The Vaal is one of the major rivers in Southern Africa and the lifeblood of Gauteng. Its source is in the Breyten area in Mpumalanga, from where it meanders to the Vaal Dam, through the Vaal Triangle and skirting the Free State, before meeting up with the Orange River near Douglas. It is characterized by endless flat-water but it has not lost all sense of humour, providing a few stretches of fine whitewater.