The Victoria Falls

This is an informational site that pulls together research done by myself on the Victoria Falls and on the man Dr. David Livingstone. I hope that you find this website very informative.
Website kindly sponsored by Livingstones Adventure – An activities operator in the Victoria Falls

General Information for Victoria Falls

Also known as Mosi-oa-Tunya (the smoke that thunders). It is situated in Southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zimbabwe and Zambia. They are the largest falls in the world. One of the seven natural wonders of the world the falls were named after Queen Victoria by David Livingstone, a missionary and explorer who was believed to have been the first European recorded to have viewed the falls in 1856 and then made it known to England. He first saw the falls from an island known as Livingstone Island in Zambia. And though it is neither the highest nor the widest waterfall in the world it is known as the largest.

Victoria Falls Water Flow

The flow of water varies greatly from season to season. Just after the rainy season in March or April the volume going over the falls in one minute is around half a million cubic metres, but in the dry season occurring in December it can be less than a twentieth of this. The best time to view the falls is possibly some time between these two extremes as when the falls are in full flood one cannot get close to them in safety. They are still spectacular when not in full flood because they are not obscured by the spray.

David Livingstone believed that the falls had been created by some great rupture in the earths crust in the distant past. Geological evidence now shows that the present chasm is the eighth in a succession which has worked it’s way upstream over many many years.

Formation of the Victoria Falls

The falls have a width of 1708 metres and a height of 108 metres. This forms the largest sheet of falling water in the world. For quite a way upstream from the falls, the Zambezi river flows over a sheet of basalt in a shallow valley bound by sandstone hills. The rivers course is dotted with many little islands which increase in number as the river gets nearer to the falls. There are no mountains, deep valleys or escarpments that would be expected to create a waterfall. There is only a large flat plateau.

There is a large chasm, carved by the water into the plateau wherewith the water from the river takes a single vertical drop over a 1708 metre wide area and plummets into a gorge. The depth of the gorge, called the First Gorge, is 80 metres deep on the western end and 108 metres deep in the centre. An outlet to the First Gorge, the only one is a 110 metre wide gap about two thirds of the way across the width of the falls from the western end, through this outlet, the whole volume of the river pours into the Victoria Falls gorges.

The Islands of The Victoria Falls

At the crest of the falls there are two Islands. Boaruka Island (or Cataract Island) near the western bank and Livingstone Island near the middle. Livingstone Island is the place from which David Livingstone had his first glimpse of the falls from Zambia. These islands are big enough to divide the curtains of water, even at full flood. When it is less than full flood other islets divide the curtain of water into separate streams. The main streams are called Devil’s Cataract (known as Leaping Water to some), Main Falls, Rainbow Falls and Eastern Cataract.

Rainy Season in The Victoria Falls

The rainy season is from late November to early April and the dry season is for the rest of the year. The Zambezi river’s annual flood season is from February to May with the peak in April. The spray from the waterfall rises anywhere from 400 metres to 800 metres high and can be seen from as far as 50km away. During the day a daylight rainbow can be seen and during a full moon a moonbow can be seen in the spray. In the flood season the spray shoots upward like inverted rain especially at Zambia’s Knife- Edge Bridge. During the dry season the bottom of the first gorge can be seen.

Victoria Falls – Largest Waterfalls

Victoria Falls is roughly twice the height of the Niagra Falls in North America and well over twice the width of the Horseshoe Falls. The only rival in height and width by South America’s Iguazu Falls.

The complete volume of the Zambezi river pours through the First Gorge. After this it enters a zigzag route of a series of gorges. Water entering the Second Gorge makes a sharp right turn carving a deep pool named Boiling Point. It is about 150 metres across. It is called Boiling Point because although it’s surface is smooth and still at low water, it is full of boiling turbulence at high water.

The Gorges of The Victoria Falls

The First Gorge is the one that the Zambezi river falls into at Victoria Falls. The Second Gorge which is spanned by Victoria Falls Bridge is 2.15 km long. The Third Gorge is 1.95 km long and contains the Victoria Falls Power Station. The Fourth Gorge is 1.15 km south and 2.25 km long. The Fifth Gorge is 2.25km south and 3.2km long. The Songwe Gorge (named after the Songwe river) is 5.3km south and 3.3km long. The Batoka Gorge is about 120km long taking the river through the basalt plateau to the valley where Lake Kariba now lies.
The walls of the gorges are nearly vertical and about 120 metres high.