Mountains of the Moon - Trekking in the Rwenzori
Holiday Itinerary
Day 1: Rendezvous at the group hotel in Entebbe. Airport shuttles are provided from the airport to our guesthouse. KE Land Only package services begin with the evening meal. Overnight in hotel.
Day 2: Drive westwards for 400km to Kasese, passing through Mbarara, and the western end of the Rift Valley. Overnight hotel at roadhead settlement of Ibanda (1600m).
Day 3: Trek through plantations of bananas and coffee and farmsteads of the local Bakonjo people. Cross the Mahoma River to reach the Nyabitaba Hut (2650m).
Day 4: Cross the Bujuku River and trek up to the Nyamileju Hut for a lunchstop. The path climbs steadily from here to our overnight stop at the John Matte Hut (3350m).
Day 5: Negotiate the Bigo Bogs and then pass Cooking Pot Cave en route to Lake Bujuku. Walk around the lake and then ascend to Lake Bujuku Hut (3900m).
Day 6: Negotiating a steep and winding path we climb to the Scott Elliot Pass and up to the Elena Hut (4541m.) at the foot of the Elena Glacier.
Day 7: Optional climb to the Margherita summit of Mount Stanley (5109m), via a testing scramble and glacier climb across the stunning Stanley Plateau. Return to Elena Hut.
Day 8: An easy day's trekking, dropping down to Kitandara Lake and Kitandara Hut (3990m), situated on the shores of the main lake.
Day 9: Ascent of the third highest peak in the Rwenzori, Mount Baker. The route involves some superb scrambling and a short roped section. Overnight at Kitandra Hut.
Day 10: Climb up to Freshfield Pass (4215m) and descend to Bujongolo Cave (3720m). Following the River Mubuku, via Kabamba Cave we reach the Guy Yeoman Hut (3450m).
Day 11: A tough day's trek down to the Nyabitaba Hut. After a brieft rest walk out to the roadhead at Ibanda. Transfer to Queen Elizabeth Game Reserve. Bush camp at Mweya.
Day 12: The Queen Elizabeth Game Reserve is Uganda's best wildlife park, with all the East African big game present. Early start for game drive in park. Camp at Mweya.
Day 13: We may have time for Game drive before breakfast, after which we pack up our gear and board vehicles for the drive back to Entebbe where we check into the group hotel.
Day 14: Morning free. KE Land Only package services end with lunch. Airport shuttles are provided by the guesthouse to Entebbe Airport.
Altitude
This holiday involves going to very high altitude. During the course of your trip you will be spending at least one night above 4000 metres and/or trekking to 5000 metres or above. This is not something that you should worry about; the human body is quite capable of adapting to a very wide range of altitudes, but it is important that we follow some simple rules in order to acclimatise successfully. Before coming on this holiday you should read the advice on trekking at high altitude.
