Canyon and winding roads

I finally feel almost fresh after a nice 10 hour sleep last night and I will head out and look at one of the main sights of the area just outside Kruger national park - the Blyde River Canyon. The canyon runs in the outskirts of the Drakensberg mountains and just outside Kruger Park - form several of the view points in the canyon area you can actually look into Kruger and further on to Mozambique. You can do some hiking around the canyon but I have only got limited time on my hands so I opt for just driving by taking some good looks at the landscape from the different viewpoints.

 

The canyon is nice green and with several good viewpoints towards the different hills in the area. Everything actually looks pretty green even though the winter time in this area is the dry season and I can enjoy a clear sky with lots of sun this morning.

Actually if this is winter I would happily change the Danish summer for this kind of weather - it is both warmer and sunnier than an average Danish summer. One of the special flowers in the area is little agave like plant with bright red flowers standing up in the air looking really different from what I am used to.

 

The different view point got nice little names - like God’s Window and Wonder View and I most agree with the last one - it is a wonder view you are treated to when you look out over the landscape. So even though it is only a trip of 12ks it does take a while before I manage to drive the full distance of this little loop I am on.

 

I head a bit away from the main canyon to have a look at one more of the many waterfalls which is all over this area. I don’t have a lot of luck with my visits to the waterfalls in this area. For some reason the sun is always just behind the waterfalls when I get to them hence I will have to take the photos straight against the sun which is really hurting the quality of my pictures and I am a bit ignored with the lack of quality of them.

But still I am probably not coming back to the waterfall - hence I take photos of the waterfalls anyways.

 

After the short detour to the London Falls I head back to the main road and go further down the canyon I get to a place called Bourke’s Potholes - I am a bit annoyed with this place because the entrance fee is a lot higher than what it have been at the waterfalls - but I figure I might as well pay. And I go in and have a look around. This was a lucky decision because this places turns out to be the highlight of my little road trip through Blyde River Canyon.

 

Bourke’s Potholes got its name from some strange looking holes in the cliffs which have been carved through the millenniums by the water falling down from a river into a small canyon. They are looking quite strange and the water is flowing rapidly through them. You can walk around the area on the different bridges across the canyons at the potholes.

 

I leave the potholes and drive down the road and stop at a couple of more of the view points.

The best of them is the Three Rondavels where there are three strange looking hilltops just next to the view point. These hilltops are quite distinctive and one of the main trademarks of the entire area.

 

After this stop I head down the road towards my main destination for the day - well not just the day the entire trip - the world famous wildlife park Kruger National Park. I wanna see some animals. Unfortunately I planned the trip using a map I bought the last time I went to southern Africa and it covered half the continent which means the map is not all that detailed and the distance to the park is about twice the length of what I had estimated. But I get down the road and finally get to the city of Phalaborwa which is home to one of the gate to the park. Here I need to seal all my firearms which I got for protection for my drive from the airport to the park and I can go in.