At 1 863m above sea level, Emlembe is the highest peak in the Kingdom of Swaziland. On a misty Sunday morning at 05:00, over 200 Swazi 1000 volunteers retraced the steps of last years Guinness Book of World Record attempt to hike up the slopes of the highest peak in a country.
Once again, the mist lay thick on the mountains surrounding Bulembu, only occasionally pulling away like a stage curtain, revealing glimpses of the slopes and peaks that we were scaling.
Throughout the whole climb we were shielded from the scorching sun by a cool mist cloud. Once we reached the summit, the clouds lay below us, and it felt like we were literally on top of the world.
“It feels like you can see the whole world from up there,” said Swazi 100 volunteer, Sophia Wessels. “The awe-inspiring view makes you forget about your burning muscles and lungs!”.
We spent a few hours on the roof of Swaziland, reflecting on the week of work that lay behind us, and the remainder of our time in this breathtaking country.
“It was such a privilege to be so high up to be able to see the clouds from that angle, all thanks to God,” said Daniel Goosen, a Swazi 1000 volunteer from Potchefstroom.
Nathalie Barnard, a Swazi 1000 volunteer from Pretoria said that the experience of climbing the highest peak in Swaziland was for her symbolic of the whole outreach. “It’s sort of what we came here to do,” she said. “Scaling the high places and experiencing the victory of doing something profound.”
We added rocks and prayers to the altar that was built the year before, which still stands as a testimony of the prayers and prophesies that have been sent North, over Africa.