The fabled “Mountains of The Moon” lie in Western Uganda on the Congolese border, with snow-covered, equatorial peaks rising to height of 5110 m and lower slopes blanketed in moorland and rich montane forest. Most of the park is accessible to hikers with magnificent scenery and 19 Albertine Rift endemics, amongst them;
Rwenzori Turaco and Shelley’s Crimsonwing, would be ample reward for the intrepid, backpacking birder.
The Rwenzori Mountains have been selected as one of the
World’s Best Hikes by National Geographic!
ABOUT THE MOUNTAINS
- Districts : South Western Uganda, on the edge of the western rift valley, shared by Rukungiri, Kabale and Kisoro Districts.
- Size : 996 Km-Sq.
- Elevation : 1700 metres to 5109 metres atop Margherita peak on Mount Stanley.
- Habitat : Montane forest with bamboo ( Arundinaria ) on lower slopes, heath and Afro-alpine moorland on higher slopes.
- Status : National Park since 1991.
- Timing : January – February and July – August are the driest months but rain is possible year round.
- Time required : 3 days for the shorter foothill hike and 6-7 days for the usual mountain loop.
- Birds Recorded : 195 species.
BIRD WATCHING
There are many bird species to lookout for among which include:- Albertine Rift endemics like; Handsome Francolin, Rwenzori Turaco, Montane (Rwenzori) Nightjar, Dwarf Honeyguide, Archer’s Robin-Chat, Red-throated Alethe, Kivu Ground Thrush, Red-faced Woodland Warbler, Montane Masked and Collared Apalises, Stripe-breast Tit, Rwenzori Batis, (Grauer’s Cuckoo-shrike ), Blue-headed, Regal and Purple-breasted Sunbirds, Strange Weaver, Dusky and Shelley’s Crimsonwings.
Others to lookout for are; Lammergeiger, Red-thighed Sparrowhawk, Barred Long-tailed Cuckoo, African Long-eared Owl, Western Green Tinkerbird, Olive Woodpecker, Grey-chested Illadopsis, Grey-winged Robin, Evergreen Forest and Bamboo Warblers, Lagden’s Bush-Shrike, Montane Sooty Boubou, Golden-winged and Scarlet-tufted Malachite Sunbirds, White-collared Olive-back, Red-faced Crimsonwing, Oriole-Finch.
ACCESS
Rwenzori Mountains National Park is accessible from Kasese. All hikes need to be arranged through the Rwenzori Mountain Service ( RMS ), an organization that works in conjunction with the Ugandan Wildlife Authority to control hiking in the area and to maintain trails and huts.
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Rwenzori Trips
