Sani Pass has evolved over 100 years, from a game track to a challenging and dangerous road through the Umkomazana valley, used by muleteers and later motor vehicles for moving goods between Natal and eastern Lesotho over the Drakensberg Mountains.

Mountain traders, missionaries, the Basotho people, a small garage and the Mokhotlong Mountain Transport Company form a backdrop to this fascinating story of the early days, interwoven with the author’s experiences as a junior trading-store assistant who later became a tourist driver on Sani Pass. James Colman plied the treacherous route for three years. Intriguing stories about the politics, police, missionaries, traders and district commissioners in the area, as well as tales of bravery, rivalry, camaraderie and daring, fill these pages.

Photographs graphically illustrate the beauty of the terrain and the people who make up the story. The book is a tribute to those who lived, worked and kept the peace in this remote region in those days.