Lesotho border, passport & visa considerations for DGT

At Sani pass the only place you will be asked for a passport is at the immigration office at the top of the pass. At Bushmans nek you walk on the outside of the fence not going through the immigration office. Take passport with you in case asked.

Good day everyone! I also love this beautiful mountain, like the rest of you guys! I want to do the DGT to connect all the dots on the Escarpment. I just want to find out what to do at the border post at the end of the hike, near Bushmans neck. Should I just take my passport with me? Is there a border post?  I will appreciate any help on this topic, thank you, and safe hiking!!

 

Thank you for the feedback, I appreciate it! 

Hi guys! 
First of all, thank you so much for this forum. It is an incredible help with planning DGT. We are a mixed group from Czech and Slovak Republic and we are keen to do an 8day shortened DGT in November this year.

Our plan is to do the DGT from Sentinel Car park to Sani Pass (or vice versa). There is however one issue I'm not sure of - if we cross the border from RSA, we get an exit stamp from RSA (and an entry one to Lesotho). We would enter again at Sentinel Car park, but with no entry stamp. I am then unsure how would the border guards look at us leaving from the airport when never again officially entering RSA? 

If we do it the other way round, we end up leaving Lesotho at Sani pass when never officially entering it and entering RSA when never officially leaving it. 

Having mostly experiences in Central Asia, Caucasus and Middle East, where borders are usually a big deal, I am unsure how strict the procedure are there - can we just show up at the Sani pass border and say we've come from Sentinel park? 

For Slovakia, both Lesotho and RSA are visa country, for Czechs, both are visa-free. Any help/experience would be highly appreciated! 

Thanks to all of you! 

If you hand over the passports at Sani SA border they will stamp you out of SA. 
if you hand over your passports at the top of Sani in Lesotho, they will stamp you in to Lesotho. 
When you hand over your passports at the airport on leaving SA, they may well look at the sequence of stamps. 

So far everyone will have just been doing their job. 

If the airport border official raised a query, it will be difficult to say how things will evolve. It depends on the official. 

Likely it will be OK. 

But for 100% certainty, avoid Sani Pass. 

I am not condoning border hopping. But owing to the unique situation that climbing / traversing in the Drakensberg presents, my thought would be to start from Sentinal,
stop for a beer & burger at Sani, then traverse a little further south +/- 5 km, and descend via Masubasuba pass, and head to Cobham.

Its an extra 20 km or so. But will save you a lot of hassles. 

DM me if you need details of the pass & route down.

Hey guys,
thank you so much! Your feedback is highly appreciated. I will avoid Sani pass and we will find another route. Thank you again!