Summit sign
Summit sign - Photo: Rohit Robinson

This is one of the longest passes on the tarred A3 route between Maseru and Mohale at 19.3 km. Although the average gradient is a mild 1:40, those numbers are diluted by the long plateau section in the middle. The reality is that the gradients get steep at either end - as steep as 1:6.This is another high altitude pass reaching a maximum of 2639m ASL. The pass is also commonly called the Blue Mountain Pass. This is one of the coldest parts of Lesotho. There are plenty of bends, corners and curves to keep you busy - a total of 95 of them and of those 12 are greater than 90 degrees, which include two full hairpin bends.

The road is in a good condition and can be driven in any vehicle, but the usual Lesotho cautionaries apply of ice and snow on the road in winter, free roaming livestock, slow moving trucks and the ubiquitous herdsmen. The area can be subject to severe electrical storms in the summer months.

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