Lesotho
There’s no business like snow business in Lesotho where Africa’s biggest ski resort is under construction with five slopes, high-altitude training facilities for athletes, and one of the highest golf courses on Earth at 3 300 metres above sea level. Chalets imported from Estonia dot the mountainside of the land-locked kingdom’s Mahlasela Valley, but the flavour of Africa is never far with cattle-drawn carts and mud huts framing the hairpin road leading to the Afri-Ski resort. Here, King Letsie III presides over the eponymous King’s Cup skiing and snowboarding events every year.
Further on, the Kotisephola Skiing site at Sani in the Mokhotlong district is also close to completion. Small wonder little Lesotho’s moniker is now Switzerland of the South!
Whether you’re trekking by pony or on foot, you’ll find spectacular mountain scenery and a way of life unchanged for centuries. Here, the locals are friendly, rivers run freely, and peach blossoms carpet the mountain slopes in spring.
Off-road enthusiasts can hurtle down the Sani Pass linking Lesotho with surrounding South Africa. Pause for the border at the top and refresh yourself at The Highest Pub in Africa, before heading down Black Mountain. Meander over the scenic Tlaeeng Pass, the highest road pass in southern Africa, where roadside waterfalls ice into crystal stalactites and stalagmites in winter. Or, take the offroad trail to Ramabanta, via Jockstrap Pass.
The country’s western lowlands comprise undulating basins and plains. The Cave Sandstone Terrace is an intermediate region giving way to the wild, rugged eastern highlands, a folded wilderness that includes the Maluti Mountains, spurs of the Drakensberg range and sources of South Africa’s Orange and Tugela Rivers. The highlands are also home to the highest single-drop waterfall in southern Africa - Maletsunyani Falls at Semonkong - and fascinating prehistoric dinosaur footprints and rock-art. Then there’s the Katse Dam, a 45-km long water feature that offers water-based recreational facilities, bird watching and trout fishing.
The possibilities are endless and with accommodation ranging from international hotels, mountain lodges, hostels, thatched rondavels and a national park, Lesotho is a haven for back-to-nature thrill-seekers.
The Lesotho Tourist Board operates overland adventure tours from Maseru, visits to craft centres, pony trekking, or swimming in bilharzia-free mountain streams.
Hardy and sure-footed Basotho ponies can take you into areas not accessible by road to experience the traditional Basotho lifestyle. In the villages, expect to be offered the traditional porridge - Motoho. Yum!