Southern Africa - Clean Breaks: 500 New Ways to See the World - page 159

you three. Your first starts the moment you leave
the company's lodge, situated beneath the Sani
Pass in eastern Kwazulu Natal. The rubble-
strewn track, a former mule path for traders
now only accessible by 4WD, is the highest pass
in southern Africa.
Passing the border crossing at its top (three
men in a hut), it's time to stop at superlative
number two - The Sani Top Chalet, where a sign
lets you know that at 3482m you are now sitting
in the highest bar in Africa. It's more mountain
refuge than country pub, but looking out at the
pass winding sinuously down below, it's hard to
think of a beer garden with a better view.
With the first two under your belt in no time
at all, the real journey begins, towards your
third. Your guide helps you saddle up on Basotho
ponies, whose stocky frames make them ideal for
what lies ahead - two days' riding, sleeping in a
community-run lodge one night and a shepherd's
hut the next, in order to reach Thabana
Ntlenyana. Here, at the highest point south of
Kilimanjaro, you stop for a well-earned lunch
and a fabulous view. Along the way you'll be
picking up supplies in remote farming villages,
bringing much-needed income to families who
would otherwise see almost none.
When you finally get back to Sani Lodge on
day four, aching from the saddle, you can even
squeeze in a fourth (of sorts). No bed will feel
more comfortable than the one you lie in that
night.

200 TAkE AN ECO
WINE-TOur, SOuTH
AfrICA

Many of South Africa's legendary
wine routes offer a glimpse into
the country's past, from their old
Cape Dutch houses to stories of
slave labour or bottles quaffed
at Napoleon's court. But take a
walk or cycle around Groenland
Mountain - just an hour from
Cape Town - and you'll discover
a new route, one that is looking
forward rather than back.
On the Green Mountain Eco
Route you'll travel to organic
vineyards and gardens along
old ox-cart trails through
the mountain-fringed coastal
scenery of the Cape Floral
Kingdom, rich with scented
heather and proteas. As you
stop off to meet the vineyards'
owners and sample their wines, you'll sense why
they're working so hard to protect the diverse
plant kingdom in which their estates lie. Along
the way you can easily pick up some picnic
food from a farm stall and lunch by one of the
many rivers flowing down from the Overberg.
One bit of advice: at the end of the day you may
find that cycling in a straight line has become
considerably more tricky.

Grapes thrive in the Cape's
climate; Walks wind around the
green mountain

Need to know Tours include transport, guide,
food and accommodation. For more details, as
well as info on getting to the lodge, rates and other
activities, see W www.sanilodge.co.za; T +27 (0) 33
702 033 027.

Need to know Accommodation is offered at
many of the estates or in locally run guesthouses.
Full information on tours, trails, farm stalls
and accommodation availability is at W www.
greenmountain.co.za; T [phone].

202 WALk WITH THE CHACmA
bAbOONS, SOuTH AfrICA

201 rIDE TO THE TOp Of LESOTHO

Most of us would imagine that going for a stroll
among baboons would be about as sane as going
for a swim with crocodiles - their vicious teeth
and ear-piercing shrieks hardly make them ideal

For those who like their holidays laden with
superlatives, a four-day horse-riding trip into
Lesotho with Drakensberg Adventures will give