Blyde River Canyon
The Blyde River Canyon is one of the most spectacular views in South
Africa and its cliffs rise between 600m-800m from the river bed. The Blyde
River Canyon is the kind of place where brochures and guide books run out
of original adjectives to describe the fresh mountain scenery and magnificent
panoramic views.
At
the ‘Three Rondavels viewpoint’ (also called ‘The Three Sisters’) is an unforgettable
view of three huge rock spirals rising out of the far wall of the Blyde River
Canyon. Their tops appear to have a hut-like rounded roof. Where the Blyde
River (‘river of joy’) and the Treur River (‘river of sorrow’) meet, water
erosion has formed one of the most remarkable geological phenomena in the country,
known as ‘Bourke’s
Luck Potholes’. Over thousands of years, surreal cylindrical rock sculptures
created by whirling water, have formed a series of dark pools which contrast
artfully with the streaked white and yellow lichen covered rocks.
Following the road and the Treur River south, there are further viewpoints;
Wonder View, God’s
Window and the Pinnacle. Their names help to conjure up the indescribable
enormity and vastness of the scenery, but nothing can take the place of the
sheer wonderment you feel when seeing this kind of natural magnitude for yourself.
Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve
Several
of South Africa's provincial Nature Reserves fully deserve National Park status,
and a prime example is that of Mpumalanga's
Blyde River Canyon. Few will ever forget their first glimpse of this breathtaking
gorge, the third largest in the world and one of South Africa's scenic wonders.
Its scenery is unsurpassed, its vegetation both varied and lush and the rich
selection of birdlife includes a breeding colony of the rare bald ibis.
Just over halfway down, the swift-flowing Blyde River is joined by the Ohrigstad
River from the west.
Here engineers have built an unobtrusive dam wall in a bottleneck below
the confluence. The result is the Blyde Dam. The Blyde Dam is the heart of
the reserve, but its nerve centre is the nature conservation team's
headquarters at Bourke's Luck.
Wildlife in the Blyde River Canyon area is as varied as the habitats. There are
mountain reedbuck on the escarpment, dassies on the canyon walls, hippo
and crocodile in the Blyde Dam, and impala, kudu, blue wildebeest,
waterbuck and zebra on the Lowveld plain near the canyon's mouth.
Accommodation in the Blyde River Canyon
Blyde River Canyon Links
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