From Richards Bay we took a short land tour to the Drakensberg mountain range.
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| Sani pass road - South African side |
First stop was Underberg from where we had a 4WD tour across the Sani Pass into the kingdom of Lesotho as far as Mokhotlong. The road is gravel and steep on the SA side but paved on the Lesotho side (Chinese money and fewer environmental concerns). Lesotho - mountain kingdom - is full of mountainous vistas and very poor people. Susan had her usual hairdressing lesson in one of the huts.
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| Just inside Lesotho |
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| Village housing - Lesotho |
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| Boy with dogs near the highest point |
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| Hair braiding is a popular entertainment |
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| Rock art - Kamberg |
On leaving Underberg it was a morning drive to Kamberg, mostly on a gravel road, for the 1230 guided walk to a rock art site. On arrival we were told that the guide had gone home but that we could take the key and let ourselves into the enclosure. This we did, ignoring the signs that promised dire consequences to anyone proceeding without a guide. It was a 1 1/2 hour uphill walk to the site, which was quite impressive, under a rock overhang.
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| Rock art site |
The third area on our trip was to the Champagne Valley area of the Central Drakensberg. The 6-hour walk up to Blindman's Corner on the plateau stretched Richard's comfort zone in respect of proximity to long drops. Although none were sheer cliffs a slip would result in a long fall down a very steep slope. The thunderstorm that started just as we reached the top and were exposed on the plateau was also a bit scary. On the way back the sun came out, our clothes dried and we ate our belated lunch in a meadow of fresh smelling grasses - perfect.
Seats for one of the Drakensberg Boys Choir School Christmas concerts were obtained at the last minute - it was encouraging to see boys of all nationalities enjoying singing together.
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| The way up |
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| On the plateau |
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| It goes higher in the "wilderness area" |
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