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.
This great escarpment
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. The
Blyde River Canyon is one of the most spectacular in Africa and its cliffs rise
between 600m-800m from the river bed. 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 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.
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. Close by a network of pathways and footbridges allows visitors to explore
the potholes (some of which are 6 m deep) at the confluence of the Blyde and
Treur rivers. Another attraction at Bourke's Luck is the visitors' centre, which
has numerous interesting displays. A newly developed, 180 m circular trail,
accessible to the physically disabled, starts at the visitors' centre and has
as its main theme the lichens found in the area.
Wildlife in the 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.