Lesotho is the only independent state in the world that lies entirely above 1,000 meters in elevation. Its lowest point of 1,400 meters is the highest lowest point of any country in the world.

On this road trip, we barely scratched the surface of Lesotho but we were left in awe and longing to go back and explore deeper into this rural country. This was SJs first international trip.

We spent our first night in Fouriesburg, SA just a few kilometers from the Caledonspoort border crossing. Already it felt so refreshing to get out of the city and into the countryside. As we crossed into Lesotho the next morning, we were immediately impressed with the countryside and beautiful landscapes. With very few people around we shared the road with very few cars and a commuter on horseback. As we crept more into the country, we followed the winding road up higher and higher into the mountains where rondavels sprinkled the hillside and the roads became a shared space with the roaming sheep herds. About an hour into Lesotho we no longer saw villages, but instead just wide open landscapes. If you looked closely enough, you could see the occasional sheep herder on distant hills.

Our first stop in Lesotho was Afriski Resort. As we were there in the fall there was no snow, but the lodge restaurant, which claims to be the highest restaurant in Africa, was open so we stayed for lunch. I was impressed with how much the lodge resembled those in Utah or Colorado. There was even a ski school building with magic carpets for the youngest skiers. However, the primary ski slope itself was no more than a singular J bar lift up a small hill. Overall, Afriski certainly succeeded in giving off that ski town vibe.

As we continued on towards Sani Pass, our final destination for the day, we couldnt help but notice how great the roads were. We were initially concerned about our itinerary as people, maps and travel blogs advised us that it would take an entire day of driving to get from Afriski to Sani Pass, but instead the kilometers quickly fell away on the nicely paved road. It seems like Lesotho must have invested in this stretch of road over the past few years.

We arrived at Sani Mountain Lodge only a few hours later where we checked in and got drinks at the tallest bar in Africa. The top of Sani Pass was windy and frigid cold, but the staff built a fire in our rondavel room and put hot water bags in our bed which kept us toasty warm.

The next morning we started our descent down the scenic Sani Pass. On our way down we saw hikers who opted to walk up rather than drive. The Sani Pass drive requires all vehicles to have 4x4 but we didn’t actually need it for the drive down, however a vehicle with high clearance is a must.

At the bottom of Sani Pass we crossed back over the border into South Africa and looped around the Drakensburg mountains to head back towards Johannesburg. We spent the last night at an AirB&B called Dashy Cottage in Kwazulu-Natal. The farm where the cottage was located was home to about 10 dachshunds who ran freely around the property. During our evening walk we were pleasantly surprised to have spotted 2 crowned cranes resting on nearby powerlines. The birds were impressively large.

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