Blogs from Lesotho, Africa - page 2

I was supposed to spend 3-4 days in Lesotho, as my flight was arriving in Durban and it was close by, but in the end I spent more than one week there. It’s not because I wanted to, it’s more because transportation and infrastructures for tourists in that country are really underdeveloped. Therefore, for a week, I really travelled and experienced life as a local. However, don’t get me wrong, this country is just amazing with very friendly people, awesome scenery and nature everywhere. I would advise anyone, who loves nature, hiking, and who wants to visit a not touristy place, to go there. However, just be advised that the roads in the South and the East are bumpy so it will take hours to go from one place to another. If you are comfortable, driving ... read more

I only did a day trip to Lesotho while I was staying at the Amphitheatre Backpackers in Drakensberg. The tour wasn't cheap, but it was well worth the money. Again, I'll mention the guide, Adrian, who excelled himself in this trip. The other people in the group were a French family of 4, Claire from the UK, Victor from France and a German couple. Lesotho is known as "the mountain kingdom. Even though Lesotho is landlocked by South Africa, it's an independent kingdom. It's the highest country in the world. Surely, one thinks about Tibet or Nepal when you think about the highest country in the world. But it's in Africa. Lesotho is the highest because its highest "lowest point" is 1200m. Odd facts you pick up while traveling. To read about the ... read more

Geo: -29.61, 28.2336Lesotho is a unique country in Africa. It has never been colonized although was a protectorate of Britain. Their famous leader King Moshoeshoe united many previously fighting Basotho tribes to maintain ownership of the Kingdom in the Sky. They fought Zulu warriors and the Dutch and British. The result of this remarkable history, and obviously more complex than described here, is what appears to be happy people who are very poor. The country has a very different feel from South Africa even though it is completely surrounded by its only neighbouring country, South Africa.We left the Drakensbergs, travelling through the Royal Natal and Golden Gate National Parks observing stunning mountainous scenery and stopping for a quick breakfast in the sweet and very busy little town of Clarens. The town was hosting a well-known off ... read more

Heading into the Drakensberg to do a little hiking we didn’t realize that the reward for a beer would entice us to hike to the highest pub in Africa and walking the Sani pass at 2865m along the way. The Sani Pass we have heard quite a lot about over the years, the views are breathtaking, road is tough and the wind is bone chilling. This is why, like most others, we were looking to do a tour up the pass to reach the famous pub in Lesotho overlooking South Africa. The problem is that they want a large amount of money to do this and at this stage of our trip it just didn’t seem possible. The thing that the tour operators don’t tell you is that it is possible to walk the 18km return ... read more

I have decided to do a separate entry about this day because it was a completely different experience from our hike in the Drakkensberg. We were picked up in the morning (which dawned bright and sunny but eventually became cold and rainy at the top of Sani Pass) by our guide Stuart and set out in a group of 7 people in a well-used Land Rover. The day before we had eavesdropped on the owner of Sani Lodge telling a caller that they could attempt to drive up the Pass in their rental car, but they may end up leaving pieces of their engine behind. There was a reason that the only vehicles that we saw on this road were Land Rovers and Land Cruisers and other such four-wheel drives. A few kilometers past Sani Lodge ... read more