My attempt at an artistic rendition of the Maletsunyane Falls in sepia tone |
The English translation for "Semongkong" is The Place of Smoke. At first, I thought this was a reference to the smoke that can be seen coming out from the Basotho huts along the mountains. But then this wouldn't be exclusive to this village. It turns out that the actual origin of the name comes from the appearance of smoke rising from the bottom of the impressive 200 meter Maletsunyane Waterfall. Undeterred by the persistent rain last week, we set out on yet another road trip this past weekend with Semongkong as our destination.
As there has yet to be a dull moment during these trips, the journey was preceded by some confusion when we were picked up an hour late by a complete stranger. Apparently, the clinic driver whom we had hired had "brokered" the deal to some other person. We were expecting an SUV, but instead, the man who called himself "Michael", showed up in an extended cab pickup truck. Leaving us with little options, we climbed aboard and proceeded to pick up the 2 Baylor interns, which made for a very cozy ride (my left cheeks were both uncomfortably pressed against the rear passenger door for almost 4 hours). But all in all, I was just happy that the rain had, at least temporarily, subsided and that we were making the trip happen.
I swear, I'm tall back where I come from.... |
2 women we picked up in Roma, a town not too far from Maseru |
2 (and a half) women that rode with us all the way to Semongkong, where we parted ways |
Semongkong Lodge, beautifully located off the river |
Holds the Guiness World Record for the longest single drop abseil - maybe next time... |
I'm at the back of the group...again. But at least the view is stunning |
Me and "Dr. Jekyll" (except I think he's Mr. Hyde at the moment) |
But I digress - back to the main attraction.... We arrived at the Maletsunyane Falls just as the thunderstorm approached our direction. The travel guides and pictures I had seen online were not kidding. This was the most breathtaking waterfall I have ever seen in my life! It even made the waterfall we had seen in Malelea seem like a trickle! And I was able to see for myself how the "smoke" seemed to rise from the mist of the water. I only wish that the weather was better so that we could have hiked down to the bottom of it. At least we were able to take some great pictures of the falls before having to jump back on our horses and hurry back to the lodge. We made it about halfway back before being caught in the rain, which coupled with the freezing temperature (there was actually snow on the ground), made for a miserable ride back. And despite being drenched from head to toe, unable to move my then purple fingers and having ice on my nose, we made it back to the lodge safely and thawed by the fireplace in the room. By the time we sat around the table at the restaurant for dinner, we were all laughing and exchanging pictures of our adventure. Of course, the several glasses of wine we had with our cauliflower soup and beef fillets could have had something to do with our jovial mood. And the creme brulee....Mmmmm!! Funny how complete strangers can bond over times like these...
Our rondavel (aka: "hut") where we stayed overnight |
Our bunk bed accomodations |
The fireplace we tried to keep alive, but failed miserably (we did manage to turn the stone black, though) |
We hiked for about 2 hours before we were met with the "police commander," who demanded that we tell him why were were trespassing private property. Not wanting to create any more trouble, we attempted to cross the river immediately. This turned out to be a harder task than it seemed, as the rocks we were jumping on as stepping stones were not at all firm and inevitably, we each took turns falling into the river and then slipping on the mud-covered hills during our climb upward. I think we might have each sprained a different area of our body, with my wrist suffering the weight of my falls - hopefully nothing with permanent consequences. It was a fun experience and an incredible work-out. I am choosing to blame my constant shortness of breath on the altitude. Anyways, we made it back for lunch: lambchops and french fries. Then we played some pool before our driver arrived to pick us up.
Unlike my 5 foot 7 inch colleagues, my legs were not long enough to reach the next stepping stone, so I fell into the river shortly after this picture was taken (but at least the camera stayed dry) |
She cleared the water by jumping onto the tree branches, but then slipped and fell in the mud surrounding the tree... |
This intern fell bottom first into the river, not only soaking all of her jeans, but leaving her shoe trapped in the mud |
The drive back was very similar to the one I previously described, with the exception of the flooded bridges. This time, we could actually make out the concrete. We filled up the truck bed with hitchhikers once again and dropped them off in Maseru. It was sunset by the time we were dropped off at the Cottage. Though there we encountered some difficult moments during the trip, I have to say, it was worth every minute. A very memorable way to end my stay in Lesotho. Now for the South Africa portion of my African Adventure....
Cool looking cactus - reminded me of my Mom's love for plants. This one is for you!! |
Whow!Whow!!! Osita Pata Larga!! yo sabia que no te ibas a quedar quieta. Te felicito. Esta Aventura me dejo con la boc a abierta. Que hermosa cascada, es increible lo que la naturaleza hace. Mirar estas fotos siento como si escuchara la caida del agua y la brisa sobre mi cara, YO QUIERO ESTAR AHII. Ese cactus es unico, estaria perfecto para mi coleccion. Gracias Mami. Con estas AVENTURAS, valio la pena el viaje.
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