Since 1966 the waterfall, set in a desolate and rugged milieu, is enclosed by the Augrabies Falls National Park.

The first European to see the falls was the renegade Swedish mercenary Hendrik Jakob Wikar.

The gorge at the Augrabies Falls is 240 metres (800 ft) deep and 18 kilometres (10 mi) long, and is an impressive example of granite erosion.

[3] Folklore among early twentieth-century South African prospectors describes the pool beneath the King George Cataract as being filled with diamonds, which are carried by currents down the Orange River.

Additionally, the pool is also claimed to be the lair of a serpentine monster called the Grootslang.