The famous explorer, David Livingstone, while undertaking one of his expeditions, following the course of the Zambesi River to the east coast, heard the testimony of locals regarding the Mosi oa Tunya, meaning the “smoke that thunders”, the signal which still today visitors recognize, denouncing the presence of huge masses of water falling into the abyss. In late November 1855, Livingstone became officially the first Westerner to contemplate the Victoria Falls (which he named in honor of the British monarch). In his book on the trips undertaken in Africa, he wrote “No one can imagine the beauty of the view from anything witnessed in England. It had never been seen before by European eyes; but scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon by angels in their flight”.
Like Livingstone, we were blown away upon our first contact with the falls. Despite the time of year, the amount of water that spills over the cliff and falls tens of meters into the void is something that goes beyond the imagination. The assault on the senses of sight, hearing and touch is overwhelming. We visited them from the Zimbabwean side, and the side of Zambia, where Livingstone contemplated them . But still we were not entirely satisfied. The flight of angels, the perfect view of the falls, was still missing.
Based on our experience in the Niagara and Iguaçu Falls, we knew it would be worthwhile to try a flight over the falls, and, thus, prepared in advance the details, through the Internet, with the Victoria Falls Travel Guide, before reaching the town of Victoria Falls. So when we got there we knew what we were going to see and do. It was great because we did not lose time deciding things right then. We just let ourselves be carried away by emotion and the magnificence of nature. The ride is very good (although it takes only 12 minutes) and worth every dollar invested.
We can take all the cameras we need, in our case, two Canon and a Go Pro! We have as companions a French couple.
After taking off, the helicopter approaches the falls upstream and we have a glorious view of the Zambezi River, and its wide bed that here extends for over a kilometer. The islands appear to resist the flow of water and cling to not fall along with it.
The flight follows in circular form, in both directions, so that we can have a dual perspective of the falls, as well as the two countries that share them, Zimbabwe and Zambia.
The scale of the falls is truly stunning, incredible compared to the human elements present in the landscape: the road, the cars, and the bridge linking the two countries.
An unexpected surprise is the spectacular canyon dug by the river in the last thousand years. The zigzag of narrow canyon reveals the position that the falls have held in past eras. The receding river waters have opened walls that can reach more than 100 m high, in a west-east axis, in agreement with the course of the river in north-south direction.
If the falls were seen from above by angels, we do not know. But that this vision elevates the human spirit to heights worthy of the divine, we have no doubt. It is an essential experience for those who like to admire the power of Mother Nature in all its splendour.
Practical information:
Price: $ 150 / person (+ $ 12 / person to enter the park)
Company: Victoria Falls Travel Guide
Buying tickets: You can buy tickets on site or book by email. You can also follow them on facebook and let yourself be charmed by the photos and gather the courage to fly.
Contact: http://www.victoriafalls-guide.net/contact-us.html
610 Nguhumwa Cresent, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
+263 77 677 9932
Rating: *****
Getting there: The company responsible for the flight offers personalized transportation return trip from the hotel to the place where the helicopter takes off. Picking time is half an hour before the flight.
Our tour was done with the support of VICTORIA FALLS TRAVEL GUIDE. All thoughts and opinions are of course our own.
Carla Mota
I am a tirelessly curious portuguese world wanderer and also a travel photographer. My main passion lies in capturing disappearing ancient cultures, human condition and amazing nature wonders, challenging situations. My passion for travel photography has taken me to more than 80 countries which has helped me to create a vast collection of images of people and places from around the world.
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