The Fun and Thrills of Mountaineering the Mountains of the Moon in Uganda as Part of Ugandan Attractions:

Henry Morton Stanley had never been here but the immense ice plateau we had crossed earlier to reach Margherita Peak bears his name. Stanley had claimed the mountains for himself refusing to listen to claims by his men of snow-covered peaks a few days earlier.

Ironically he could not enjoy what was now laid before us. The steaming jungles, forest elephant and chimpanzees lay at our feet, giant heather forests and elusive Ruwenzori turacos were at ankle level (or so it seemed) and above them Lake Bujuku glistened in the early morning sunshine.

It really felt like the top of the world and Ptolemys ‘Mountains of the Moon’ are one of the most extraordinary and interesting mountains ranges I have ever climbed.

In 350AD the philosopher had drawn a chart showing the Mountains of the Moon and an immense inland sea as being the sources of the Nile; the source of Egypt’s life giving water.

The accuracy of his map is nothing short of totally remarkable as the Rwenzori Mountains are indeed the highest source of the mighty Nile. The storms that regularly engulf Africa’s highest mountain range dump huge volumes of water and every drop of that water (regardless of where it lands on the range) flows into the watershed of the Nile and some of it finds its way to quench the insatiable thirst of the deserts in Northern Sudan and Egypt.

Rwenzori Park Mountaineering begins from the park headquarters 5,400ft (1,646m) walking past typical “mud and wattle” Bakonzo homes and gradually moving upward through elephant grass and garden plots. It takes approximately 40minutes to reach the park boundary.

The trail then follows the Mubuku River crossing recent landslide areas and involves climbing over rocks and a bluff, before reaching the Mahoma River in about two and half-hours.

After crossing the river there will be a steep climb through open bracken fern slopes and Podorcarpus Forest up to Nyabitaba Hut 8,700ft (2652m).The total time for an average hiker from Nyakalengija to Nyabitaba is about 5 hours and total elevation gained is 4,000ft (1,200m).

During this part of the trip, you may be able to hear chimpanzees and sometimes you may have a glimpse of the black and white colobus and blue monkeys behind the hut or the brilliantly coloured Rwenzori Turaco bird. After 5-6 hours mountaineering one has to rest for a second trip starting at Nyabitaba

<strong>Day Two</strong>

From Nyabitaba Hut the trail leads West ward for half a kilometer then drops steeply to Kurt Shaffer Bridge, crossing below the confluence of the Bujuku and the Mubuku rivers. By turning right to the bridge you begin to climb the central circuit anti-clockwise since the clockwise direction is much more difficult and risky.

After the Kurt Shaffer Bridge, the muddy slippery trail climbs steadily up through bamboo forest. After one and half-hours you are face to face with slippery boulder hopping and if you are not strong and determined you may change your mind (but just kidding )mountaineers are ever prepared for the worst terrains.

After 5hrs of traveling from Nyabitaba you reach the hut at Nyamuleju and its accompanying rock shelter which may be a good night stop over. This point also marks the start of giant lobelia and groundsel zone. This remarkable vegetation type is found no where in the world except high-altitude tropical mountains.

The 1hour walk to John Matte Hut (11,200ft/3,414m) is through a challenging bog, full of extra ordinary plants and the slow pace can be a delightful chance to examine and photograph this unique environment.

Typical time to reach John Matte is 7 hours.The loss of altitude to Kurt Shafer Bridge means the total elevation to be gained on this day is about 3,000ft (915m). Hikers who feel they have reached their limits by this point should consider John Matte as a reasonable stopping point.

Tags: attractions, moon, Mountaineering, Mountains, Part, Thrills, Uganda, Ugandan