Victoria Falls drying up: Where is the alarmist journalist hiding now?

It happens often during the dry season. Someone snaps a picture of the dry rock wall, on the Zambian side of Victoria Falls, and claims with shock that the mighty Falls are drying up and there is almost no water left! Usually it is not a crisis. But when a British journalist from a well-known network punts fake news like this, it causes a crisis.

Tourism to Victoria Falls took a huge knock this season, because a British journalist from Sky News, Alex Crawford, visited Vic Falls during the peak of the dry season, and claimed the falls were drying up due to climate change. The story was picked up by Reuters and many other news outlets around the world ran versions of the same story, accompanied by pictures of a dry rock wall as so-called evidence:


What these alarmist journalists are all missing is the fact that this happens every year. The Zambian side of the falls dries up every year, leaving only a dry rock wall. And while 2019 was indeed a dry year following a serious drought in the region, the water levels were still higher than they were in the early 1990's, early 1980's and in even during 1914 and 1915, when there was no global warming yet!
Unfortunately, in their quest for sensationalism, the fake news story that "Victoria Falls is drying up" spread like wildfire around the globe, and thousands of people needlessly cancelled their planned trip to Victoria Falls. The impact on tourism to the region has been devastating.
High Water and Low Water Season

Victoria Falls has an annual high water and low water season, which is affected mostly by rainfall in the catchment area of the Zambezi river, which includes mainly Angola and Zambia.

The high water season runs from January to June, usually peaking around March. But every year is different. During this time, the water thunders over the entire length of Victoria Falls, and both the Zimbabwe and Zambian sides offer spectacular views of the falls.



The low water season runs from July to December, with the driest months being October and November, before the rains arrive. Every year during this time, the Zambian side of the falls dries up. Let me say that again for the benefit of any journalists reading this: EVERY YEAR during this time, the Zambian side of the falls of the falls dries up! The Zimbabwe side never dries up and has never dried up. In fact, when the water levels are low, there is an amazing natural rock pool called Devil's Pool on the edge of the falls which is accessible only during the dry season. While the pool overlooks the Zimbabwe side of the falls, you can only reach this pool from the Zambian side, and it is one of the main attractions of the Zambian side of the falls during low water season. The rest of the Zambian side is just a dry rock wall.

This is nothing new or newsworthy.

As I write this, in January 2020, the rains have arrived long ago and the water levels are so high that Devil's Pool has been closed. The Zambian side has plenty of water again:



This kind of alarmist, irresponsible reporting has done a lot of damage to the tourism economy at Victoria Falls, for no reason other than sensationalism.

Don't let fake news articles about Victoria Falls stop you from visiting this amazing natural wonder, which is a highly recommended destination to add on to your Southern Africa safari itinerary. The falls have not dried up.

For more images of Vic Falls during different seasons, check out our African travel calendars to read more about the best time to visit Victoria Falls.