Vaalwater

Vaalwater is a small town situated on the Mokolo River in the Limpopo province of South Africa. It lies at the southern edge of the rugged Waterberg Massif, which is a biosphere that contains considerable biodiversity, including numerous large mammals (e.g. Giraffe, White Rhino, Blue Wildebeest). Waterberg is the first region in the northern part of South Africa to be named as a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. The extensive rock formation was shaped by hundreds of millions of years of riverine erosion to yield diverse bluff and butte landform [http://www.luminatechnologies.org/lumaw.html C.Michael Hogan, Mark L. Cooke and Helen Murray, "The Waterberg Biosphere", Lumina Technologies, May 22, 2006.] ] .

Vaalwater is a popular jumping-off point for travels to the Waterberg Massif and Botswana and is itself becoming a minor destination for tourism. There are a variety of craft, art, and gift shops, as well as cafes and restaurants. Vaalwater has a number of commercial services not common for kilometres around, especially on roads leading to Botswana. These include banking, groceries, petrol and diesel, a post office, and doctors.

In 2006, Vaalwater was renamed "Mabatlane" but reverted to "Vaalwater" in 2007 after it became evident that the proper renaming procedures had not been followed.

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