Rocky Mountain High

The Blyde River Canyon is near where we're staying. It's the 3rd largest canyon in the world and the largest green canyon in the world. The river was dammed in the early 1970's to provide water for a nearby mine. Now much of the region gets its drinking water from the reservoir which also provides water for the citrus farms which are now abundant in the area. Around and along the canyon are beautiful geological wonders and historical sites that make up part of the Panorama Route, a 100 mile scenic route in the Mpumalanga province surrounded by the Drakensberg mountains (that we'll write more about later).

For now, we've stuck close to home. One day we took a boat ride in the canyon. Beautiful scenery. Saw a bunch of hippos, lots of baboons and a few crocodiles. The guide was a bit uninspiring but it was pretty and a nice way to spend a morning. The road into the canyon has been closed for a few weeks because they are making a movie in the area -- definitely a dramatic backdrop for any film. (By the way, evidently Tom Cruise filmed part of his latest Mission Impossible movie in the Leadwood Estate a few month ago -- we can't wait until that comes out and we can say, "We were there!")

A couple days later, we went around to the other side of the canyon and took a hike. This provided a different perspective and more great views of the canyon and reservoir as well as waterfalls and natural pools. There was one point we heard (but couldn't see) a troop of baboons cross the path not too far ahead of us. They must have heard us though and started making their aggressive howling sound. Dara and I looked at each other and decided to wait for a few minutes to be sure they'd all crossed the path and moved along before we kept going.

Alongside the canyon is a geological formation called the Three Rondavels -- they look like 3 of the traditional round houses with thatched roofs. We'd seen them from below while on the cruise and got a different view from the look out point on the other side. (The hike was really beautiful - highly recommended. https://www.alltrails.com/trail/south-africa/mpumalanga/tufa-guinea-fowl-and-leopard-trail)