As the name suggests, the village of Waterval Onder is set at the bottom of the impressive 75m Eland Falls, in the Elands Valley. Unlike its big sister, Waterval Boven, at the top of the Elands Falls, Waterval Onder never developed into a town and has retained a village charm.
While small in stature, Waterval Onder has a big history. This was the last home of ex-President Paul Kruger before his exile to the Netherlands and his once home, Krugerhof, is now a museum and National Monument.
The town is also home to one of South Africa’s greatest mysteries, involving lost gold and resulting in one of the world’s greatest treasure hunts – "The Search for The Kruger Millions!" The story goes that President Paul Kruger removed around R1.5million of gold from the national treasury. While some was used in the war effort, and some taken into exile, legend has it a substantial amount was buried in the Lowveld in readiness for his victorious return. So where does 'X' mark the spot? Best guess is between Waterval Onder and eNtokozweni, formerly Machadodorp – so are you ready to get digging?
This is a small quaint village with a huge heritage and certainly somewhere for any South African history fan or treasure hunter to explore.
*Information supplied by Mpumalanga Tourism & Parks Agency
