Following Christmas, a group of 9 of us drove down to Lesotho for a four-day hike through the Lesotho mountains over the New Year holiday. We started the trip early from Gaborone headed south to South Africa. Once getting across the boarder, our first order of business was stopping at the first McDonald’s we came across. Once it was spotted, we literally swerved through two lanes of traffic to slide into the parking lot, just missing a fender bender. Can you tell we miss America?
After recovering from the gut bomb that is fast food, we continued on into Lesotho. Lesotho is a beautiful, mountainous country literally floating in the middle of South Africa. The citizens have never been under European or South African rule and live quiet lives in the mountains as farmers and herders. We pulled into Malealea Lodge in southwest Lesotho just after sunset. After filling up on dinner cooked over the fire, we settled into our 2-man huts for the evening.
One of the first things Lucas and I noticed about Lesotho was how much colder it was compared to Botswana. Currently the Southern Hemisphere is in the dead of summer. Despite what the packing list suggested, all Lucas and I could think about was HOT as we were packing our bags in Salajwe. We were without sleeping bags, or warm clothes. The warmest thing in my bag was 2 pair wool hiking socks and a raincoat. We felt like such rookies. But we managed to make it through.
A little bit about Malealea Lodge: the guides are selected from the village and trained to take groups of hikers out on trail from day hikes to up to 10 days camping. Most all the groups opt to ride horseback. The guides get paid a certain rate and all other fees are given directly to the community. Every night on trail we stay in a remote village hut. The community provides us with sleeping pads and a hot plate to use for cooking meals.
We hired three pack horses and three guides to accompany us during the hike. This is my first experience hiking without a pack. Although some hard-core outdoorsmen may accuse us of “cheating the experience” I cannot tell you what a relief it is to be able to travel without 30 extra lbs hanging on my back. I was able to look around me at the magnificent views instead on constantly starring at my feet. The hike started off casual and mild. The first challenge of the day it seemed was getting horses to cross a bridge. They put up so much of a fight that eventually one of the guides had to ride them across the river.
It’s hard to not compare the hike to Malawi. I would say Malawi was more lush and jungle than Lesotho but the trails were more steep and muddy. Lesotho had more creeping trails and lots of rocks for footholds. And I enjoyed interacting with the villages. In Malawi we hiked through a national park so we saw no people once inside the park boundaries. In Lesotho we hiked in and out of at least three villages a day. The children, as usual, were very friendly and curious. The national language Sesotho was terribly similar to Setswana and we used it often. The people of Lesotho reminded me a lot of Batswana although their locations were far more remote due to the mountains. Most villages we stayed at were a good two days from the nearest town. Roads were scarce so most people traveled by foot. A unique characteristic of the Basotho were their wardrobes. Most all the villagers wore blankets over their shoulders, rainboots on their feet, and carried a walking stick. I don’t think Lesotho has a dry season. Houses are built warm and sturdy for snow in the winter and rain in the summer.
Every morning we woke to breathtaking mountain views. Meals were simple but satisfying. Days were long but rewarding. The company was perfect and we got a chance to hang out with friends for more than just pleasantries. Our second day of hiking took us past several waterfalls. At one stop we were able to swim in the top of the falls. The water was so cold; it took your breath away. After lunch we were caught in a huge thunderstorm complete with hail. It was tough-going there for an hour or so. The cold really sunk in. I couldn’t even feel my blisters anymore. Although we did not hire the horses to ride, the guides would give up their horse if they thought a hiker was struggling. I should have explained beforehand that I am just a slow hiker, regardless of my conditioning. Although I would have been fine for the remainder of the day, I was happy to climb aboard a horse. It can be a little scary to peer down a steep, rocky mountain ledge on the back of a horse, but I trusted it to make the best choice in which path to take and we made it down just fine. This gave me even more time to look around at the landscape.
At our destination we were greeted by a kind family and a big pig. The pig must have been pregnant because her belly was just enormous. She was walking by Lucas when he reached out to pet her. She immediately froze, and then lay down. He continued to pet her and she just fell over on her side. I though she fainted of fright. But she just loved to be petted. It was very entertaining. The nine of us were split into three groups; each night we were assigned either to filter water, cook dinner, or make lunch for the next day. It worked out nicely. A fellow hiker generously offered me her under armor for warmth. I didn’t take them off for three days. Although all of us were crammed into a hut, I still slept cold. We fell asleep early and anticipated recapping 2010 the next day New Years Eve.
The panoramic view was beautiful as the early morning dew evaporated off the mountains. It was a cold start to the hike but we moved fluidly. We started off recapping not only the year, but the past decade. There was a 9-year gap between our youngest hiker and oldest hiker which made for humorous comparisons. Again, lots of rain. As beautiful as Lesotho is, I think it would be hard to serve Peace Corps. When there is a hard rain in Salajwe, almost nothing gets done. There is very little shelter. And even shelters offer little in the way of security. It’s very hard to escape the weather in Africa.
The last stop before heading back to Malealea was in a small village with loads of kids, in drenched blankets. We kept them warm by teaching them to play Duck, Duck, Goose. The night before, we had been to bed by 8:30. Realistically, we knew there was no chance we could stay up til 12 midnight for the New Year. We agreed we would celebrate at 9 pm and call it good. As soon as the sun went down, we broke out the fireworks. The villagers just loved them. Ladies wrapped in blankets would jump up and down yelling “happy!” in celebration. I’m pretty sure none of them had ever seen fireworks before. We learned to say Happy New Year in Sesotho: Se le mo se secha. We could hear villagers from the next mountain shouting the greeting to us as we handed sparklers to kids. It was a very memorable New Years Eve.
Our last day, the group had mixed feelings. Some had finally gotten over the hump and were ready to rock. For the rest, the last 3 days had finally caught up to them. Surprisingly, I was one of the lucky ones. It was mostly downhill into a village. From there we took the main road all the way back to the lodge. Before we got there, we past a New Years Day celebration with Sesotho traditional dancing. It was quite a treat. Compete with an accordion accompaniment. I really enjoyed watching them.
We were delighted to arrive at the lodge. Unfortunately, with all the rain, the running water ran mud red: showers, sinks, and toilets. The water was treated but not filtered. So it was hard to feel clean after showering. I couldn’t even see my feet in the shower and my hair felt more dirty afterwards but the water was warm which was good enough for me. Dinner was t-bone steak and traditional sides almost identical to Botswana. The beds were clean and with blankets. I had the warmest sleep in four days. This was one of my favorite trips in Africa. Not to mention on of the last while serving Peace Corps. Wow, only 6 months left.
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