7 Day Rwenzori Mountain Climbing, hiking & Trekking Trip
Overview
The “Mountains of the Moon”, have a celebrated beauty. Shrouded almost perpetually in mist, they have a seducing, eerie quality that led to many wondrous tales about them through the ages. It's known primarily for its challenging hiking and climbing possibility with a unique among East African Mountains. It's not Volcanic in Origin, but it rises directly from the Rift valley floor. Trekking the Rwenzori Mountains is a truly a remarkable & unique experience! The 7-Day Rwenzori Mountain Climbing, hiking & Trekking Trip include the 5 Day Rwenzori Mountain Climbing, hiking & Trekking.
Included/Excluded
- Hiking Trekking permits
- Ground transportation in a standard safari Vehicle
- Accommodation listed on the Itinerary or similar
- Meals (6 Breakfasts, Lunches & Dinners)
- Park entrances fees
- Services of English speaking guide driver
- Bottled drinking water
- Price excludes all other things of personal nature like the bar bills, personal insurance, rescuers, visas among others.
Tour Plan
Day 1; Entebbe – Rwenzori Mountain National Park
After breakfast at your Hotel, your driver guide meets you ready take off to Mt Rwenzori National Park (also known as the Mountains of the Moon). We will have lunch in Fort Portal and continue to Rwenzori Trekkers Hostel where we overnight. The journey through the farmland and tea estates eventually arriving to the rwenzori Mountains. Overnight at Trekkers Hostel or similar
Day 2; Rwenzori Mountains Trekking & Hiking to Sine Camp
Briefing from the guides and start the trek, hike to Sine Camp at 2596 metres, the hike will take you through the tall forest trees of the Afro montane forest zone. This is a steady climb for about 6 kilometers then along a steep climb towards Sine hut. The hike will offer you lots of plant and flower species to view, birds and a chance of seeing some animal species like Columbus monkeys. Covering 9.5km approximately 5 to 6 hours of walking. Overnight at Sine Hut
Day 3; Rwenzori mountain Trekking & hiking to Mutinda Camp
Hike to Mutinda Camp at 3588 metres, through the Bambo and Heather-Rapanea Zone, following the trail while it meanders up and over several small knolls along a ridge top and drops down the side of the valley crossing several small streams and passing close to moss covered waterfalls with very unique beautiful plant and flower species found above 3000metres like Giant Heather trees whose trunks are covered in green moss with old man beards (Usnea lichen) hanging from the branches, approaching to Mutinda camp which is set near a small river and waterfall. In the afternoon one has an option of summiting Mutinda lookout at 3975 metres. Covering 6.1 km, approximately 6 to 8 hrs of walking to Mutinda camp. Overnight at Mutinda Camp
Day 4; Rwenzori mountain Trekking & Hiking to Bugata camp
The fourth day takes you through the valley of amazingly unique beautiful plant species, streams and waterfalls while we head to Bugata camp at 4062 meters. The trek gets tougher and exhausting with the steep ridges, mud and boggy sections, high steps but the rewards are enormously beautiful. Overnight at Bugata Camp
Day 5; Rwnzori Mountain Trekking & Hiking to the summit of Weismanns peak at 4620 meters
From Bugata Camp you get up early and head for the summit of Weismanns peak at 4620 meters. After the summit you start to descend through a different route which makes the loop thus we descend down the Nyamwamba valley to Kiharo Camp at 3430 meters for the night. It’s 3.7 km to the peak and a total of approximately 9 km down to Kiharo camp taking 8 to 10 hours. Overnight at Kiharo Camp
Day 6; Rwenzori mountain Trekking & descending to the base camp in Kilembe
Descend down hill past the moss covered rocks along rivers and beautiful forests back to the base camp in Kilembe. 14.6 km 7 to 9 hrs of walking Debrief and refresh and continue to your hotel for the night. Overnight at Trekkers Hostel on the footstep of Mount Rwenzori. Overnight at Trekkers Hostel or Similar.
Day 7; Rwenzori mountains National Park – Entebbe/Departure
After an early morning breakfast Depart Rwenzori National Park and then transfer to Entebbe International Airport for your departure targeting your departure time from Entebbe International Airport. End
Request Quote
Communication via WhatsApp to make arrangements went very smooth with Aron being quick and clear in his responses.
Aron drove us most of the time, but we also had a ride with driver Barnice. Every time they were in time, most of the times even early to make sure we could leave whenever we wanted. The service was more than just a private taxi service: Aron told us many interesting things about Uganda and let us taste some local food. That really made our trip more colourful and interesting.They know a lot of good places all over the country, like restaurants and accomodation. Although we organized our trip by ourselves, that was still an advantage. Above that, Aron uses his business in Uganda to help other Ugandans as well.
We would definitely recommend to travel with Safari 2 Gorilla Tours.
Jon Peters
USA
In my iniitial email to him I had explained that I'm Kenyan and would be travelling to Rwanda from Nairobi, Kenya. As an east African citizen I thought this information was useful in terms of national park fees and so on; little did I know that it would affect my whole Gorilla trek experience.
I'd settled the balance of my invoice in November 2019 and Aron emailed to confirm full payment. I never heard from Aron again except when I emailed him to find out the arrangements for when I arrived in Rwanda. At the time I didn't think much of it as I'd read so many glowing reviews of Aron and his tour company; his attentive nature, professionalism and general good nature. A fortnight or so before my arrival I'd still not heard from him so I emailed to find out the itinerary for when I arrived in Rwanda - nothing. Just a curt response confirming that he had the number for my hotel and presumably (Aron did not confirm) that he would call me at my hotel to arrange a time to pick me up from my hotel.
I arrived at the hotel, following a 10 hour flight from London on Friday, 24 January to find there was no message was left by Aron advising when I'd be picked up the following day. On Saturday, 25 January at about 9 am the receptionist knocked on my door to inform me that a driver had arrived to pick me up and drive me to Uganda. As I'd not had any advance information of this arrangement I was not ready; i hadn't showered or eaten breakfast. And so we did not set off until gone 10 am. This was the first poor service i'd received.
I'd paid for a 3-day Gorilla trek etc which included on the first day a visit to the Rwanda Genocide memorial. When the driver set off we'd been driving and passed a sign to the memorial site, after almost an hour I asked if we were still going to the memoial site, and only then did the driver inform me that due to the late departure he had decided to postpone the visit to the memorial until the return leg of my three day trip. The second poor service i'd received.
Bwindi national park is in Uganda and so I was driven through Rwanda to Uganda via a land border, an eight hour journey that ordinarily shouldn't have taken that long. The third poor service.
During the drive Aron maintained constant communication with the driver - whose name escapes me - and not once did he ask the driver to pass the phone to me so that he could speak to me. By that I mean even welcoming me, asking me how my trip was, finding out if there was anything I needed, any issues or problems with the trip I'd paid for. The fourth poor service I received
When we arrived at Rushaga camp each visitor at dinner was assigned a table with the name of their guide on it; stupidly I immediately thought Ohhh so Aron had sent a driver to pick me up from Rwanda and that now I was going to meet him! How wrong i was. When i sat down expecting to meet Aron who should turn up? but the driver! Cheekily I asked if he was Aron and offended he curtly replied no!. When i asked what happend to Aron he informed me that Aron had been in constant communication throughout the day! When I asked why Aron hadn't even said hello or welcomed me he just said that Aron was on another tour. At that moment I realised what was happening and why. In Aron's eyes I was a black African tourist that yes, had paid for the same service and support that my white counterparts had received but due to his low perception of me and fellow black Africans I did not warrant the same service, attention, or even respect. I did not speak to the driver again for the rest of the evening. I was surrounded by fellow travellers that were accompanied by guides who made them feel welcome, valued and respected; they sat together sharing stories from their travels whilst I and the driver sat silently. Even as I tried to get the driver to understand how insulted and disrespected I felt he just didn't get it. A part of me feels if i was white he wouldn't have found it so hard understanding how poorly I'd been treated. But as a black African what reason did I have to complain? The fifth poor service I'd received
On the second day i was due to visit Mgahinga national park almost a two hour drive away. As debrief started at 8 am we arranged to leave Rushaga Gorilla camp by 6 am; arranging to meet for breakfast at 05:30 am. 06:00 am the driver was nowhere to be found. Finally at 06:30 he appears in the dinning room feigning an alarm malfunction. I had to demand an apology from him. The sixth poor service i'd received.
We arrived at the national park at 08:25. I was the only black tourist and when I asked the guide to summarise the debrief he audibly commented that as I'd arrived late he'd not be able to repeat it for me. Cynically I felt that If I was white he'd problably have ignored the fact that the driver had got me to the debrief late and still gone through the key points. The seventh poor sevice I'd received.
I could go on and on but I won't. I think you get the gist. I never once spoke to Aron, met him or communicated with him during my time in Rwanda and Uganda. I left Rwanda on Tuesday, 28 January 2020 and have delayed posting this review until now to see whether or not I'd hear from Aron. I haven't and I know I never will.
I would never recommend this company to anyone regardless of who you are. I pity and despise racists and would never support a business that openly discriminates against black Africans.
Would absolutely recommend Safari 2 Gorilla Tours! Thanks Aaron and Martin for an unforgetable trip!
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Address
Plot 1 A, Cohen A Road
Makanga Hill,
P.O.BOX 568 Kabale