Splendid Isolation and Quiet Retreat: Botswana, Tsodilo Hills and Okavango Panhandle
June 8, 2022
Rising majestically from the Kgalagadi sands, near the site of the Okavango Wetlands, the Tsodilo Hills are one of Botswana's little-visited but greatest treasures. This mystical site, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has captivated people for thousands of years, and remains as magnetic and mesmerizing today as ever. Tsodilo inspires awe and wonder, having been a place of peace, refuge, and spiritual fulfillment for countless peoples, both past and present.
40 km away, on a private island, lies Desert and Delta Safari's Nxamaseri Island Lodge, one of the oldest lodges in the Okavango Delta and one of its jewels. Waking early, we watched the sun rise over the tall reeds and papyrus trees, creating a crimson fireball, illuminating the sky with vibrant shades of pink, orange, and scarlet. Coffee by the campfire, then breakfast, and then it was time to set off by boat. Winding through misty, chilly channels, we made our way to the landing pad where the helicopter waited. As we took off, the grass beneath us swayed wildly in the breeze from the helicopter's blades, and puffs of white mist rose from the water. As we rose into the sky, the soft morning light grew brighter, and the early colors dissolved. The vibrant green grasses and reeds below us were crisscrossed by magnificent channels of indigo water that gleamed in the morning light.
Below us, not a single hut, house, or road was visible. Instead, there was an intricate mosaic of undergrowth, shrubs, trees, and waterholes, connected by game trails and animal highways. The closer we got to Tsodilo, the drier the land beneath us became. Vivid blues and greens gave way to muted yellows, beiges, and browns. The vast expanses stretching below us were ripe, waiting to be explored. Suddenly, emerging from the earth before us, we saw what we had come for: Tsodilo. Man, woman, and child—these are the traditional names for the hills rising below us.
The name Tsodilo means "damp earth" in the !Kung language, the language of one of the local tribes. According to !Kung legend, long ago, when the rocks were still soft and animals could talk, the Tsodilo Hills were home to a family consisting of a husband, wife, and two children. Conflicts between husband and wife caused the wife to leave her husband and take the children with her. The younger child later returned to her father, while the older remained with her mother—today, the "family" can be found by looking up the hills in the order: man, woman, and child (in some versions of the legend, the tiny fourth hill is the husband's first wife, whom he left for a younger woman and who now hides behind). We spent most of our time with our local guide, Shakes, on the women's hill, as this is where most of the rock art was found.
Todsilo contains 500 individual sites, representing thousands of years of human habitation. It houses over 4,500 works of art, primarily finger paintings, made with paints of hematite, charcoal, and calcite, mixed with animal fats, blood, marrow, egg white, juice, and even urine. The paintings are of two types: red and white, with the red painted by the Ncaekhoe and the white painted by the Bantu. They depict animals and humans, as well as geometric patterns used in traditional "healing" rituals by medical practitioners. Some animals were painted because they embodied special powers, such as the snake, which was depicted here for its significance in rainmaking rituals. Some of the human figures depicted were likely associated with fertility rituals. The exact age of these paintings is unknown; Some of them are believed to be over 20,000 years old, while others are around a hundred years old.
Evidence from archaeological excavations indicates that the earliest humans to inhabit this area were those from the Middle Stone Age, 100,000 years ago. These were the first homo sapiens, the first anatomically recognizable modern humans. Archaeological research has shown that small groups of these people camped in the area for short periods, in numerous rock shelters on the hill. They lived off the land, hunting, catching wild animals, and fishing in a lake that once existed here, 22,000 years ago. Domestic animals appeared in the area around 2000 BC, and ironworking was introduced around 650 AD. The current inhabitants belong to the !Kung and Hambu Kushu tribes, who settled here in the late 19th century.
The Tsodilo Hills, while magnificent and unique, are of course not the only reason to visit this part of the world. The peaceful solitude of the Okavango Panhandle, the 70-kilometer stretch of the Okavango River from where it enters Botswana to where it stretches across the alluvial plain of the Delta, is truly magnificent. The water here is deep and fast-flowing, perfect for catching both sought-after tigerfish and bream; in total, 17 species of fish can be caught here. Birdwatching is also a popular activity here—the tall, shady riverine forests are home to numerous resident and migratory birds. The waterways are home to a variety of waterbirds, from kingfishers and herons to sandpipers, rollers, beekeepers, egrets, storks, and more. This is a place for excellent birdwatching, including the elusive Pelsa migratory owl, a pair of which live on a tiny island downstream from Nxamaseri Island Lodge. Guided walks are available to the nearby islands, and boat trips, especially at sunset, are a wonderful experience. Or experience a more traditional form of waterway transport, gliding silently across the clear waters in a mokoro (dugout canoe), eye-level with water lilies, dragonflies, reed frogs, and brilliantly colored malachite kingfishers.
Nxamaseri Island Lodge is a small but exquisitely designed property nestled on a tiny private island in the Okavango's mainland waters. With elevated rooms that offer tranquil havens nestled among the trees and connected by wooden walkways, Nxamaseri manages to capture the beauty of the permanent marshland without sacrificing any comforts. My room had a secluded veranda overlooking the water, from which I observed sleek, silver, seal-like otters swimming, and later watched a sinister-looking crocodile slink past. I had a spacious bathroom with hot water and an incredibly comfortable bed, where I lay listening to the splashing and grunting of hippos under the cover of darkness.
Come for the history and culture, come for the fish or birds, come to experience the incredible natural beauty; whatever your reason for coming, you won't be disappointed.
