bmad
Race Dog
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2006
- Messages
- 3,557
- Reaction score
- 9
- Location
- Gauteng 1150ADV
- Bike
- BMW R1150GS Adventure
RTR , myself and the wives returned to Semonkong for a adventure holiday in the mountains.
RTR and i on the bikes, the ladies in the 4x4. In anticipation of the ride, we strapped our fly rods to the bikes as we thought we would have time to fish while the ladies caught up in the bakkie, but to our surprise, they were always in the rear view mirror ;D
The boys:
The girls:
Lesotho always offers up the most amazing roads, combined with scenery only artists can paint in vivid color. We were very fortunate with overcast conditions on the ride in to Semonkong, but the rest of the week it was pure sunshine.
Look ma, no hands
Our dwellings at the lodge:
Semonkong boasts the worlds highest single drop commercial abseil in the world - 204m right next to the waterfall. Amad (the wife), RTR and Mrs RTR decided this was a good idea to abseil down. They have been talking about it since our last visit in 2004.
So the next day it was training day witha 30m drop that needs to be done 3 times to get used to the idea of the big one.
The locals enjoy the fun too:
The next morning at 7am, a very rough 4x4 ride with Johnathan (the lodge owner) to the falls is an experience in itself. Just past the lodge he put on a CD, his own inspirational abseil mix at full blast (some good rock to get the andrenaline flowing).
Personally i do not like heights so i took the hike down to the bottom of the falls while the brave ones headed to the top.
I choose to take the pics instead
The first view:
people dangling:
Words cannot express the sheer height of these falls:
by the time you get t the bottom, you are soaked:
Just looking at the spray at the bottom is mesmerizing - like looking at flames in a fire:
Looking back after the abseil
The walk out of the canyon is hectic for the unfit ±1 hour 15 min :, but the views are worth it
Finally at the top, we opted for the hike back to the logde, ±2km
Back at the lodge, there is plenty to do, take a walk along the river and watch the locals:
Fly fishing:
and of course drinking in the bar
RTR and i only took a short ride out once in 7 days, and went to the other side of the falls and explored the town:
The airport:
Town square ( this really is a one horse town)
And then there was new year ;D
The theme was Shabeen night and the dress was traditional Basotho:
Johnathan the owner of Semonkong lodge (a what cool guy!)
The guests:
The food:
Even the kitchen staff joined in:
Too much to drink O0
And just like that, 7 days had passed and it was time to go home.
Semonkong is a riders paradise and the perfect spot to relax and let go.
We will be back
RTR and i on the bikes, the ladies in the 4x4. In anticipation of the ride, we strapped our fly rods to the bikes as we thought we would have time to fish while the ladies caught up in the bakkie, but to our surprise, they were always in the rear view mirror ;D
The boys:
The girls:
Lesotho always offers up the most amazing roads, combined with scenery only artists can paint in vivid color. We were very fortunate with overcast conditions on the ride in to Semonkong, but the rest of the week it was pure sunshine.
Look ma, no hands
Our dwellings at the lodge:
Semonkong boasts the worlds highest single drop commercial abseil in the world - 204m right next to the waterfall. Amad (the wife), RTR and Mrs RTR decided this was a good idea to abseil down. They have been talking about it since our last visit in 2004.
So the next day it was training day witha 30m drop that needs to be done 3 times to get used to the idea of the big one.
The locals enjoy the fun too:
The next morning at 7am, a very rough 4x4 ride with Johnathan (the lodge owner) to the falls is an experience in itself. Just past the lodge he put on a CD, his own inspirational abseil mix at full blast (some good rock to get the andrenaline flowing).
Personally i do not like heights so i took the hike down to the bottom of the falls while the brave ones headed to the top.
I choose to take the pics instead The first view:
people dangling
:
Words cannot express the sheer height of these falls:
by the time you get t the bottom, you are soaked:
Just looking at the spray at the bottom is mesmerizing - like looking at flames in a fire:
Looking back after the abseil
The walk out of the canyon is hectic for the unfit ±1 hour 15 min :
, but the views are worth it
Finally at the top, we opted for the hike back to the logde, ±2km
Back at the lodge, there is plenty to do, take a walk along the river and watch the locals:
Fly fishing:
and of course drinking in the bar
RTR and i only took a short ride out once in 7 days, and went to the other side of the falls and explored the town:
The airport:
Town square ( this really is a one horse town
)
And then there was new year ;D
The theme was Shabeen night and the dress was traditional Basotho:
Johnathan the owner of Semonkong lodge (a what cool guy!)
The guests:
The food:
Even the kitchen staff joined in:
Too much to drink O0
And just like that, 7 days had passed and it was time to go home.
Semonkong is a riders paradise and the perfect spot to relax and let go.
We will be back
