HIGHLAND FLING
“No, it’s always windy here,” says the man behind the counter at the Thanda Tau filling station next to the N3, about 40km north of Warden. “When I leave home in the mornings, I put rocks in my pockets so that I don’t blow away on my way to work.”
It’s December 2018 and we’re on our way to East London from Pretoria. But instead of going straight to the coast, we’re going to drive seven passes high in the mountains of Lesotho and the Eastern Cape.
Get in and hold tight!
High times in Lesotho
We make our way to the Peka Bridge border post south of Ficksburg. Wheat fields shimmer like a golden carpet in the late-morning sun. We sail through the border post and head to Maseru, the capital of Lesotho. It’s impossible to cut through Maseru quickly – roll down your window, accept the traffic jams and take in the cacophony of hooting minibuses and bleating goats.
We’re looking for a filling station with a credit card machine. At the third station without one, the petrol attendant assures us we have no need to worry. “You will meet many garages,” he says.
