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ABOUT LESOTHO
Lesotho is known as the "Kingdom in the Sky" and lies approximately 1000m above sea level making it the second highest mountain kingdom in the world after Bhutan. The rugged landscape is reminiscent of far off destinations such as Patagonia and lends itself to the outdoor enthusiast and intrepid explorer.
Katse Dam is one of the major geographical wonders of Lesotho and is a main contributor of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project.
GEOGRAPHY OF LESOTHO
Lesotho is a mountainous, Landlocked country located in Southern Africa. It is an enclave, surrounded by South Africa. The total length of the country's borders is 909 kilometers (565 mi). Lesotho covers an area of around 30,355 square kilometers (11,720 sq mi), of which a negligible percentage is covered with water.
The most notable geographic fact about Lesotho, apart from its status as an enclave, is that it is the only independent state in the world that lies entirely above 1,000 meters (3,281 ft.) in elevation. Its lowest point is at 1,400 meters (4,593 ft.), the highest lowest point of any country. Because of its elevation, the country's climate is cooler than in most other regions at the same latitude. Its climate zone can be classified as continental.
STRATIGRAPHY
The lower parts of the Karoo Supergroup, i.e. rocks of the Dwyka and Ecca groups, are not exposed in Lesotho. Upper Beaufort strata in the West and North-West are the oldest rocks outcropping in Lesotho, and although there is no direct evidence of the nature of the pre-Karoo basement, data from drilling, xenoliths from diamond pipes and extrapolation of geology in the neighbouring South Africa establish that Crystalline metamorphic basement rocks underlie the Karoo succession.
The Burgersdorp formation being the topmost unit of the Beaufort Group is the oldest Karoo represented in Lesotho. It is similar in appearance and composition to the rocks of the Middle Beaufort, which comprises a sequence of variegated mudstones alternating with yellow sandstones. Additionally, the Burgersdorp formation contains red and maroon sandstones with interspacing of grey white sandstones and streaks of thin coal seams.
The widely distributed Stormberg Group is composed of a thick sequence of continental clastic rocks, generally subdivided into the Molteno, Elliot and Clarens formations. The lower most strata include coarse sandstones and light coloured shales known as the Molteno formations with a thickness ranging from 15-300m, which is a shallow lacustrine deposit of Upper Triassic age, sometimes containing a rich assemblage of fossil plants and insects.
The Molteno formation is conformably overlain by the Elliot formation (70-250m thick). Which is made up of sandstones, red mud stones and siltstones and sometimes contains silicified wood and dinosaur remains.
The Elliot formation is in turn overlaying by the Clarens formation (15-250m thick), which comprises massive sandstones and siltstones often cross-bedded and fine-grained with thin bands of Cherts.
Capping the sedimentary succession of the Stormberg Group is a series of almost flat laying Amygdale-rich lava flows constituting the Lesotho formation of the Drakensberg Group, which is of lower Jurassic age. These lavas form the mountainous part of Lesotho, reaching sometimes a thickness of up to 1600m. The bulk of the lavas are basaltic and they are comprised of Tholeiites associated with andesites. The wide spread nature of this thick volcanic pile, the succession of horizontal flows in rapid sequence and the Tholeiitec composition of these rocks are distinctive properties of plateaux basalts. Intrusives are ubiquitous with over 70 volcanic vents and diatremes and more than 1000 dykes and sills are recorded. The dykes and sills are of the same age and composition of the lava flows.
DINOSAUR TRAILS
Lesotho is known for having the largest concentration of dinosaur footprints in the world. It also has the distinction of having the world’s earliest known mammalian skeletal material which links the reptiles and the mammals. Many of the earliest known dinosaur fossil discoveries in Lesotho were made by missionaries exploring the area. Some of the dinosaurs that were found in Lesotho are Lesothosaurus, Massospondylus and Heterodontosaurus. There are many dinosaur footprint locations, with sites at Morija, Subeng Stream and Tsikoane close to Leribe, Moyeni, Matsieng and Mohale’s Hoek.
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Leribe Dinosaur Prints
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S 28 49.390, E 28 04.495
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Morija Dinosaur Prints
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S 29 37.965, E 27 30.797
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Quiteng Dinosaur Prints
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S 30 23.692, E 27 41.587
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OTHER PLACES OF INTEREST
Sehlabathebe National Park
Sehlabathebe National Park, which is the only official national park in Lesotho, is located in the southeast part, and popular for its unusual solitude and peace. It is known to be the oldest nature reserve with an average elevation of 2400 meters, which makes it almost inaccessible yet fascinating with the presence of rare bird species and antelopes. To explore the area, you need to go with a 4×4 vehicle since you could be stuck in going in and out of the rivers. You will even have the chance to do hiking, pony trekking, bird watching, biking and camping inside and accommodations are also available for a few day stay.
Maletsunyane Waterfall
’Maletsunyane Waterfall, with a height of 360 feet is situated in the southern part of the country near the town of Semonkong. It is known to be the tallest single drop waterfall in the whole Africa which creates a haze of smoke as the water plunges. It got its name from Semonkong which means “The Place of Smoke”. Some things that can be appreciated in the area include wild trout fishing, rock climbing, pony trekking, hiking, abseiling and a wide variety of alpine flowers.
Thaba Bosiu Mountain
Thaba Bosiu Mountain, has the meaning of “Mountain at Night” is a plateau with an area of two square kilometers and its height is at 1804 meters above sea level. It’s situated in the middle of Caledon Rivers and Orange along Maseru District. At the height of 120 meters, a barrier was formed with an aim of conserving people from danger at the early time. It also served as the headquarters of Moshoeshoe during the Basuto Wars. Such name was called due to two known explanations: First, it was believed that the Moshoeshoe people arrived at the place during night time and preparations for battle were done all night. Second, Thaba Bosiu was attacked several times, but it was never conquered and defeated. Currently, Tse’hlanyane National Park is found far down in the anterior range of the mountains Maluti and its headquarters are situated at the base of Holomo Pass. The reserve indebted its origin from the road to the Hlotse tunnel designed for the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP). Its protected area is located at the consolidated Tse’hlanyane and the Holomo rivers. Its vast area is more than 5600 hectares characterized by unusual rough mountains terrain. This is strictly protected which even includes one of the very small indigenous woodlands in the country of Lesotho. The path passes through Khabo’s village, which is adjacent to the Hlotse River where you will see an attractive valley until it reaches the park’s approach.
Liphofung Nature Reserve
Liphofung Nature Reserve, which means “place of the eland”, is a cave occupying a vital role in the history of Lesotho. This is known to be the tiniest among the Lesotho Highlands Development Authority reserves at an area of only 4 hectares. If you will take a closer look, the cave is a large bulge made of Clarens sandstones, which is the usual feature of Lesotho lowlands region. In the older times, the walls possess rock arts and are very rich in archaeological facts, however, during the reign of King Moshoeshoe, the cave was used as a resting place for travelers going to the other part of the kingdom. In this site, you will also find the stream valley named Hololo River just near the main routes of Butha Buthe, Mokhotlong and Oxbow. For your itinerary, you can visit a museum with local guides to accompany you, conduct camping, and attend some of the country’s festivals and cultural displays, such as traditional dancing and choral singing.