Now for something completely different.
The latest trend among adventurous souls is a little rougher around the edges than our usual offering, but it’s something you need to do if you’re one of those people who likes to tick the world’s best mountain adventures off your list.
Bagging South Africa’s Highest Peak
Mafadi has only recently been acknowledged as South Africa’s highest mountain, despite measurements proving this fact during the 1950s. It pips Mont-Aux-Sources to the post by over 300m.
For years, climbers took to the heights of the latter believing it to be the country’s highest point, but now the latest fad is for climbers to attempt the real deal.
Mafadi lies a few hundred metres from the edge of the Drakensberg escarpment, on the border between South Africa and Lesotho. The summit is nothing like the jagged pinnacles of other peaks though. Rather, it comprises little more than a flat topped 20m by 100m hill jutting out of the escarpment.
What Mafadi lacks in drama it makes up for with sheer height, towering 3 451 metres above sea level. It’s barely a blip on the list of world’s highest mountains but it’s worth a spot on your climbing bucket list.
Climbing Mafadi
The four-day trail to the top starts out at Injisuthi Campsite with an experienced guide to help you find the way. There are several routes to the summit consisting of tortuous steep inclines winding relentlessly upward and then down again once you’ve reached the top.
You don’t need special skills to summit Mafadi, but you will need single-minded determination to see it through the three-day climb to the top. Your only reward, the wonderful views that surround you on all sides.
Along the way you might come across a few Basutho horsemen mounted on their steady sure-footed steeds, a few sheep, and even a vulture or two soaring overhead. Apart from that you’re surrounded by the feint hiss of true mountain silence, beautiful crags and spires and impressive valleys.
At night, the skies light up with millions of stars and the mercury dips down to 2 degrees in the summer.
There are plateaus situated conveniently for your overnight stops where you can set up camp, bathe in the nearby river and enjoy a fireside meal.
Try Something Different on Your Trip to Southern Africa
This expedition may be sparse on conventional luxuries but it’s the perfect counterfoil to a luxury stay in one of the Drakensberg’s swish resorts.
If you like big adventures and rich experiences, put Mafadi on your list. Get in touch to arrange a luxury base for your journey to the top of South Africa.
