Most people will associate Botswana with the vast flat Kalahari desert but there are a good number of rock outcrops around the country. Right in the capital Gaborone, there is Kgale Hill which has a number of cliffs of up to 25m high that can be climbed on natural gear or with a top rope. About 60km further South there is a group of hills surrounding a village called Otse. Other unexplored climbing possibilities include the gorge in Kanye (90km from Gaborone), the Kobokwe Gorge in Molepolole and the Tswapong Hills (250km north of Gaborone) as well as others. Of course with all these places local sensitivities and the environment should be taken into account. Hills are often sacred places in Botswana.
A word of environmental caution. Rocks in Botswana are scarce and this means that the ecosystems on these rocks are unique. If we are going to climb on them we should tread lightly. In other parts of the world where rock is plentiful rock climbers do not have access to rock because some climbers have been disrespectful of the environment. The following advice may seem obvious but it is not so to everyone.
Nesting birds should be given a wide berth. We should not climb anywhere near them as some, like the vultures at Otse, are under threat of extinction. See Birdlife Botswana's website. There are also many unique plants and trees on and around the rocks and these should be left intact. Needless to say let's not leave litter and if you see some you could even take it away.
Click on the titles shown as links for RDs. More will be added as we open new routes and write them up.
The best climbing area faces the new Game City shopping complex (with it’s own climbing wall). You can park in the vast shopping centre car park and then it is a short walk to the base of the cliffs. There are three main areas. There is easy access to the base and the top of these cliffs if you want to set up a top rope. You will need a rigging rope as the nearest suitable anchor points are sometimes a little way back from the top of the cliffs.
THE BLACK ROCKS. A lower dark band of cliffs which contains the longer climbs and can be seen in the photo to the left.
THE RED ROCKS. a wedge shaped band of red rock above and to the left of the black rocks that can be seen in the photo here.
THE UPPER TIER. This is higher up and to the right of the red and black areas and is the longest walk in. A photo of this area can be seen by following the link.
There is a nesting black eagle on the top of Kgale hill under the mast. These rocks are a long walk in and there is no decent climbing there anyway. So let's leave the eagle in peace.
The big hill on the East side of the village is called Manyelanong and is a vulture santuary so climbing here is not allowed. On the other side of the main road there are some East facing cliffs which can be easily seen from the road. The peak on the north side of the village is called Lentswe la Baratani (lover’s rock) and is considered a no-go area by the local community. However, further South there are some cliffs worth exploring. There is also some climbing on the other side of this range which can be accessed by bush tracks around the south end of the range.
A varying number of climbers climb fairly regularly - normally every weekend. Please do e-mail us if you would like to join us or if you want to be on the e-mail distribution list for climbing happenings in Botswana.
For further information on climbing in Botswana e-mail me at 