Africa

[Visited: March 2010]

On the hiking map of the surrounding area which the friendly woman of the lodge had given me, several hikes were indicated. Reading the description of the hikes, I very much wanted to do them all. So I set out to organize the next day such that I could combine all hikes into one. When I woke up the next morning, the sky was blue and the sun just started to shine on the green landscape around Semonkong. I started out walking along the Maletsunyane river, the sunlight reflecting on the water flowing through the green valley. At some points, I had to climb over rocks, but mostly it was a surprisingly easy walk. After passing a small waterfall, the valley widened a little bit, and from here, it was not far until I reached a foot bridge. I crossed to the other side of the Maletsunyane river, and climbed up the hilll to a small village. Kids were playing outside a school, and I had a short talk to some of them and their English teacher.
I climbed another hill, and saw a long-tailed widow bird close by. I stopped for a while to watch this amazing creature with its elegant long black tail as it was flying low. From here, I walked on until I reached an area with small trees, which I crossed to reach the edge of the canyon. Deep below me now, I saw the Maletsunyane river - somewhere behind the hills, it had fallen down at the Maletsunyane Falls. I walked a little more until I came directly opposite the elegant Matsuko Falls on the other side of the canyon. I found myself a nice rock from which I had a free view in all directions. A perfect spot for a break. Matsuko Falls actually comes down the canyon in two stages: a high plunge into a pool, and a little lower, a second, lower but wider fall before joining the Maletsunyane river. A faint rainbow was visible in the lower waterfall. The surroundings here were absolutely peaceful, I thought. But then, I got a scare. As I was looking west, an eagle suddenly appeared and seemed to be flying directly at me, turning away to the other side of the canyon. I followed this majestic bird, but did not see it catch anything. Was it just enjoying itself, playing with the air currents?
It was not easy to get starting again, but since I still had a long walk ahead of me, I backtracked, this time sticking close to the edge of the canyon. The views were spectacular with the shadows of clouds slowly moving over the landscape. When I crossed a rivulet, I realized it must be flowing down towards the canyon, and I decided to follow it. As I had hoped, I could follow it until the edge of the canyon, and I stood directly next to where the water flowed over the edge, falling down to the bottom of the canyon. A small pond nearby proved to be a perfect place for another break. I stripped and dipped in the cold water, before lying on the rocks for a refreshing pause. Again, I realized I still had a lot of hiking ahead of me, so I dressed up again and continued. I saw the Maletsunyane Falls, walked back to the footbridge again, and backtracked to the edge of the canyon. I descended into the canyon where I thought it was possible, and saw some amazing rocks balancing near the edge of the canyon. After coming up from the bed of the canyon, I walked back towards Semonkong. I had hoped to get a drink in a small village, but unfortunately, they appeared to only have alcoholic drinks. When I finally reached Semonkong again, I was desperately in need of food and drinks. But when I wolfed down a well-deserved dinner, a very satisfied feeling came over me. I had had a splendid day of hiking in the beautiful landscapes of central Lesotho south of the Thaba Putsoa mountain.

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Semonkong hiking (Lesotho)

Semonkong hiking > Lesotho > Africa

[Visited: March 2010]

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