vertical-endeavour.com

So I have been dwelling on an article I read a while ago about the SANDF buffing up border control in a number of phases, starting with the Zim border in phase one, ending with the Lesotho border in phase three which is planned to be complete in the 2012/2013 financial year.

While this is great with respect to crime, I wonder what it will mean to us, as hikers. At present we can hike up trails which lead into Lesotho without any problem. But will border control put a stop to this?

www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/Politics/SANDF-curbed-syndicates-Sisulu-20110407

I get the sense that the KZN-Lesotho border along the Drakensberg escarpment is the lowest priority of all the borders listed. The Lesotho-OFS border will be a concern long before the high Drakensberg border because of the degree of cross-border theft in that region and the relative ease of military intervention. The Drakensberg will require special training, special equipment and so on. For the most part the SANDF would get themselves into trouble surviving in the Berg nevermind doing anything constructive.

I went to Cobham in March, and while I was there I observed a day of military helicopters flying low in and out of valleys. They appeared to be training.

I also noticed that at the airfield one passes on the way to Cobham, there is now a permanent military base on premises.

The Airforce choppers in the Berg will probably be perceived as a threat by the smugglers but I would be (pleasantly!) surprised if the purpose of the chopper deployment goes beyond training. The Airforce has long trained in the Berg. I remember a great photo from the 1980s of an Alouette with its nose-wheel balancing on Devil's Tooth. And of course the Airforce has been involved in many a Berg rescue.

While it remains to be seen, I can't imagine them having much impact on our activities in the Berg. The Free State - Lesotho border is definitely what they will focus on for now, see:
www.vertical-endeavour.com/drakensberg/20-security/192-lesotho-border-to-be-patrolled-by-sandf-once-again.html

The SANDF has previously patrolled the Drakensberg anyway (currently it is a special police unit). The only impact it had on us was that they used Thuthumi Lookout Hut, Wilsons Cave, Halfway Cave and Thamathu Cave - and they were not to happy about sharing these with us, as was my experience more than once. But they were friendly for the most part and their concern was the Basotho - they didn't worry about hikers on the escarpment (they are there to protect South Africa, after all). Actually, the Lesotho Mounted Police are more the ones to think about when walking around up there, if you every encounter them. Theoretically they could ask you to present your passport, though they don't always do that.

Do you guys always take your passport with you when walking along the escarpment?