The gorgeous Bourke’s Luck Potholes are a true natural water feature located within the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. This is approximately 35 kilometers north of Graskop on the R532 road.
It is found at the beginning of the Blyde River Canyon, these cylindrical potholes on the bedrock were carved more than thousands of years ago with sand and pebbles swirling around in whirlpools at what time the Treur River plunges into the Blyde River.
Originally, water-borne pebbles carved out minor depressions, which soon trapped river debris additional accelerating erosion. Therefore hollows grew with the passage of time and got deepened to cylindrical potholes up to quite a lot of meters deep.
The potholes were titled after an ineffective gold prospector called Tom Bourke who revealed signs of alluvial gold in the canyon in the late 1880s. He swiftly staked a claim and originated to pan for gold. Unluckily for him, Bourke never stuck gold, though hundreds of others found riches just south of where he projected the presence of the precious metal.
Bourke’s gold mine proved to be totally unproductive but his splendid legacy lives on at Bourke’s Luck Potholes. Unluckily, certain tourists treat Bourke’s Luck Potholes as a “wishing well” and several have dropped coins into the potholes.
A small visitor’s center is found close that offers information about the canyon’s origins and the flora and fauna found in the area. From there, the viewing point for these potholes is 700 meters away.
