Repost from 2014. The only time I ever visited Lesotho.
trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
The landlocked mountain kingdom of Lesotho is an enclave completely surrounded by South Africa.
Population just over two million, about 40% of the population lives below the international poverty line of US $1.25 a day. It’s one of the poorest nations on Earth.
The easiest way to hike Lesotho is by guided day tour ($50) out of Amphitheater Backpackers in the northern Drakensberg.
Our first stop was at Mafika-Lisiu school, the only one for many miles. Amphitheater Backpackers built a classroom.
One of the teachers joined us as an assistant guide. Local information, first hand.
This teacher has been waiting nearly 2yrs for a visa that would allow him to visit South Africa as a tourist.
Lesotho once had the opportunity to join South Africa, but the leaders — considered very corrupt — declined.
Many families here are self-sufficient, not much using currency. Maize is the primary crop. 75% of the population is rural.
No electricity. No formal shops. The school does have a football field.
From the school we hiked up to see some of the famous cave paintings.
Sadly, many had been defaced.
Again we saw plentiful bird life, but no wildlife. This was the wildest creature en route.
From the caves our group had the option to extend the hike up on to a ridge.
Hans loved the tranquility of the valley.
There are “roads” in Lesotho, but most are awful.
Hans signed on for the tour because he wanted to see a traditional African healer.
She’s entirely self-taught. Her healing ability is a “gift” first revealed in dreams.
Here is her home.
I’m a skeptic of natural medicine. But most people in Lesotho do not have the money nor transportation to make the long trip to a clinic or hospital. She is all they’ve got.
Her bedside manner is excellent. Warm and charismatic.
One tidbit we learned is that the traditional round houses with thatched roofs are slowly being phased out. Thatch is expensive in 2014. And must be replaced regularly.
Children here do not have much. The healer married at age-20 and had had 8 children.
Kids seem to roam about unattended by parents. They are raised (and disciplined) by the village.
AIDS infects about ⅓ of the population. But we heard nothing of that on the tour.
Theft of animals is the most worrisome “crime” in Lesotho. Though the kids are ignored, valuable stock animals are watched closely.
One local man was trying to chase down a young cow while we were there. 🙂
Full disclosure: I had been booked on a serious 8hr mountain climb for this day. But opted out, switching to the Lesotho cultural tour instead. After only one day in the summer sun, I was too sunburned to risk a tough climb.
I have 3 cameras. iPhone 17. Action Camera. And a Drone.
HIGH priority for me is ensuring I can keep ALL the batteries charged. Here’s how I could recharge with just one electrical plug. In a library, for example.
Matein day pack
Anker Wall Plug & Charging Station
Neo 2 Drone & Case
Action Camera
Jaws GoPro Clamp Handlebar Mount
Cloth Shopping Bag
iPhone 17 Pro Max and cable (camera)
Flexible Tripod
iPhone 16 Pro and cable (phone) for Navigation
QuadLock iPhone 16 Pro MAG, Screen Protector
EarPods & cable
Extra EarPod for sleep
Apple Watch & cable
INIU 20000mAh battery x 2
AirTag in Hip Pack
AirTag in Laptop Bag
Air Tag in Bike
Razor and cable
M5 Macbook Air Laptop
External Hard Drive for Time Machine
Long Anker cables USB-C x 2
Laptop Dongle
Nitecore Headlamp & Cable
Unit 1 Batteries for Bicycle Lights
Electric Shaver & Cord
Red Electronics Accessories Bag
AllTrails Pro app
Gaia GPS Pro app
Trailforks Pro app
Rear Pannier 2 – Everything Else
Duffle (for airline / bus /car gear transport)
Waterproof Ditty stuff sack (green)
Denture tablets
Fingernail clippers
Asperine
Tums
Vitamin Gummies
Creatine Gummies
First aid kit
Sun screen
Hand sanitizer x 3
Prescriptions
Toilet paper
Toothbrush & toothpaste
Bandaids
Soap paper
Vaseline
Moisturizing Cream
Garbage bags
Fire Starter
Orange Cord
Mosquito Head Net
Zip ties
OrangeFlagging Tape
Bike Pump
Duct Tape pencil
Medical Gloves
Bike Tube x 1
Bike gear attachment cords x 2
Tiny Handlebar Bike attachments
Top Bag – Food
Ortlieb Rackpack 31 Top Bag
Tent Poles
Bear Vault
Ursack
FOOD
Fuel
Water Purification Tablets
Pot scrubber
PocketRocket Deluxe Stove
Titan Kettle
Mug
Bowl
Long Lighter x 2
Wash Cloth
Handlebar Bar
Ortlieb Ultimate Six Free 5L Handlebar Bag
Cameras
Snacks
Bike Lock
Sunglasses
Magnetic Knife & Fork
Combat Wipes
Sametop Clamp Tripod
Magnetic Lights & Clip-on Attachment
Repair Kit Under Saddle
Repair Tool
Army Knife
Tire Levers x 2
Oil
Plastic Glove
Hip Pack – Valuables
2 Credit Cards & Bank Card
Cash
Driver’s licence
Wallet
Travel insurance
Health insurance card
Metal Spoon
Clothing for Cycling
Varying day-by-day, most of the time I’ll be wearing this kit.
Hot, dry — but not flat. I ended up on the summits of Mt. San Jacinto (10,834 ft) and Mt. Baden-Powell (9,399 ft). Then had to descend.
Palm Springs to Agua Dulce is about 245 PCT miles. My section was mostly rocky, sun-baked canyonsand scrub.
Many complain about the relentless wind. Personally, I like wind as it cools you off.
I skipped some of those miles taking 3 rides along the way. Of course I added miles hiking in from the Palm Springs Tramway. And ALL hikers add miles when they hike into and out of resupply stops.
I flew into Palm Springs. Bought camping gas and stopped at a grocery. Then took the bus to the bottom of famed Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.
Turns out there’s no public transit for the last 3 miles. Oops. Happily, a guy on a motorcycle noticed my dilemma, offering a lift to the base. My first Trail Angel.
Within an hour, I had my only real injury. Standing up, I forgot I was wearing a heavy pack, and fell backwards over a rock. Getting scratched up. … Dumb mistake.
I enjoyed the short side trip to San Jacinto Peak. It’s over 10,000 feet higher than Palm Springs.
I camped nearby. And was surprisingly chilly in the sleeping bag.
Rather than post a day-by-day account, here are major themes of my 2 weeks on trail.
Priorities
Staying Hydrated
Foot Care
Avoiding Heat Emergencies
Wild Camping
About 5:30pm I’d start looking for a campsite. Ideally near a water source.
IF there is a Bear Locker, use it. At the excellent Little Jimmy Campground we advised everyone to lock up food and backpacks.
About 2am a bear arrived to check if lockers were closed. Checked every tent. Started dragging a backpack out of a vestibule as it had some food in it. The hiker (now known as Bear Bait) shouted and had a tug-of-war with the beast, eventually winning the battle for his pack.
If there is no Bear Locker, hang your backpack away from insects & rodents.
I had my food in an Ursack, and tied it away on a tree.
I do love having a picnic table.
As it turned out, I only put my fly on the tent 2 nights of 17. Why didn’t somebody tell me it never rains in southern California? 😀
Foot Care
As I’d suffered blisters on the PCT once in the past, this time I brought 2 pairs of hiking shoes, both about 1.5 sizes larger than what I wear in the city. And both were WIDE sized.
I changed shoes regularly. Changed socks often. Washed and cooled my feet every chance I got. And it worked.
Near the end of my desert hiking, I bought a pair of Injinji toesocks. I think they might have helped, too.
Pack Weight
Only hiking a couple of weeks, my pack was heavier than most. Starting with 10 meals, carrying 3-4 litres of water, it might have been close to 40 pounds.
After a week or so, it was near 32 pounds.
The lighter, the better. I did find my pack too heavy.
Here’s my full gear list. You can decide what I should have left behind. 😀
Risk of Heat Emergency
Personally, I love the southern California weather. Sunny and dry. Day after day of blue skies.
Of course I kept covered up as much as possible. A sun hoodie is essential.
I did use a hiking umbrella for the first time. IF it was very hot. I found it easier to carry and adjust for wind often, rather than tie it on to my pack. They are popular in the desert section with PCT hikers.
Screenshot
One very experienced desert hiker known as Iceaxe suffered from a long day in the sun. Two day hikers helped get him to town where he took a zero to recover. We camped for free behind a pub.
At one of the rare hoses, PCT girls gone wild soaked themselves. Smart.
Water
Much discussion regards water sources in the desert. And how many litres to carry. Often I started with 3-4 litres. The heaviest thing in my pack.
Most hikers filtered almost everything. For me boiling is best. If the water looked great — directly from a high mountain spring — I did not treat. If worried, I threw in a purification tablet & flavouring. Usually Mio.
I probably should have had an electrolyte replacement like Tailwind.
Trail Magic
Wonderful on the PCT is when you arrive near a roadway and find that some volunteer has left water and/or treats for hikers.
My best Trail Magic was hiking in to find Marco all set up in a parking lot.
Many hikers stayed for hours enjoying his cold drinks, fresh fruit, hot dogs, and burritos. He’d driven 3 hours from home to provide help in a tough spot on the trail. In fact, I’m now planning to join Marco on an adventure next summer.
Thru Hikers
The highlight for me was meeting and chatting with people crazy enough to want to hike continually for months. Here are 2 legends known as Canadian Bacon. They’d finish the entire PCT in 2026, their last section over a number of years.
The guy I met most likely to finish the entire PCT in one year was Roman from Switzerland. He hadn’t acquired a trail name, as yet. Here he is after one month, looking like he just got off the plane. With a budget of $10,000 and no injuries, so far, Roman’s cruising to Canada.
Cheating
From Palm Springs to Agua Dulce, 3 times I skipped miles, taking motor vehicles. Only the purists — like Roman — do every single mile. It’s often logistically smart to bypass difficult sections.
For example, I shared a Lyft from Whitewater to Big Bear to avoid a huge, hot climb.
OUT of Big Bear, however, it’s a huge hot climb of thousands of feet to the top of Mount Baden-Powell.
Food & Resupply
Like most others, I indulged in high calorie food every chance I got.
All these hikers gorging at McDonalds swear they never enter the place in their real lives.
On the trail, I carried a stove and made up meals that had been flash frozen by my niece Stacey. Delicious.
Forest Fire
Happily, my 2 weeks were unaffected by fires in 2026. We saw smoke behind us one day. And hiked sections that had been burnt in recent decades.
Road Walking
One mandatory detour had us road walking. Surprisingly, I found it a refreshing change.
Navigation
Almost everyone uses the expensive FarOut PCT app. It works offline and has some up-to-date comments on waypoints that are super valuable.
On the other hand, the interface is ugly and not detailed enough. I often switched to the free Maps.me app offline. Every hiker gets lost, sooner or later.
There is signage. But it’s not always clear which way to go when you reach an intersection.
Ticks and Snakes
I found one tick on my leg. Removed it before a bite. And saw one tick on a leaf.
It’s an issue, for sure, in southern California. I carried tweezers specifically for tick removal, if necessary.
Only mad dogs and … hikers go out in the midday sun? 😀
Surprisingly, when Las Vegas is sweltering over 100 Fahrenheit, an hour away you can hike Mount Charleston (11,916 feet or 3,632 m), typically 20°F to 25°F cooler than the city.
Click PLAY or get a glimpse on YouTube. Late June 2026, I tented 4 nights. This video is a compilation of several day hikes.
besthike.com 