Exploring The Mountain Kingdom

Daily Itinerary.
Once again, this tour is not a traditional, relaxed, holiday. Although joining photo shoots and/or teaching sessions is of course optional and you may skip some of them if you want, be prepared for some early mornings and some late nights. A typical daily itinerary looks like:

Wake up between 4:00 and 5:00am for a do a sunrise shoot (Being summer means that the days are long!).

Return for breakfast around 8:00am.

Four options (or a combination of them) depending on the day:

• A few hours private time where you can relax, get a nap, download photos.
• Lessons or guided editing time.
• Comment & Critique sessions.
• Traveling to the next destination if a traveling day.

Lunch around 13:00pm

Three options depending on the day:

• A few hours private time where you can relax, get a nap, download photos.
• Lessons or guided editing time.
• Comment & Critique sessions.

Afternoons shoot from 15:30pm to about 19:00pm (depending on location).

Dinner around 19:30 for 20:00pm.

Possible night shoot from 21:00pm onwards.

We cannot stress enough that this is not a typical lazy holiday. Some days are very long, but the rewards of joining this workshop are phenomenal. Incredible locations, wonderful camaraderie, excellent photographic guidance and unique photography opportunities make for a sensational 5 nights in the mountains that you will be talking about for years to come.

Itinerary in full
Day 1
Although on paper everything looks relatively close, as soon as you travel towards and into Lesotho distances seem to increase and time stretches out. Everything in Lesotho is long way from everything else. For this reason the first day is to all intents and purposes a travel day.

The group meets in 11h00 for a quick bite to eat before continuing onto the dirt farm roads that lead towards Ramatsilisos Border Post. This is a windy dirt road that climbs into the foothills of the Drakensberg and crests out on a lower outcrop of the mountains. From here we head up northwards along the spine of the mountains to the entrance of Sethlabathebe National Park.
A long day of driving (much of it on rough dirt roads and finishing off on a dirt track where 4×4 is essential) leads us to a comfortable camping site on the end of a marsh at the very top of the mountains. We set camp and settle in to the area for a few days of landscape photography.

Day 2
An early morning start has us walking the short 1km to the edge of the escarpment where we can watch the sunrise. The viewpoint we aim for overlooks the ‘Devil’s Knuckles’ peaks which are perfectly reflected in the still water of the numerous tarns in the area.
Once the sun is up, we return for a leisurely breakfast. The morning is spent scouting the various boulder formations and overhang homesteads that litter the escarpment top. The goal is to search
out some compositions for the afternoon and evening shoot. The moon is also waxing and gives excellent opportunity to photograph the night sky, which is on the cards weather permitting.

Day 3
A dawn shoot is followed by a decent rest as the evening would have been a long one photographing the stars. The third day follows a similar pattern to day two, allowing photographers the opportunity to photograph the changing weather and light. We do another evening shoot weather permitting.

Day 4
After our first lie-in (two nights of photographing the stars means that a decent nap is definitely a good idea), we pack up camp and start the long journey across the southern portion of Lesotho to Semonkong. This is a long drive that takes the better part of 6 hours on the road, despite only being around 200km in length (the road is currently under new construction so it is possible that the travel times will improve in 2023).
If we manage to get to Semonkong in time, we dash out to the extraordinary Maletsunyane Waterfall for sunset. This is a bumpy 30 minute drive from the lodge to the viewpoint. From here we can watch the light as it slides over the western mountains and bathes falls in a warm glow.
A drive back in the dark to the comfortable embrace of Semonkong Lodge and a round of Maluti beer at the homely restaurant attached to the Lodge.

Day 5
We head off at dawn again, this time back along the road we traveled on the previous day. The goal is to view one of lesser known waterfalls and the deep gorge as it strikes southwards. The edges of the ravines are often filled with yellow flowers this time of year, making for some extraordinary colour in the images.
A late breakfast is followed by editing and feedback sessions for the rest of the morning. For intrepid walkers there is also the option to walk into the gorge itself and see hte falls from the less viewed bottom of the gorge. After lunch we head back again to the viewpoint over Maletsunyane Falls.

After lunch we head back again to the viewpoint over Maletsunyane Falls.

Day 6: Travel Back
As mentioned at the beginning; everything in Lesotho is a long way from anywhere else. This means that the last day is essentially a travel day getting back to Durban (or other cities if photographers have joined us from other locales). A decent breakfast allows us ample time to trundle on down the winding roads along the Senqu River and back to Quacha’s Nek, from where we re-enter South Africa.