Maliba Lodge Leribe District

• The Waterfall Trail
• The Circular Route
• The Cave Trail
• Lower Trail
• Upper Trail

In Lesotho, the horse is a source of pride and the Basotho are renowned as a nation of horsemen.  For generations, the sure-footed Basotho 'pony' has been bred as the ideal form of transport in the rugged mountains of Lesotho. Even today, the pony is still the most effective means of reaching the more inaccessible mountain villages.

Pony trekking holidays on the hardy Basotho ponies are very popular and provide a great way of exploring Lesotho’s beautiful landscape as the bridle paths that criss-cross Lesotho are barely wide enough for vehicles.  The ponies effortlessly pass obstacles and loose rocks.

Basotho Horse Rides are fun for all visitors, from young to old.  Guests staying  at the Maliba Mountain Lodge have the opportunity to go on a guided trek on the back of a traditional Bosotho horse by themselves or in a group.

From the Mountain Pippit to the majestic Bearded Vulture, this region of Lesotho is home to many different bird species and is therefore a great place for the avid birdwatcher.

The Ts’ehlanyane National Park, as well as Lesotho as a whole, features a vast cross section of beautiful flying fauna to admire and photograph.

The best way to experience the Basotho way in Lesotho is to visit one of the local villages and schools to see the simple everyday life and culture of the Basotho people first hand.  The villages and their unique round thatched and stone roundavels provide great photo opportunities.

The real highlight of a village and community visit  in Lesotho is the warm and friendly people one meets  who are often dressed in traditional Basotho Blankets.  For guests staying at the Maliba Mountain Lodge it can be arranged to visit  the local Sagoma (witch doctor) or shebeen (local pub).

The Lesotho Highlands offer some of the most fantastic off road driving visitors  will encounter anywhere in Southern Africa.  Lesotho is full of beautiful mountain passes and deep river valleys with magnificent scenery .

The roads and passes themselves offer varying challenges that can test driver and vehicle alike. Most of the countries roads are little more than dirt tracks, however the road network  is slowly upgrading in line with the main roads.  Visitors are advised howeved to watch out for the weather , as Lesotho can cycle through all four seasons in a single day leaving conditions varied and in places difficult.

Different tracks available in Malibas vicinity:

• Route A - Maliba to Moeling and Moahloli
• Route B - Maliba to Sebaka, Khojane, and St Dom
• Route C - Maliba to St Dennis
• Route D - Maliba to Ha Pentsi
• Route E - Maliba to Lentsoaneng, Ha Ntholi, and Sakaleholo

Also referred to as the "Jewel of the Free State", the town of Clarens is located in the foothills of the Maluti Mountains which is about a one hours drive away from the Maliba Mountain Lodge.  The spectacular views, the tranquil atmosphere, and the mild climate has drawn many artists to this region of South Africa and prompted many little art and craft galleries to pop up around the town.  Clarens is as picturesque as the surrounding countryside, with sandstone buildings, and the famed 'Clarens Castle'.

Lesotho is home to some of the most well preserved and maintained dinosaur artefacts in the world, attracting many archeologists and paleontologists from all over the world. There is even a dinosaur named after the country - the Leosthosaurus which was a small  lizard from the late Triassic -early Jurassic period.

Similar to the Liphofung caves, visiting the banks of the Subeng River in Lesotho gives an experience available to few locations throughout the world. Anyone can visit the area, very close to Butha Buthe at only ¾ of an hour away, where the fossilised footprints of several different dinosaur species can be observed. There is something special about walking along these river banks and following in the footsteps of these ancient creatures.

The beautiful Bokong Nature Reserve is one of the highest reserves in Africa. It nestles at the top of the Mafika-Lisiu Pass, leading to Katse Dam and reaches an altitude of 3090 meters above sea level.  Magnificent views can be enjoyed from here across the highlands. The Bokong Nature Reserve's highlight is the Lepaqoa Waterfall, which freezes in winter to form a column of ice.

The visitors centre at the Bokong Nature Reserve is perched on the edge of a 100 meter high cliff.  It was built with the aim of educating visitors to Lesotho about the ecology, geological and palaeontological history of the Lesotho Highlands. Visitors may see cattle posts (metebo) which are the ruins of interconnected cattle shelters and kraals for stock that were built from stone.

One of the many highlights of Lesotho is a visit to Katse Dam.  Lesotho's Katse Dam is the centrepiece of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project which channels the water of the Lesotho Highlands via an incredible series of dams and tunnels through the mountains.  The water eventually comes out of the Ash River Outfall near the town of Clarens in South Africa’s Free State province where it gravity feeds to supply Johannesburg and Pretoria with water.

It was thought of as the greatest engineering project in the southern hemisphere in the 1990's when it was under construction. Nowadays the sight of the massive dam hemmed in by the mountain valley is well worth visiting.

For visitors, there is an information centre, which features a model of the whole project, showing all the constuction phases. You can also go on a tour of the dam wall which is arranged by the Lesotho Highlands Development Authority Visitor Centre. The Katse Botanical Gardens is an added attraction.

The Liphofung “place of the eland” cave forms an integral part in Lesotho's history. This is the smallest reserve at about 4 hectares. The cave is in fact a large sandstone overhang, which is a typical feature of the Lesotho lowlands region.

Originally used by the San and other Stone Age people, the walls contain important rock art and a rich archaeological deposit of Stone Age implements. Later, King Moshoeshoe “the Great” used the cave as a stopover when visiting this region of the Lesotho Kingdom.

This particular site lies in a tributary stream valley of the Hololo River just off the main route from Butha-Buthe to Oxbow and Mokhotlong. Access to it is by means of a newly constructed concrete road and is passable for all vehicles.  A small visitor centre incorporating a display of Basotho culture and San rock art has been established.  The site is a popular destination with school groups and tourists en route to Oxbow and AfriSki.

Lesotho may not come to peoples' minds as the most obvious ski destination. Africa, is after all, famous for the Big Five and open savannahs, not snow capped mountains. However, as the only country in the world that lies completely above 1,000 meters and with more peaks per square kilometre than any other African country, Lesotho is indeed blessed with fantastic topography.  Lesotho sometimes gets snow even year round on the very highest peaks.

Skiing is now one of the main tourist attractions for Lesotho, seeing thousands of enthusiasts streaming in from surrounding South Africa. Lesotho has only recently started to develop its commercial skiing and snowboarding, even though the first ski club (Club Maluti) was founded as far back as 1968, when the first hut was built in the northern Lesotho highlands.

A magnificent waterfall and a natural rock swimming pool is located at the Maliba Lodge.