Dale is a multi-award-winning writer and photographer with more than 500 published magazine articles featured in magazines such as National Geographic, BBC Wildlife, Travel Africa, and CNN Travel.
Africa’s Unexpected Winter Wonderland
With fingers and toes numbed by the cold, I survey the mountainous scene of snow and ice laid out before me, enraptured by an all-encompassing feeling of awe. It’s beautiful up here above the swirling mists and clouds atop the 3,482m Thabana Ntlenyana in Lesotho. Beautiful, empty, and wild.
I’ve been to this enclave country (which is completely surrounded by South Africa) several times over the years, and I still find it hard to believe that these frozen landscapes are in fact from the same continent as the Serengeti. It looks more like the Alps or somewhere in North America, but for the presence of Sotho sheep herders on the patchy plains far below. Clad in traditional colourful blankets, conical hats upon their heads, the young men shuffle through the snow in their trademark gum boots, whistling at their livestock who eke out a living on frosted grasses and hardy mountain heathers.
I shout and wave down to the men, who peer up, whistling a friendly greeting back at me, which echoes off the surrounding hillsides.
To my mind, there is no other place like Lesotho.
Known to many as the Kingdom in the Sky, this small 30,000km2 nation is, on average, 2,200m above sea level; the lowest point being a lofty 1,400m, and the highest at the thin-aired summit of Thabana Ntlenyana.
If you love hiking (as I do) Lesotho is the ultimate destination, with numerous routes ranging from mere hours to multiday adventures. There are also plenty of opportunities for exploring by 4x4, on a bike, or perched on the saddle of a sturdy Basuto pony.
As you amble or bounce your way along the often muddy and rocky paths and roads, you’ll be treated to the sights and sounds of a vibrant (but generally impoverished) culture in which people subsist in mountain villages of circular stone huts with grass-thatched roofs.
Wildlife is scarce and specialized to the higher altitudes, so don’t go there with the idea of finding the big five. Instead, temper your expectations and enjoy encounters with animals such as the mountain eland, baboons, and the majestic lammergeier vulture.
Highlights of this budget-friendly destination include a trip to the beautiful Sehlabathebe National Park, trekking in the amazing Maloti-Drakensberg Transfrontier Park (which forms the southern border with South Africa), and climbing the arduous and difficult peak of Thabana Ntlenyana. You can even learn to ski in the Afriski Mountain Resort.
Snow is to be expected across much of the country during the coldest months of June to August, but outside of winter, the rolling hills can alternate between being coated in golden grasses in autumn and bright green vegetation throughout the summer rains.
