Adventures in Lesotho

Lesotho (pronounced le-soo-too) is an independent country entirely surrounded by South Africa.  

A constitutional monarchy, its king is currently Letsie III, but it is governed in all material respects by a prime minister and representative councils.

Called the Mountain Kingdom (for good reason), Lesotho is made up of the heights of the Drakensberg and Maluti ranges, and lies entirely over 3400 feet above sea level, its highest point being Mount Ntlenyana at 11,424 feet in altitude.

Access from South Africa in the east requires a trek up the Sani Pass and a 4X4 vehicle.  The steep gravel road rises about 4,400 feet over the course of a very rough five miles.

Happy motorists often celebrate completing the route and entering Lesotho at the Highest Pub in Africa (9,429 feet) with a locally-brewed Maluti beer.

The Lesotho flag features a shape that recurs repeatedly throughout the traveler’s experience there……

In the dwellings….

In the formation of sheaves of wheat…..

In the traditional headwear…..

And even in the landscape itself…..

The mountain vistas are breathtaking……

Roadway perils are common……. You never know when you might emerge from a hairpin turn to be confronted with……

Crossing the sole access point across a river from one of the lodges after a night of heavy rain felt treacherous……

Even in the capital city of Maseru, an almost invisible drainage ditch can foil the most skilled driver…..

……making one thankful for well-prepared travel companions.

Why are we here? A common question posed by many of the locals we met, as they get very few outside visitors.

Would you believe that Lesotho actually includes an area that is reputed to have…… banded agates? Our entire crew helped Henry look for the elusive stones in river valleys as cows, donkeys and shepherd boys passed by……

Scooting down a steep hillside on her rear end, our heroine made the find of the day…..

A number of other decent specimens were found as well, but this won the prize!

Tertius was on a different quest entirely……. for a very special aloe plant that he had glimpsed before, but only just now found out was endemic to Lesotho!

He explained his interest to a resident who was observing the rock hunting…..

….. and our new friend invited us to his home nearby, as he just happened to have such a plant that he would be willing to sell!

A good time was had by all as we met and visited with his extended family….. here’s Henry showing photos from our travels on his iPad.

(Disbelief clear on the faces when Ty explains in Zulu that the penguins they are seeing are actually birds!)

Hilarity ensued when Tertius and Ty produced a six-pack of beer, which was immediately claimed for later distribution by the group’s head woman.

I had a grand chat with one of the ladies…..

Henry presented the chief of the clan with a Texas memento….

And Tertius got his special succulent…..

Clearly, the local Basotho people are charming and friendly.

Also of note is the special local breed of Basotho pony, a sturdy creature descended from the horses brought to this part of the continent by the Dutch in the 17th century. They are a very common mode of transportation, both off but mostly on the highway.

We stopped to try some grilled corn from a vendor, Henry imagining a delicious treat…..

…. and ending up a little disappointed, since it was a strain of what Henry calls ”feed corn”, and butter and spices were notably absent…

Since it is quite a cold climate at this altitude, people routinely wrap themselves in distinctive blankets in a variety of special patterns…. called Basotho blankets. We had to have some.

We visited several spots in a commercial center….

….. before finally finding the local source….

Purchases made, we proceeded to the border and back toward South Africa, all of us – Tertius, Ty, Henry and me – sad to be leaving so soon and hoping for another visit to this special place, with spectacular mountains and welcoming people.

The Lesotho greeting as we pass toward the border……

We hope we leave them with the same…….