Exploring Victoria Falls From Different Perspectives

Stunning Sights Exploring Victoria Falls From Different Perspectives

We were excited when we explored Victoria Falls from different perspectives. This UNESCO World Heritage Site was also one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World.

We got our first glimpse of the Victoria Falls (Mosi-oa-Tunya) after we finished our Rovos Rail train trip from Pretoria to Victoria Falls.  Driving over the Victoria Falls bridge from Zimbabwe to our stay at the Thornton River Lodge in Zambia, we saw the waterfalls at a distance.

We planned a day trip to walk and see the Victoria Falls from the Zambia side.  And then went up for a helicopter tour over the falls.  We never did get back into Zimbabwe to check out that view of Victoria Falls.

Peak flood season for Victoria Falls was generally around March and April.  While not at the highest levels ever, visiting in April gave us an amazing look at the the full power of the Falls.   If we visited Victoria Falls in November and December, there were no waterfalls at all in some places.  A great reason to consider timing for a great African adventure.

A Little About Victoria Falls

We loved visiting the huge waterfalls around the world.  Close to us at home, we regularly visited Niagara Falls.  While not one of the tallest, it is by far one of the biggest waterfalls in the world, spanning over 200 square kilometres (81 square miles) on the border between Canada and the USA.  

When we cruised to Antarctica, we planned extra time in South America and explored Iguazu Falls from all different perspectives.  Iguazu Falls is the largest system of waterfalls in the world, sitting on the border between Argentina and Chile. It is taller than Niagara Falls by 82m (269 feet) and over 900m (3,000 feet) wider than Victoria Falls.  

So it was not at all surprising that we had Victoria Falls on our mind when we planned our African adventure. It was generally considered another of the world’s largest waterfalls (measuring almost 2km (6,500 feet) wide and over 100m (328 feet) tall). Victoria Falls created a natural border between Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Victoria Falls was named after Queen Victoria of Great Britain.  But it was called the “Mosi-oa-Tunya” by the Kololo tribe living in this area.  This meant the “Smoke That Thunders” for the pounding flows and noise from the falling waters. 

The cliff edges were made of basalt and were filled with cracks that developed as the molten lava cooled.  This has resulted in constant eroding of the waterfall edges.  When we took a helicopter tour high above the falls we got a good look at the zigzag gorges that represented seven previous lines of waterfalls.

We were so excited to plan a day on our safari stay in Zambia to explore Victoria Falls from different perspectives.

Visiting The Victoria Falls On The Zambia Side

We drove from our stay at the Thorntree River Lodge in Zambia for our day trip to Victoria Falls.  As we got close, our guide Nevy pulled over and we saw the spray from the falls off in the distance.  We stopped at a spot used to measure the water height.  When we visited the water levels were not overly high.  But we saw measuring sticks at two different spots to catch the measurements when the water flow reached extreme levels.

We entered the park and stopped at the signs.  The relief map gave us a good overview of the path we took as we explored the Victoria Falls on the Zambia side.  Our route first took us upriver above the mighty falls.  We then walked along the edge of the falls.  The wet crossing at the Knife Edge Bridge took us to Danger Point for our last panoramic views.

As we walked along the baboons were our constant companions.  While they looked quite cute, we grew quite used to their aggressive behaviour on our safari lodge stay in Zambia.  Occasionally we caught sight of other wildlife.

We made a brief stop at the statue of Dr. David Livingstone.  In 1851 he landed on what is now called Livingstone Island and was the first European to view the thundering falls.  He called it “the most wonderful sight I had witnessed in Africa”.

We were fully prepared for this “most wonderful sight” when we explored Victoria Falls from different perspectives.

First View Of Rainbows Over Victoria Falls

As we started our tour of Victoria Falls, our mouths dropped open in amazement.  We caught our first glimpse of Victoria Falls with first one and then double rainbows!

We followed the path and arrived at the upriver viewing spot.  And we were again rewarded with a colourful rainbow over the falls.

There was a line of sharp rocks in front of the water edge.  We were told that these were placed to stop the elephants from entering the water and drowning as they were swept over the falls.  Not surprisingly, we saw a group of people cross the sign warning visitors to not go beyond this point.

We were mesmerized by the fast flow of the water.  And were again so happy we visited when the water flows were so high.  It was a great first look at Victoria Falls from different perspectives.

Walking Along The Waterfall Path

From the upriver viewpoint, we headed along the path across from the waterfalls.  At times the path was back from the edge and we walked into a viewpoint.  And at other points we had a great view of the water streaming down the sheer wall.  With our zoom lens, we got close-up views of the powerful flows.

We stopped for a look at the Victoria Falls Bridge.  This was the bridge where we got our first view of Victoria Falls as we crossed from Zimbabwe to Zambia.  This bridge also provided the only railway link between the two countries.

In the distance we got a view of the Knife Edge Bridge.  That was the next stop for our view of Victoria Falls from different perspectives.

Crossing Knife Edge Bridge

Before we got to the Knife Edge Bridge our guide Nevy thoughtfully provided us with raincoats.  The next section of our walkway was very wet from mist off the thundering falls at this time of year.

When we reached the Knife Edge Bridge, we were definitely glad we had raincoats.  Many soaked people slogged across the bridge.  When we got to the middle, we had a wet view out to the vast face and down to the bottom of Victoria Falls. 

When we got to the other side of Knife Edge Bridge we took off our raincoats.  But kept them handy for our return crossing.  We were glad we were well prepared to see Victoria Falls from different perspectives.

Heading Out To Danger Point

As we walked along the path to Danger Point, we got even more stunning views of Victoria Falls.  And we even got another rainbow experience.

When we hit the final viewpoint, we looked across the gorge to the Zimbabwe side of Victoria Falls.  We saw people walking the paths on that side of the falls.  We originally wanted to cross back into Zimbabwe for that different view of Victoria Falls.  Visiting Niagara Falls and later Iguazu Falls from the countries on either side of the waterfalls always gave us interesting comparisons.  But logistics did not make it possible on this trip.  We were happy we got to see Victoria Falls from different perspectives on our helicopter tour.

From Danger Point, we turned around and re-traced our path back Victoria Falls. We were so glad we got to visit Victoria Falls from Zambia. From the ground, we got a sense of the number of waterfalls and the force of the flows. But we really did not appreciate the size of Victoria Falls until we saw it from the air.

A Helicopter Tour Above Victoria Falls

From the park we headed to the United Air Charter helicopter base at Baobab Ridge.  When we arrived we saw the fun shuttle that provided hotel transfers as part of their service.

We pre-booked our helicopter tour when we planned our African adventure.  But when we arrived, we found that we were booked on the shortest 12-16 minute tour.  After much discussion we chose to pay more to upgrade our flight to the medium 18-20 minute tour.  This added in a view of the Botaka Gorge.

We headed out to the helicopter pad for a look at the Eurocopter EC130B helicopter.  This 5 passenger helicopter was loaded for optimal weight and balance for safety.  So it meant that not everyone got a window seat.  We were very delighted when David got the front seat beside the pilot and I got a window seat in back.  But the couple loaded into the two middle seats in the back were very unhappy with their helicopter tour.

On our helicopter tour over Iguazu Falls we pre-paid for good seats.  And when we did our helicopter tour through the Sedona Valley we booked our trip on a small helicopter to ensure we had window seats.  Just one of the things we considered before we booked an expensive helicopter tour.  We were certainly delighted with the views we got of Victoria Falls from different perspectives.

Seeing Victoria Falls From The Air

Our helicopter took off and headed to the Botaka Gorge.  Our pilot took us down close to the water for a view of the rushing waters.  When we reached Rapid 26, he headed for the waterfalls.

When we reached Victoria Falls, the pilot made several passes over Victoria Falls from both directions.  This gave people on both sides of the helicopter amazing views of the waterfalls from both the Zambia and Zimbabwe sides. We got such stunning views down the steep edge of the falls.  And even got more rainbow views.

From above we saw the Victoria Falls Bridge and we even found the Knife Edge Bridge. We saw the spots where we stood for the amazing views of the waterfalls from the ground.

When time was up, the pilot headed back to base.  We got a look upriver from Victoria Falls and a quick glimpse of local settlements. 

We arrived back at the Baobab Ridge delighted by our helicopter tour and the amazing views of Victoria Falls from different perspectives.  When we left Zambia and flew to our safari lodge stay in South Africa, we got one final look at Victoria Falls from the air

An Exceptional Experience Exploring Victoria Falls From Different Perspectives

We were so happy we got such stunning views of Victoria Falls from different perspectives.  Victoria Falls (Mosi-oa-Tunya) was definitely something we wanted to see on our safari lodge stay in Zambia.  It was wonderful to see if first from the ground in Zambia.  And then head high over the falls for views from both the Zambia and Zimbabwe sides.  We were so happy we visited at high water season and saw the waterfalls at their stunning best!

But there were some exciting things to do at Victoria Falls that we missed.  We visited Victoria Falls just as the moon entered the full phase.  We considered a return visit to Victoria Falls for a rare Moonbow view (a lunar rainbow). The very misty paths at this site make it one of the few places a Moonbow can be found.  Given how many rainbows we saw, we were sure we missed seeing Moonbows at Victoria Falls.  But the choice between an evening game drive in Zambia or the Moonbow was a hard one to make.

We knew there were also many other activities to do around the Victoria Falls – kayaking, white water rafting, bungee jumping and the Devil’s Pool.  But we did not have time for more fun at Victoria Falls on this great African adventure.

Have you explored Victoria Falls from different perspectives?  Did you have a favourite viewpoint?

Copyright Notice: All material on this travel blog site is the sole property of RetiredAndTravelling.  This includes blog posts, pages, design and all photos (whether watermarked or not). Any use of materials from this site without express written consent will be considered copyright infringement.