If you fly over the gorgeous turquoise waters off the southwest coast of our island, you will notice what appears to be an underwater waterfall. It may seem dramatic, but you can swim and surf over the ‘waterfall’ below. Here’s what you should know…
You may have seen your fair share of waterfalls around the world. You may even have seen some of the waterfalls plunging down the lushly forested slopes of our own tropical island. But chances are you haven’t seen an under water waterfall.
Mauritius and its neighboring islands, notably La Reunion and Rodrigues, were produced by volcanic activity beneath the sea. This occurred around 8 million years ago (Earth is approximately 4.6 billion years old), making Mauritius a relatively young island.
The Mascarene Islands (or Îles Mascareignes) are located on a submarine plateau, commonly referred to as an ocean shelf. The shelf is no deeper than 150 metres below sea level, but the drop-off extends to depths of almost 4000 metres. So it’s not water pouring over the drop-off and plummeting to a depth of 4000 metres; its sand and silt deposits near the end of the marine shelf are pushed off the edge by ocean currents. Instead,it’s more like an underwater sand fall.
You can get a very rough idea of the waterfall by hiking up Le Morne Brabant. From the summit of the 500-meter peak, you’ll have amazing views of the island and the reef that surrounds it.
However, only flying over the underwater waterfall allows you to observe its exact formation. Helicopter sightseeing tours can take you high above this natural phenomena, giving you a bird’s-eye perspective of the Le Morne Peninsula and the dazzling lagoon, as well as the opportunity to try to understand nature’s immense strength. You can even charter a private seaplane and have a thrilling water take-off.
This stunning underwater waterfalls located on the shores of Le Morne Brabant, on the southwest coast of Mauritius, is an optical illusion and not a real like the Denmark Strait