Ntwetwe Pan (9)

Along the west shore of Ntwetwe, which you reach from the Nata - Maun road, there are, elsewhere on this pan, numerous Stone Age sites.

Among them, in a hidden cleft, is a secret waterhole that seldom dries.

You'll find cattle at the waterhole, and sometimes game animals as well.

Around it are hunting blinds built of calcrete blocks, used by the San, who hid there to ambush game as it came down to drink.

Along the access route are stends of glorious aloes (Aloe littoralis) that bloom in winter and add a splash of colour to the landscape.

This whole region is one that can fill days with pleasure for those with a penchant for "beach walking", exploring and encountering the "non-game" wilderness at its pristine and unexploited best.

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Ntwetwe Pan (8)

To the west of the south-north (Orapa- Gweta) track that crosses Ntwetwe Pan, and about midway between the opposing shores, is Gabasadi Island.



An unusually large barchan dune, it is bare of vegetation but you'll find it worth climbing to the (low) crest for the great view of Ntwetwe that it yields, especially in early or late light.

Here, if you look carefully, you will find pottery shards and Late Stone Age tools.

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Ntwetwe Pan (7)

The pan surface is hard and unyelding and very much safer than elsewhere on Makgadikgadi.
A good map is essential.
With its help, and if you sit on the roof of your vehicle for a good view, the experience is very much like sailing a galleon of old Through unknown seas, with islands beckoning from all around.
It's an exhilarating experience.



Careful navigation will lead you to a waterhole known as Mgobe wa Takhu, in the northwest of the area, wich contains water for much of the year.

To the north of the waterhole you'll find a little-known track (an old cut-line) that will deliver you to a group of palm trees known as Makolwane a ga Wateka, 10,6 km east of Njuca Hills.

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Ntwetwe Pan (6)

Evidently, there was a wetter period, the lake flooded again and the dunes were trapped caught far out in the replenished lake.

The climate continued to change and the level of the lake fell once more, but incrementally this time, almost as if the water was struggling against the elemental forces that wished to banish it forever.



Many of the island profiles show distinct descending steps and lines of vegetation, revealing clearly where the fall in lake levels was arrested long enough to leave permanent evidence in the shape of ancient shorelines.

To drive through this area is a unique experience.

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Ntwetwe Pan (5)

Far to the west of the north-south road is what it is called the "land of a thousand islands".

Reflecting a chaotic climatic past, these numerous "islands" are in fact sand dunes stranded on the surface of the ancient lake bed, and they are one of the most fascinating features of the Botswana wilderness.



They are evidence of much more arid times, when the lake temporarily dried, and barchan (crescent-shaped shifting) dunes, steep and concave on their leeward sides, convex on their windward sides, began to advance across its baked and bare surface.

* Horseshoe-shaped dunes are known as barchan dunes.
* Linear dunes in semi-parallel lines (best seen in Botswana's west and southwest) are referred to as alab dunes.

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Ntwetwe Pan (4)

When full, the pan is particularly beautiful with its waving palm trees and its bird life.
Even when it's dry, there's a lot to see: Stone Age artefacts abound and the hunting blinds (used initially by San to ambush their quarry) are still visible.



Look for an especially well-preserved one under a tree on the west side.
An equally famous, though less visited tree, Chapman's Baobab, lies to the southeast of Green's Baobab.
This tree is visible from a great distance across the pan and is worth seeing if only for its size and photogenic qualities (the colossal, six-stemmed specimen measures 24,8 m in girth at about 1,5 m above ground level).



It was certainly a landmark for early explorers of the region, and a casual examination will reveal the initials of James Chapman, members of the ill-fated Helmore-Price expedition and other well-known explorers.

The cavity between the main trunks is reported to have been used as a post box by travellers from both north and south.

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Ntwetwe Pan (3)

The initials of H van Zyl, the notorious explorer, hunter and murderer, are among those to be found on the tree.
You will also see those of P Viljoen, son of Jan Viljoen, a well known hunter and trader an an early visitor to Lake Ngami (getting there about 18 months after Livingstone).



He was accused by a missionary of "buying several African boys".

Within 300 metres of the tree, to its southwest, you will find Gutsa Pan, which is mostly dry now but does hold water for some months after rain.
Over 100 years ago there were reports of hippo in the area.
More amazingly, I know for certain that it has hosted hippo within the past twenty years.

The mystery is: where do they come from ?
The Boteti River is 75 km away !

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