which the river reaches them. The water entering the Second Gorge makes a sharp sharp turn and cuts through a deep pool called the Cooking Pot. Victoria is a complex system often referred to as Victoria Falls.

If you look from the plane in the direction from west to east, the system will look like this: Devils-Cataract (Devil's Falls), about. Cataract, Main Falls (Main Cascade), Fr. Livingston, Horseshoe ("horseshoe"), Rainbow Falls ("rainbow"), about. Armchear ("chair") and Eastern Cataract (East Falls). The river from the abyss finds its outlet in a natural "hole" 70-120 m wide, located closer to the Eastern waterfall. Proran is called Boiling Pot, which means "boiling cauldron". Raging, the river passes through a zigzag canyon of three knees, each 1.5 km long, and only when it breaks out onto the plain, its flow calms down.

First Gorge: where the river flows into Victoria Falls
Second Gorge: (connected by the Victoria Falls Bridge), 250 m south of the falls, 2.15 km long (270 yards south, 2350 yards long)
Third Gorge: 600 m south, 1.95 km long (650 yards south, 2,100 yards long)
Fourth Gorge: 1.15 km south, 2.25 km long (1,256 yards south, 2,460 yards long)
Fifth Gorge: 2.55 km south, 3.2 km long (1.5 miles south, 2 miles long)
Songwi Gorge: 5.3 km south, 3.3 km long, (3.3 miles south, 2 miles long) named for the small Songwi River coming from the northeast and the deepest 140 m (460 ft) at the end dry season.
Batoka Gorge: A gorge below Songvi. This gorge is approximately 120 km (75 mi) long, and takes the river across the basalt plateau to the valley that now houses Lake Kariba.

The gorge walls are nearly vertical and approximately 120 m (400 ft) high, but the river level within them varies 20 meters (65 ft) between wet and dry seasons.

But it’s impossible to get a feel for the statistics. It is worth a visit to be convinced that the mighty cascade of the Zambezi River, rushing into the Batoka Gorge, is the widest curtain of falling water on the planet.

Many of Africa's animals and birds can be seen in the vicinity of Victoria Falls, and a range of river fish species are also well represented in the Zambezi, allowing you to combine wildlife viewing and sport fishing with sightseeing.

Victoria Falls is one of the main attractions in Africa - UNESCO World Heritage Site. The falls are divided between Zambia and Zimbabwe, and each country has a national park to protect the falls and a city that serves as a tourism hub: Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park and Livingston City in Zambia, and Victoria Falls National Park and Victoria Falls City in Zimbabwe.

Below the Boiling Pot, almost at right angles to the falls, a bridge is thrown across the gorge, one of five located on the Zambezi River. The arch-shaped bridge is 250 meters long, the top of the bridge is 125 meters higher than the lower level of the river. Regular rail service connects the city of Victoria Falls and Livingston with Bulawayo, with another line connecting Livingston and Lusaka.

Leaping Waters - The westernmost stream of Victoria Falls formed the line of least resistance where the falls subsequently formed. The recent geological history of Victoria Falls can be seen in the form of gorges below the falls. The basalt plateau along which the Upper Zambezi flows have made many large fractures filled with weaker sandstone. In the area of ​​the current falls, the largest cracks run roughly from east to west (deviating slightly from northeast to southwest), with smaller cracks from north to south connecting them.

For at least 100,000 years, the falls retreated upstream through the Batoka Gorge, eroding sandstone-filled cracks to form gorges. The river fell at different times into different chasms, which now form a series of sharp zigzag ravines downstream of the falls.

Ignoring some dry sections, from the Second to the Fifth Gorge and Songwi Gorge, represent the past sections of the waterfall at the time when it fell into one long straight chasm, as it does now. Their size indicates that we are not living in the period of the broadest Mosi-oa-Tunya ever. The falls have already begun to cut through the next major gorge, in a fall on one side of the Leaping Water section of the falls.

David Livingston - a weaver who became a doctor, famous traveler, explorer - opened the Victoria Falls to the world. During all the years of his stay in Africa, he allowed himself only once to change the local name and only once carved his initials and the date "1855" on a tree - the year of the great discovery. Livingston's heart was committed to African soil at Ilal, and his body rests at Westminster Abbey in London. The great traveler left us with Victoria's own drawing.

The majestic Zambezi, having absorbed the waters from the area of ​​a huge pool of 1.3 million square meters. km, approaches the basalt gap and falls into the abyss with a tremendous rumble. Mosi-oa-Tunya - Thundering Smoke, or Seongo (Chongue), which means "Rainbow" or "Place of the rainbow" - this is how the locals called and are now calling the waterfall, to which Livingston gave the name of the English queen.

Victoria Falls is a completely extraordinary phenomenon in world nature. In the distant past, the deep tectonic forces of the Earth split the strongest rock - basalt - into boulders, and a crack 100-120 m wide was formed across the Zambezi channel from one coast to the other, but to such a depth that a 40-storey building could hide. If you swim upstream to the waterfall, the impression is that the river goes underground, because right in front of you you will see the "bank" crossing the river! The waters of the Zambezi, squeezed by a narrow gorge, boil, seethe like magma, foam, rage with a wild roar. “The entire mass of water overflowing the edge of the waterfall turns three meters below,” as David Livingstone wrote, “into a kind of monstrous curtain of snow driven by a blizzard. Water particles are separated from it in the form of comets with streaming tails, until this whole avalanche turns into myriads of small comets heading in one direction, each leaving behind its core a tail of white foam. "

Charles Livingston, brother of the famous traveler, who visited Victoria Falls and had previously seen Niagara, gave the palm to the wonder of Africa and noted that he did not observe the phenomenon described above on Niagara. D. Livingston assumed that it was caused by dry air. None of the later researchers after the Livingston brothers mentions the microstructure of the Victoria jets. It is difficult to say what is the reason for this: either a lack of observation, or inattention to the effect. Yet it deserves the title: The Livingston Brothers Effect.

"Each drop of Zambezi water," wrote David Livingston, "gives the impression of having its own personality. It flows from the oars and slides like beads on a smooth surface, like drops of mercury on a table ... Each drop continues as a pure white vapor. .. "

The force of the impact of multi-ton masses of water on the rock from below is such that the water turns into "steam" and is knocked out back by columns of "smoke" several hundred meters high, visible from a distance of tens of kilometers. A thunderous rumble is heard at almost the same distance.

In the last century, getting to Victoria Falls was not easy. D. Livingston was accompanied by three hundred warriors of the leader Selectu. But the locals were afraid to approach Mosi-oa-Tunya itself, considering it the place of residence of some formidable deity. David Livingston was accompanied directly to the waterfall by only two daredevils - Takeleng and Tuba Makoro. They swam from the headwater to about. Kazeruku (now - Livingston Island), located at the very crest of the waterfall, and the great traveler could look into the boiling abyss and survey almost the entire system. Livingston enthusiastically described a rainbow over a waterfall, a rare rainbow worthy of a "miracle of nature": these were ring rainbows unusual for a European's eye, one inside the other, concentric circles of many rainbows. Subsequently, Livingston wrote in his diary: "The sight is so beautiful that the flying angels must have admired it." Near the Victoria Falls, there is a rare natural phenomenon - lunar rainbows. After all, a rainbow arises as a result of refraction and decomposition into component parts of the spectrum of light rays not only of the sun, but also of the moon. As with Iguazu, the rainbows at night over Victoria are especially splendid on the full moon, twice a year, when the Zambezi is at its fullest.

According to the description of some travelers, the mist of Victoria makes a special impression in the evenings, when "the dying sun casts a golden-yellow stream of rays on the water columns, painting them in a gray-yellow color, and then it seems that some fantastic giant torches are standing above the water. ".

The falls are located in two national parks - "Thundering Smoke" (Mosi-oa-Tunya) in Zambia and "Victoria Falls" in Zimbabwe. Both national parks are small, covering an area of ​​66 and 23 square kilometers, respectively.

The national parks are rich in wildlife. There are significant settlements of elephants, giraffes and hippos. It is also home to two white rhinos that were brought there from South Africa.

A small cemetery has survived on the site of an old English settlement.

The falls were practically not visited by people until the railway to Bulawayo was built in 1905. After the railway went into operation, they quickly gained popularity and maintained it until the end of British colonial rule. A tourist city has grown up on the side of Zimbabwe. In the late 1960s, the number of tourists declined due to guerrilla warfare in Zimbabwe (Rhodesia) and the detention of foreign tourists during the reign of Vennett Konda in independent Zambia.

Zimbabwe's independence in 1980 brought relative peace, and in the 1980s a new wave of tourism began in the region. By the late 1990s, nearly 300,000 people visited the falls annually. In the 2000s, the number of tourists visiting Zimbabwe began to decline due to unrest over the rule of Robert Mugabe.

Zimbabwe and Zambia allow for day-trip visas when crossing borders without prior application, however these visas are considered expensive.

Immediately after the waterfall, a section of the river with numerous rapids begins, which attracts fans of kayaking and rafting. The rapids are safe enough for novice tourists, with a large flow of water there are no dangerous stones, and after all the rapids there are sections of smooth water.

Victoria- a waterfall on the Zambezi River in South Africa. Located on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe. The waterfall is about 1800 meters wide and 120 meters high.

Scottish explorer David Livingston, who visited the falls in 1855, named it after Queen Victoria. Among the indigenous population of these places, the waterfall was known as "Thundering Smoke"

Victoria Falls is one of the main attractions in South Africa and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is located on the border of two national parks - Thundering Smoke (Mosi-oa-Tunya) in Zambia and Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. Victoria is the only waterfall in the world that is over 100 meters high and over a kilometer wide.

The history of the waterfall

The most ancient inhabitants of the area around the waterfall known to science were hunters and gatherers, in their languages ​​the waterfall was called Shongwe, Amanza Thunqayo, Mosi-oa-Tunua "Thundering smoke".

It is believed that the first European to see the waterfall was David Livingston. On November 17, 1855, while traveling from the headwaters of the Zambezi to the mouth of the river (1852-1856), Livingstone reached the waterfall and named it after Queen Victoria. He wrote about the waterfall: “No one can compare the beauty with anything seen in England. It has never before been seen by the eyes of Europeans. The angels in flight must have looked at places so beautiful. "

The earliest descriptions of the waterfall were left by the Portuguese Serpa Pinto, Czech Emil Holub, British artist Thomas Baynes, the author of the first surviving images of Victoria. However, until a railway was built to the area in 1905, Europeans rarely visited it.

Geographical location of the waterfall

The waterfall is located approximately in the middle of the course of the Zambezi River. Above the falls, the Zambezi flows over a flat basalt slab in a valley bounded by low and sparse sandstone hills. There are islands along the river, the number of which increases as you approach the waterfall.

The waterfall formed at the point where the Zambezi plummets into a narrow (about 120 meters wide) crevice carved by water in a fracture in the earth's crust. Numerous islets on the ridge divide the waterfall, forming channels. Over time, the waterfall retreated upstream, gnawing itself more and more crevices. These crevices now form a zigzag river bed with sheer walls. They are clearly visible on satellite images.

The waterfall is extremely wide, approximately 1800 meters wide, the height of the water falling varies from 80 meters at the right bank of the waterfall to 108 meters in the center. Victoria Falls is about twice the height of Niagara Falls and more than twice as wide as its main part ("Horseshoe"). Falling water creates spray and fog that can rise to heights of 400 meters or more. The fog created by the waterfall is visible at a distance of up to 50 kilometers.

During the rainy season, more than 500 million liters of water per minute pass through the waterfall, due to the enormous force of the falling water, the spray rises hundreds of meters into the air. In 1958, during the floods in the Zambezi, a record level of flow was noted - more than 770 million liters per minute.

The waterfall is divided into four parts by islands at the edge of the abyss. Near the right bank of the river there is an inclined stream 35 meters wide, called "jumping water", then behind the island of Boaruka (300 meters wide) there is a main waterfall about 460 meters wide. Livingstone Island separates the main waterfall from the second stream (approximately 530 meters wide), at the very left bank of the river is the eastern waterfall.

The only way out of the crevice where the water is now falling is a rather narrow channel pierced by water in its wall approximately 2/3 of the distance from the western end. This channel is approximately 30 meters wide. The entire volume of water passes through it for about 120 meters, after which the river falls into a zigzag gorge. The river does not leave this gorge for about 80 km, until it leaves the basalt plateau.

At the end of the first zigzag, the river falls into a deep body of water, called the "Boiling Cauldron", about 150 m wide. In low water, the surface of the cauldron is calm, but during high water it is covered with unhurried giant eddies and swelling of the water surface. The walls of the gorge are over 120 m high.

During the rainy season, up to 9100 cubic meters of water per second pass through the falls. At this time, the water flows out through the main waterfall in a continuous stream. During the dry season, the waterfall is reduced to several narrow streams, spray and fog are almost absent, the flow decreases to 350 cubic meters per second. At this time, you can study the depths of the gorge, usually flooded with water. Between the maximum flow in April and the minimum at the end of October, the water level in the gorges changes by almost 20 meters.

At the top of the 120-meter Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, there is a natural mountain body of water called the Devil's Font, where the water is relatively calm. From September to December, when the water level is low, the Devil's Font becomes one of the largest bodies of water in the world to swim in.

Victoria Falls railway bridge

Below the "Boiling Cauldron", approximately at an angle of 45 degrees to the waterfall, a bridge is thrown across the gorge, one of five located on the Zambezi River. The arch-shaped bridge is 250 meters long, the top of the bridge is 125 meters higher than the lower level of the river. Regular rail service operates on the Livingston - Bulawayo and Livingston - Lusaka lines.

Tourism

Bungee jumping from the bridge near the waterfall. The falls were practically not visited by people until the railway to Bulawayo was built in 1905. After the railway went into operation, they quickly gained popularity and maintained it until the end of British colonial rule. A tourist city has grown up on the side of Zimbabwe. In the late 1960s, the number of tourists declined due to the guerrilla warfare in Zimbabwe (Rhodesia) and the detention of foreign tourists under the reign of Vennet Konda in independent Zambia.

Zimbabwe's independence in 1980 brought relative peace, and in the 1980s a new wave of tourism began in the region. By the late 1990s, nearly 300,000 people visited the falls annually. In the 2000s, the number of tourists visiting Zimbabwe began to decline due to unrest over the rule of Robert Mugabe.

Zimbabwe and Zambia allow for day-trip visas when crossing borders without prior application, however these visas are considered expensive.

Immediately after the waterfall, a section of the river with numerous rapids begins, which attracts fans of kayaking and rafting. The rapids are safe enough for novice tourists, with a large flow of water there are no dangerous stones, and after all the rapids there are sections of smooth water.

National parks

The waterfall is located in two national parks - "Thundering Smoke" in Zambia and Victoria Falls (Victoria Falls) in Zimbabwe. Both are small and have an area of ​​66 and 23 km², respectively.

The national parks are home to wild animals, including numerous herds of elephants and giraffe families, and numerous hippos in the river. Two white rhinos were brought to the Thundering Smoke National Park from South Africa.

Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe) - detailed description, location, reviews, photos and videos.

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Majestic beauty and power, an incessant rumble for a second, a million sprays forming a cloud of steam and fog, a sense of danger when you stand on the edge, and a dazzling rainbow over all this grandeur - this is exactly the picture you can observe at Victoria Falls. one of the largest waterfalls in the world.

In the local dialect, the waterfall has two names at once - Mosi-oa-Tunya, which translates as "thundering smoke", and Chongue, which means "place of the rainbow". In general, both names quite accurately characterize the waterfall.

It is located on the Zambezi River, which flows on the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia. It was discovered by the Englishman David Livingston, who quite rightly called the waterfall the most wonderful sight in Africa, and who later gave it the name of his queen.

Almost throughout its entire length, the Zambezi is a calm river, but its character changes dramatically when, completely unexpectedly, the basalt plateau on which it flows breaks down, and the river rapidly falls down from the height of the cliff, splitting into several streams. And the height there is really rather big - 108 meters, which is a lot for waterfalls of such width. Opposite the waterfall, another basalt cliff rises, completely covered with a tropical forest.

When to watch

The speed and strength of the waterfall flow varies depending on the season and season. In spring, when the water level in the Zambezi rises, the stream becomes powerful, fast and rushing. During the period of drought, the nature of the waterfall becomes more meek, islands are exposed on the river and along the edge of the cliff. So you can choose how you want to see it and come exactly at this time of the year.

Observation Decks

It is possible to view the waterfall from several points. One of the best vantage points is on a bridge called the Knife's Edge - here you can see the East Stream, the Main Falls and the Boiling Cauldron, a rugged place where the river makes a turn and goes down into the Batoka Gorge.

There are no less convenient places on the railway bridge thrown over the waterfall, and at the "Observation Tree". Here you can fully appreciate the Main Waterfall in all its terrible beauty and look into its boiling void.

The functions of Victoria Falls, however, are not limited to just pleasing the eyes of millions of tourists, it also has a practical application - to supply energy to many cities in Zimbabwe and Zambia.

The most unforgettable experience can be obtained, of course, only by seeing the entire waterfall in full. Unfortunately, this cannot be done from a ground platform, but if you are on a budget, there are many local companies offering excursions to the falls by helicopter, paragliding and small private jets. The route of such excursions, as a rule, runs along the river and, in addition to Victoria, reveals many other local beauties. Just be careful, you won't have much time to look at the waterfall.

Victoria Falls Museum

In the area of ​​the waterfall, not far from the parking lot, where tourists and travelers are brought, there is a museum dedicated to the history of the waterfall. The exposition of the museum tells about how the waterfall has changed over its thousand-year history, how the water has gnawed and continues to gnaw through new areas for itself in the soft and pliable rock.

Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park

Once near the waterfall, be sure to visit the Mosi-oa-Tunya (Thundering Smoke) National Park, its area is small, but here you can see a large number of local animals - antelopes, zebras, giraffes, rhinos. Animals here are extremely peaceful and not shy, since there are no predators here. On the Zimbabwe side, there is another natural park, Victoria Falls.

In the area of ​​the waterfall, not far from the parking lot, where tourists and travelers are brought, there is a museum dedicated to the history of the waterfall.

Entertainment and excursions

While staying at the waterfall, you can take other completely unforgettable excursions - for example, descent on a canoe or rubber raft, a boat trip on the Zambezi River, visit a jeep safari in a national park or take a horse ride, and if in childhood you were always interested in how it is to ride an elephant, here you will have a great opportunity to find out everything on your own experience.

For lovers of adrenaline therapy, there is another great entertainment here - bungee jumping. Just imagine this breathtaking jump from the highest point of the waterfall on a rubber rope ... Scary, but definitely worth a try.

Victoria Falls is classified as the largest in the world, although it does not at all lead in height or width when separately considering its size. Nevertheless, this is the only one of all waterfalls that is simultaneously wider than 1 km and more than 100 meters.

The grandiose waterfall is formed by several rushing streams, into which the Zambezi River is divided by islets. The total width of the waterfall, taking into account all the falling streams, is equal to 1708 m, so it is not at all surprising that it looks so mesmerizing from a height, and tourists from observation platforms on the ground can observe only individual sections, and not the complete picture.

The height of Victoria Falls is 108 meters (according to other sources - 120 m).

Thus, the waterfall is about 8-9 times lower and at the same time 16 times wider than Angel - the highest waterfall in the world.

Victoria Falls was included in the list of UNESCO sites in Africa in 1989.

Now the natural waterfall is one of the brightest and most popular tourist attractions in Africa, it is included in several basic routes through the national parks of the continent (at its foot, the smallest national park in Zimbabwe was created).

Where is Victoria Falls

A wide waterfall is located almost in the middle of the stream of the Zambezi River, on the border of two countries - Zimbabwe and Zambia. Cascades of water in this place fall into a narrow crevice-abyss (about 120 m wide) with sheer walls.

Victoria Falls coordinates

Observation deck in Zimbabwe - 17 ° 55'30.1 "S 25 ° 51'13.3" E

Observation deck in Zambia - 17 ° 55'27.3 "S 25 ° 51'20.3" E

There are other viewing platforms - there are especially many of them on Livingstone Island and across from it. An experienced guide can suggest sites with non-trivial views of the crevice and cascades.

Who discovered Victoria Falls

The first European who had the honor to see this waterfall and inform the world about it was a missionary and explorer, a Scotsman, David Livingston. He managed to look at the waterfall from the modern Zambian side - a place later called Livingstone Island. The discoverer gave the name to the waterfall in honor of the then Queen Victoria of England.

The name of the waterfall, given by the indigenous people of Tonga, is Mosi-oa-Tunya (Smoke that Thunders). The possibility of a corresponding official renaming of the waterfall is being discussed.

How to get to Victoria Falls

Tourists who are going to visit the famous waterfall arrive in Victoria Falls from Zimbabwe or Livingston in Zambia. Both cities have their own airport, and the settlements are connected by a railway bridge.

Daily flights between Harare, Bulawayo and Victoria Falls are operated by Air Zimbabwe. The Harare-Kariba-Victoria Falls Triangle route runs three times a week. In addition to regular flights, there are also charters from Wilderness Air, Executive Air and Halstead Air. The only low-cost carrier to Victoria Falls is Fastjet.

Flights to Victoria Falls from Windhoek and Maun are operated four times a week by Air Namibia.

In Zambia, flights between Lusaka and Livingston are regularly maintained by the only airline - Proflight Zambia.

The most picturesque transport to the waterfall national park remains the restored historic Victoria Falls Steam Train - with a dining car and colonial-style interior, luxurious passenger service.

Many tourists come to the falls on tours of the national parks of Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Panorama of the waterfall from Zimbabwe, in front of Livingstone Island

Waterfall video from BBC

Based on the experience gained over a dozen visits to the waterfall. Colds contribute to fond memories, besides, friends sent a fresh photo.

You often read / hear that Victoria Falls is the largest waterfall in the world. When you try to clarify what "biggest" means, there is a hitch.
In fact, Victoria Falls is one of the three largest waterfalls in the world along with Niagara and Iguazu, but not by one of the parameters (width, height, flow power) is not a leader, as evidenced by the comparative table

	Victoria Falls	Niagara Falls	Iguazu Falls
Height	108m	51m	64-82m
Width:	1 708m	1 203m		8 264	12 792

As we can see from it, the widest is Iguazu, the most powerful, if we take averages, is Niagara. Yes, of the three, Victoria Falls is the highest, but, unfortunately, it is not even included in the thirty highest waterfalls in the world.
But, apparently, in order not to offend Victoria, they also came up with the title of "the most" - the Greatest Falling Curtain of Water on this Planet, which can be translated as the largest waterfall in terms of area of ​​falling water.
This is how it looks from above

And so - on the map

Surprisingly, all three of the largest waterfalls are located on the borders of two countries: Niagara - USA and Canada, Iguazu - Argentina and Brazil, Victoria - Zambia and Zimbabwe. I don’t know about the first two, but the dispute between Zambia and Zimbabwe on the issue of where is better does not stop for a second. Arguments of the parties:

1. Both countries claim that 80% of the falls are located on their territory. And oddly enough, both sides are right. If we look at the border between countries, it makes a squiggle between Livingstone and Cataract islands. As a result, it turns out that 80% of the waterfall itself really belongs to the Zambians. However, 80% of the opposite side, where the observation decks are located, belongs to Zimbabwe.
So, oddly enough, both sides are right.

2. Both Zambia and Zimbabwe claim that the view of the falls from their territory is better.
If we abstract from seasonality, then as you can see in the bottom photo, almost the entire waterfall can be seen from Zimbabwean territory. From the territory of Zambia, only part of the waterfall is visible.

Photo by Oleg Gaponyuk

On the other hand, it should be borne in mind that the water level in the Zambezi fluctuates throughout the year. As a rule, the lowest level is in December - January and the highest in April - May. This affects the power of the waterfall. Since the main current of the Zambezi falls into a gorge opposite the Zimbabwean viewing platforms, the waterfall from the Zambian side is a pitiful sight during low tide.

view of the Zambian part	view of the Zimbabwean part

But during high water, due to a dense cloud of water dust formed when the main stream falls, the waterfall is practically invisible from the Zimbabwean viewing platforms, and everything is perfectly visible from the Zambian side. This can be clearly seen in the very first photo.
In addition, a beautiful view of the bridge between the two countries opens up from the territory of Zambia.

Top view of the bridge and the place from where it was filmed

Photo by Oleg Gaponyuk

Access to the waterfall
From the side of Zimbabwe, entrance to the Victoria Falls National Park is paid (25 USD). The hotels are located in the town of Victoria Falls. The closest to the falls are Victoria Falls Hotel (5 *****), The Kingdom at Victoria Falls (4 ****) and Ilala Lodge (5 *****).
From the side of Zambia, everything is much more interesting. If you stay in one of the hotels of the Sun International group (Zambezi Sun (3 ***) or The Royal Livingstone (5 *****), then the entrance to the waterfall for you is free and unlimited directly from the hotel. lives in other hotels and lodges, entrance fee is USD 30. Besides, you have to go every time, as the rest of the hotels are located upstream of the Zambezi.

The photo
As you can see from the pictures above, a cloud of water dust hangs almost constantly over the waterfall. Because of this, the use of photo and video technology is difficult. Stories about the failure of expensive photographic equipment are commonplace. There is only one way out - either use aquapack, or a soap dish, which you will not mind throwing away. It is relatively safe to photograph from extreme viewing platforms. This view, for example, opens from the first Zambian point.

Things to do
1. Naturally, go to the waterfall. It is desirable more than once.
2. Flying over the waterfall by helicopter or microlight (hang glider for 2 people). The second option is actively used by photographers, since portholes shine into the lens on a helicopter.
3. Rafting
4. Canoeing
5. Tarzanka and other flying fox
7. Cruise in the Zambezi. Frankly weak from the point of view of animals. The best option is Chobe National Park
8. Full Day Safari to Chobe National Park in Botswana
9. Safari in the national park (also weak compared to Chobe). Maybe in jeeps, on elephants, on horseback, walking with lions, but this does not add to the number of animals in the park.
10. Visit to the village of Mukuni. I recommend the village is not a popular print.
11. Lunch on Livingston Island.

I would like to dwell on the last point in more detail. Livingstone Island is clearly visible in the first photo. It juts out over the steep. Belongs to the island of Zambia and excursions to it are organized by the Zambian Tongabezi Lodge, although they can be ordered at any hotel on the Zambian side of the falls. 5 excursions run daily
7:30 - US $ 65
9:00 - US $ 65
10:30 - US $ 65
12:30 - US $ 120
15:30 - US $ 95
Three regular excursions, one with lunch and one sundowner. Better to take with lunch. During the excursion, you can go around the entire island and go to the very edge of the waterfall.

There are a lot of emotions and adrenaline, but such experiments are not recommended for people who are afraid of heights. During low tide, you can even swim in the natural pool called Davil's Pool.

Another phenomenon that Victoria Falls is famous for is the lunar rainbow. Sun International organizes Lunar Rainbow Tour of the Falls evening / night tours. For the last time, the usual rainbow was enough for me.

Although, perhaps next time I will definitely go to the waterfall at night :)