Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sights
Southern Tswapong Hills
The most interesting ruins in the region are scattered close to the southern Tswapong foot-
hills.
Old Palapye (Phalatswe)
About 20km southeast of Palapye amid low-lying scrub, thinly scattered stone walls mark
the site of the former Bangwato capital. After the Christian Bangwato chief Khama III and
his people arrived from Shoshong in 1889, Phalatswe was transformed from a stretch of
desert to a settlement of 30,000 people. Spread over a large area and signposted along the
main track, stone walls denote the town's former marketplace and other buildings. More
intact is the impressive Old Palapye Church, a Gothic-style London Missionary Society
church that was completed in 1894. When the Bangwato capital was moved to Serowe in
1902, Chief Khama sent a regiment to torch Phalatswe, but the church remained standing.
Built from locally quarried red mud brick, it's one of Botswana's most striking ruins.
RUINS
Motetane Gorge
The walls of the Tswapong Hills are riven with deep canyons, and the east-west Motetane
Gorge is the prettiest of them. The turn-off to the gorge is well signposted en route to the
church and trails lead out from the small parking area. The trails in this area are littered
with sacred ancestral sites, some of which are signposted. Watch for hyenas along the
trails.
CANYON
Northern Tswapong Hills
The region's most impressive rock formations are those on the northern side, and there are
also community-run campsites and well-appointed chalets, making it more accessible for
tourists.
Moremi Gorge
(adult/child/vehicle P40/20/30)
The approach to Moremi Gorge gives little hint of what
lies ahead. Beyond the entrance gate, a track leads past campsites (per adult/child P70/35)
with their cold-water ablutions blocks, to a parking area. From here, a trail leads into this
vertiginous canyon. Apart from the sheer beauty of the site and the abundant birdlife (with
Cape vultures wheeling overhead or perched at their nesting sites high on the cliffs),
CANYON
