The small village of Botrivier is situated en route to Hermanus and Caledon at the eastern slopes of the Houw Hoek Mountains.

The Bot River meanders through one of the most fertile regions in the southern Cape. The Khoi-khoi tribes who pastured their cattle here called the river the 'Couga', which can be translated as 'rich in fat', or 'lots of butter'. Early European settlers at the Cape journeyed here to barter for barrels of butter and they adopted the Khoi name for the river, calling it first the Botter, then later the Bot.

The river, which rises south of the Theewaterskloof Dam, flows into a large lagoon, forming a marsh near its mouth, known as the Bot River Lagoon. The Bot River wetlands is home to thousands of waterfowl and you can catch a glimpse of South Africa's only herd of wild horses that roams a wetland habitat