Tsodillo Hills and Eretsha
August 11, 2017 Chris Adschiew After a relaxing night at the l uxurious Swamp Stop lodge on the northwestern side of the Okavango delta, and a delicious breakfast of eggs, toast, sausage, and cereal, we were on the road again. Joined by James 007, an old friend of professor Stein, and some of his drivers from the Sausage Tree lodge (where we would be staying next) we headed for Tsidillo Hills. An ancient and spiritual place, the hills rise alone as the only high point in the surrounding planes visible for miles. From the outset, it is easy to see why the hills have been a highly spiritual place to the indigenous populations for millennia, on the flat landscape, the towering islands of rock must have seemed divine, so that they are now named “The Mountain of the Gods” makes only too much sense. Imposing from a distance, the true majesty reveals itself upon closer inspection. All along the face of the rocks are depicted hundreds of bushman paintings revealing the animals they saw, and within the caves, the way they lived, where they took shelter during the nights and rains, and where they sharpened their tools. Walking around the base and climbing as high as I could, it was almost like I could hear them talking to me, saying “look, I was here, this is what I saw.” The handprints positioned next to some of the paintings as a signature where their way of saying this is what I did. It is amazing to believe some of these paintings have survived over 3,000 years. Some of the images were expected, the lion, the elephants, the rhinos, and the many different forms of antelope, but the images that stuck out most to me were 2 painted whales. The hills have to be hundreds of miles from any ocean, and the closest water source, the Okavango Delta, would not have whales, so I am forced to ask how? How did these people see such sea fairing creatures? How far did they have to travel? Or is there some other answer? Our guide said there may have once been a great inland lake in Namibia, where archeological digs claim to have found evidence that whales once lived, so maybe that’s the answer, but there’s no way to be sure. Following a quick lunch outside the museum, we were on the road for the second longest road trip of our time here. 2-2½ hours from Tsodillo Hills to the ferry, where we arrived around 5:15 and waited until about 6:00 to cross and be off again. After another 3½-4 hours in the open air game viewer vehicles, which became very, Very, VERY cold after the sun went down, we arrived at Sausage Tree lodge (the final new lodge of the trip) a little before 10pm. After pitching our tents by dark, and a quick dinner around a welcoming fire, it was off to bed to prepare for our first activities in the delta in the morning. Sausage Tree lodge/campsite is set in an idyllic remote setting in the village of Eretsha in the northern tip of Botswana. Just over 600 people call Eretsha home and according to a resident here, once the population reaches 500, then it can officially be called a village and then receives benefits from the government such a school and a clinic and they build a Kgotla which is the equivalent of a community center. Kgotla is also the name of the village meeting which is presided over by the Kgosi (chief) of the village. 'Kg' is pronounced like an 'h'. A clustering of people fewer than 500 is considered a cattle post. According to recent counts, elephants and livestock are roughly 1:1. Elephants favor this area due to the abundance of water in the delta. It is also believed that elephants are coming over the boarder from Namibia and other nearby countries. After visiting wildlife officials and residents working in the area of wildlife conservation, students created a questionnaire which they used to survey community members. Four groups went out into the community and interviewed a total of 20+ households. Students were asking questions (with translators present) related to what people's opinions were of wildlife conservation efforts along with the challenges that the community faces living side by side with wildlife. Students also had a chance to visit a kraal (which is an enclosed area built to keep livestock safe from predators) built by lion research project staff headed by Professor Stein. This kraal can hold up to 100 cattle and is built two meters high with tree branches placed close together on the horizontal to keep the livestock out of the clear view of the predators. It is made of sustainable materials from the area and builds on the skills which the villagers possess. The internet signal is too weak to upload photos at this point, but I will work to upload a series of photos upon return starting August 20th.
