Whatshot
Boundless Southern Africa Expedition 3
Boundless Southern Africa Expedition 3
The Mountain Kingdom
Dressed in beanies, scarves and jackets - it's a freezing winter's morning at the Bushman's Nek border post. Likotsi Lemeke welcomes us with a broad grin. He's a wonderfully friendly bloke who will be hosting our expedition in the Mountain Kingdom of Lesotho. We share a small toast from the 'manoeuvre schluk' bottle and bid "Khotso, pula, nala," (peace, rain, prosperity) to the mountain bikers and expedition team members who are going to ride Basotho ponies up Bushman's Nek Pass into the Sehlabathebe Transfrontier Area.
The previous evening at the Bushmen's Nek Hotel, we'd picked up that Johann was a bit anxious about the Basotho ponies and guides not pitching in time - an excellent opportunity for a harmless practical joke! "Pretend you are calling Johann from the British High Commission in Maseru," I say to Mike Nixon. Needing no further prompting, Mike gets on the phone, masquerading as a Pommie diplomat by the name of 'Peter Finch' - and spins a yarn in his best Derbyshire accent about an attempted military coup in Lesotho that will put an end to the entire expedition. It works like a charm. We walk into the hotel's bar to find Johann desperately trying to phone the Lesotho Minister of Tourism and every other government official imaginable. "STOP!" we shout. "All bluff! Sorry Johann, we'll buy the drinks."
Later, after the assault on Bushmen's Nek Pass, he adds these notes to the expedition journal: 'Our guides are tough mountain men from who introduce us to our ponies. Looking at the mountain that they have to climb (approximately 900m ascent) and the size of some of our party, it seems the ponies are in for a challenge. As we progress up the mighty Maluti, we are increasingly awe-inspired by the experience: the scenic beauty, the sense of adventure, and most surprisingly - the incredible spirit, agility and ability of our Basotho ponies.'
It's a hard slog but after a three-hour ride - crossing rivers, climbing steep slopes, loose rocks and boulders - we reach the plateau and the border fence. We symbolically cut the fence, form the horses into an extended line and cross into Lesotho. This is not only a man-made boundary between two countries dividing one ecosystem, but also the African Continental Divide, where rain falling on one side of the fence flows into the Indian Ocean, and rain falling on the other side flows into the Atlantic - where we will finish the expedition in over 100 days from now. Spirits heightened, the team of riders charge down to Sehlabathebe. The sun dips over the Malutis and the moon is large.