Latest Mountain Passes added

Mafika Lisiu Pass is without question one of the most dramatic and beautiful tarred passes in Lesotho. It was built ahead of the construction of the Katse Dam to provide an all-weather road suitable for the large trucks carrying fly-ash and cement from Ficksburg to the Katse construction site. It won an international engineering award for its design and engineering excellence.

The statistics of this pass are impressive. Firstly its a very long pass at 26.2 km with a summit height of 3091m and an altitude variance of 1104m. It snows regularly on the pass, making it dangerous for non 4WD vehicles. Black ice occurs on the pass too, rendering a highly dangerous situation; even for 4WD vehicles.

The scenery is breathtaking, especially on the western side, offering a smorgasbord of deep valleys, gullies, waterfalls and burbling streams, towering cliffs  and in winter it's a snowy wonderland.

It connects Hlotse and Pitseng in the west with Ha Lejone in the east. Allow an hour to drive the route and more if you want to stop for photos. There is a large, safe and well constructed viewing point at the summit (12 km mark) with magnificent views down the valley to the west, as well as the famous built-up hairpin bend near the summit.

This minor poort is located on the N1 national route between Polokwane (previously Pietersburg) in the south and Makhado (Louis Trichardt) in the north.

Everything about the poort is conservative with only one gentle bend and just 18m of altitude gain over 4.1 km. An attractive arched  bridge can be seen halfway along the poort, close to the road on the right. This was the old bridge and has since been decommissioned. 

The area is all about the Bushveld experience and hunting. You will have no problem finding a decent lodge to stay at. There is a lodge directly accessible from the poort  known as the Zaandrivier Country Estate.

This short tarred pass connects the towns of Elim in the north with Mbhokota and Chavani in the south. It is located 27 km south east of Louis Trichardt (Makhado) in Limpopo Province. It's a fairly minor pass exhibiting an altitude variance of 211m over just 2.4 km. There are only six bends and all (but one) of those are less than 90 degrees. Although old, the road is well engineered with concrete stabilising walls and safety barriers. Overtaking lanes are provided for ascending vehicles.

There is a large township on the ridge of the mountain to the east known as Patwini, which is more than likely where the pass took its name from.

This scenic gravel pass traverses the valley formed by the Mncwasa River. It's located about 13 km due west of Hole in the Wall and serves a number of local villages, like Nyandeni, Lulaleni and Talemofu in the east with Kwa Ndiya, Kwa Tshezi and Khomkhulu in the west.

The pass is usually in a reasonable condition and can be driven by all vehicles in fair weather. It's one of the smaller passes along the Wild Coast at 4.9 km in length with an altitude variance of 209m. The steepest part is close to the western summit where the road gets as steep as 1:7

The usual cautionaries apply: Keep your speed down to about 40 kph, watch out for livestock and pedestrians on the road, as well as many 10 ton trucks that deliver building materials in the area. You will see several of them in the video footage. In general, most of the locals are very polite and will allow you to pass safely - even the taxi drivers!

This pass is for the more experienced off-road driver. It is a wonderful shortcut along the main Wild Coast route, cutting out a long section of fairly boring villages and it will save you about an hour on your ETA. The deep valley carved out by the Mnenu River stretches far inland, where the main road loops around to avoid the deep valley. The pass has wonderful scenery but mostly it's obscured by dense bush and lantana which grows about 4m high, hiding the views.

On the flip side of the coin, this pass has a few negatives as well, so before you add it to your bucket list read the full report, as the road has not seen any maintenance in the last two decades; the bridge has been washed away and the bush has encroached over the road substantially.

Your vehicle will get scratched and if it's been raining, there will be plenty of mud in the lower sections near the river. Only drive this pass if you are experienced at off-roading and have a high clearance 4x4 with low range. We would also advise a minimum of two vehicles in case of problems. If you get stuck on this pass, note that there is no mobile reception. Unless you have a sat phone, you'll in for a long walk to get assistance.