Bolgatanga, colloquially known as Bolga, is a town and the capital of the Bolgatanga Municipal District and Upper East Region of north Ghana. Bolgatanga has a 2012 settlement population of 66,685 people. Bolgatanga is 161 km (about 100 miles) to the north of Tamale. Bolgatanga lies in the Red Volta River Valley (which serves as a major migration route of elephants), with the White Volta River and the cliffs of the Gambaga Escarpment to the south of the town forming the southern boundary of the Upper East region.