Botswana’s best kept secret; Goo Moremi Gorge

Botswana continues to gain popularity as a tourist destination of choice and has been listed by numerous travel agencies as one of the best to visit for travel and leisure purposes. A couple of destinations within Botswana that constantly appear on such lists. These include the Kgalagadi or Kalahari desert, Okavango delta, Makgadikgadi pans and others. Botswana’s best kept secret; Goo Moremi gorge is not usually listed among these, or even if it ends up there, it usually gets confused with the Moremi game reserve located in the Maun, a tourist hotspot area.

I got a chance to visit this mystical and serene place recently, and not sharing the experience with my readers would be a great injustice.

Getting there

It was a bright sunny morning recently when we embarked on an interesting jam packed road trip departing the capital city; Gaborone, heading to the north with friends who also happen to be travel enthusiasts. There is something about going on a road trip with people who understand the fuss of stopping (pulling over the car) randomly to see some things at a distance and close range, and of course take photos in the process.

The roadtrip crew

After a close to five hour drive characterised by catch ups, sing along sessions and all that jazz we finally reached our destination. Goo Moremi Gorge was evidently visible with black letters engraved on a wooden board. Out of nowhere an elderly man fully dressed like a ranger wearing a bright, white smile opened the gate for us and guided us on where to proceed for parking after short greetings.

Getting off the car, the wilderness welcomed us with total silence accompanied by a breeze and occasional call outs by different birds from afar. Refreshing!

A plaque which bears the incumbent President’s name as having officially opened the establishment in February this year was there! Shiny! Eyes moved around from the top admiring a magnificently thatched entrance building down to impressive modern touch of mahogany frames holding clear windows on both sides. A reception/ticketing booth on one side and a curio shop on the other where I was welcomed by a lady similarly on rangers gear with a wonderful smile who later introduced herself as Gase; A local of Moremi village which is just about four kilometres back by road. From our short conversation I have already gathered that the place was run by a community trust in partnership with the Botswana Tourism Organisation. I also learnt that all the employees except for two are from Moremi village. Community development indeed. I was quite impressed.

Gase then handed me together with my travel buddies over to Wendy, the young and ever smiling manager who gave us a brief introduction of Goo Moremi gorge. She was indeed brief and it was all intentional as she highlighted that all the best was saved to be delivered by their expert tour guide; Zuma who would be accompanying us for the day. We waited for him for sometime and hopped onto the car facing the hillside. All the tours here are guided. You will later find out why.

Getting Stuck

Hardly  two minutes after our take off from the main gate we were met by an unexpected situation. Our car got stuck! I, as the designated driver of the day had underestimated the water which was flowing right in front of us and yeah…….it happened! Interestingly enough, getting the car off the sand it had stuck on turned out to be a quite interesting experience. It was what I chose to call a get-to-know-each-other session. The team of the establishment (from manager to the junior most employee) came out to assist. One by one they offered solutions and we kept trying them till we succeeded. By the time the car was out we had already touched on a wide range of issues ranging from gender equality, feminism, rural-urban migration and politics. Nothing to do with nature. Ironic!

So, you have been warned. By the time you visit this hidden treasure kindly ensure that a four wheel drive is your fist option. Not to mean that the site is not accessible by sedans and other smaller vehicles but just to be on the safe side. You do not want to spend an hour trying to figure out how to unstuck a vehicle and eating into the time you could be exploring and learning about this mystical place in the process.

Mother Nature Untouched

After a careful drive we finally reached the foot of the hills and it is here where our guide sought permission from the ancestors before we embarked on our long anticipated trail. It was after the ancestors agreed when we were offered to pick sticks which were nicely piled on the side. I’m talking about the original wooden hand made ones not these fancy modern ones that look like selfie sticks.

With our sticks in hand walking behind Zuma, our tour guide for the day, this was a moment when our date with mother nature in her purest form begun. Apart from the baobab trees which he passionately explained how their age is measured (and more), there were also species of flora most of which no longer grow in many other places due to uncontrolled human activities. These included ferns that we used  see when I was still a naughty primary school going kid who occasionally visited the Notwane river, a stone throw away from my grandmother’s house for an unsupervised dip with friends.

The vegetation kept getting viridescent and denser as we moved deeper into the interior. A few steps into the bushy forest when the sun rays found their ways through the canopied trees we came across one of the first original inhabitants; a stripe billed sand snake commonly known by the local language as mosenene. We had been warned about them (and other snakes) and advised to keep calm and not panic lest they confuse us for enemies and strike. How we managed was just by the grace of God! I remember the girls did not even want to take a glance.

The trek was now becoming rockier and there was just an awesome synergy between rocks, water and plants. We then got to one particular rock, Zuma came to a halt and with his never ending passion explained to us the Sir Seretse Khama Alarm Rock.

Sir Seretse Khama Alarm Rock

It is said that there was a big explosion which could be heard from a distance. When the villagers came to investigate they found that the very same rock had fallen from the Tswapong hills. Badimo (the gods/ ancestors) knew that something tragic had befallen them. The following day, news that Botswana’s first President; Sir Seretse Khama (who was also the Paramount Chief of the Bangwato tribe) had passed away the previous day reached them.
Many years later, the rock is still there as a protected monument. It is known as the Sir Seretse Khama Alarm Rock.

From this rock we proceeded to the waterfalls. The first waterfall was smaller in size but no less beautiful and producing soothing sounds which reminded me of my morning meditation playlist. There was an overall calming effect produced by the sound of water, birds, trees moving. It was really calming!

The distance between the second and third waterfalls was not that much. In actual fact the third one can be reached when you least expect. After few little obstacles when you feel like you have gained momentum to embark on a long journey to the promised land… there it appeared! It was so beautiful. Like there was a pipe burst from the seventh floor of a hotel or something. Ok! Not exactly. A really wonderful backdrop. We were now also back to a full view of the sun with no sun rays piercing through the highest branches. It was a full rock affair.

Admiring the waterfalls

Bringing far away elements closer with the help of binoculars

While taking photos, and using the binoculars there viewing birds and other elements mother nature had to offer we came across a unique bird which Zuma told us was known as Mountain wagtail. He explained that the bird was not common this side and we were lucky to find it. He also explained how spotting this bird was even more exciting for tourists who come here mainly for the purpose of bird-watching. The most common birds here are the vultures which have found perfect habitats atop the Tswapong hills including right at the gorge. This place is also known as Manonnyeng which is setswana meaning a place of vultures.

Because of time constraints we could not proceed to the other two remaining waterfalls which we were told are not easily accessible like the three we just saw. We were advised to next come earlier and dressed more appropriately in neutral colours and proper trekking shoes.

Experiencing Mother Nature alongside the badimo

One of the awesome views at Goo Moremi

All the above and more reminded me of how we had stepped into a territory that is not ours to live in, but just to visit. Thankfully the original residents welcomed us with open arms.

On our way back it appeared as if our attention had shifted from questions around mother nature and had moved to badimo. Badimo is a setswana word meaning ancestors. Not to say we’ve had enough but just to understand another interesting phenomenon about this mystical place.

Zuma reminded us that like he said before, they (as the residents of Moremi) take badimo very seriously. The inhabitants of Moremi village will always have deep spiritual and religious attachment to the natural spots than anybody else. Their forefathers were inhabitants of this place before the village moved into the interior after all. Even today there are respected members of the community who are mediums with the ability to be in direct contact with badimo. This group of wise men is known as the Komana.

He also hinted that procedures were followed for Goo Moremi gorge to be where it is as a fully fledged eco tourism establishment we see today. An appeasement ceremony was made to seek permission from the gods before the facility could be built. The whole village got together, a beast was slaughtered, traditional beer was brewed and other offerings were made. Apparently this was done over time since badimo are not so easily accepting to change especially if its intentions do not sound so pure.

We have been reliably informed that this is not always the case, especially to those who come with ulterior motives or simply choose not to abide by the rules. Some have mysteriously fallen into the water, some have seen things that were only visible to them and some have not been able to know what happened to the moments they perfectly froze on their polaroids.

The rules are simple. Do not bring or consume alcoholic beverages to this side. This side applies to the side of the gorge and the waterfalls. You can always save such activities for later at the comfort of your tents, chalets and the restaurant area. Also, abide by the rules outlined. Respect the badimo.

The Modern Touch

Goo Moremi gorge also has world class, fully serviced chalets and luxury tents which are strategically located to offer tourists breathtaking views of the Tswapong hills and the gorge. These include presidential suites which His Excellency, the President takes up when on his usual visits to this magical place.

Infinity pool overlooking the wilderness

Sharing a light moment at the chalet after a long trail

Another addition is the conference facilities and restaurant which are located and elevated on a deck overlooking the chalets and luxury tents with even more incredibly breathtaking views of the wilderness. I still say that photos do not do this place justice.

I challenge you to visit Goo Moremi gorge and share your stories. Definitely Botswana’s best kept secret.