Msafiri Kyrea - The Blog: The Rwenzori Journey

The side effects become apparent (Photo courtesy of J. Chow)

The previous night was more tossing and turning, with numerous illustrious dreams that defined probable the best sleep of the trek so far. Richard woke us up 1 hour ahead of breakfast, which was unusual, but it was because the morning sky was clear and we could look forward to a colourful sunrise. From another rocky outcrop, facing east, we glimpsed a crimson sky announcing a sun that would engulf the lake laced valley that we crossed yesterday.

The crimson sunrise at Bugata Camp

We set off at around 8.30am up and over a steep ledge. With the sun now fully up I strapped on my cap and sunglasses. The going was not easy. I had a migraine setting in and we were headed for Bamwanjara Pass at 4,450m in altitude (over 400m above Bugata Camp). The cliff edge to the right of our path began to shield us from the sun, which was unwelcome. At least it was not too muddy. The slope eased off and as we looked back, Lake Africa (named as such because of its shape) previously blocked from our view at Bugata Camp, became visible.

Lake Africa as seen from Bamwanjara Pass (Photo courtesy of J. Chow)

This continental imprint in the Namusangi river valley faded into insignificance because turning back to the direction that we were headed, lo and behold we received our treat of the day: all the great peaks in full view and with the skies still clear! The Mt. Stanley Peaks: Margherita (5,109m), Alexandra (5,090m), Moebius (4,917m), Elena (4,970m), Great Tooth (4,950m), Savoia (4,977m) as well as the Mt. Baker Peaks: Semper (4,794m ), and Edward (4,842m). They were all within the scope of view but with threatening tufts of cloud moving in. We were indeed lucky. The local Bankojo name of Mt. Baker is Kiyanja but I neglected to find out the local name for Mt. Stanley. It still remains beyond me that the Uganda government does not endorse local names of the mountains and their peaks, to reinforce local identity and association of these peaks. It did not help that Henry Morton Stanley, whilst an accomplished explorer was quite frankly treating the local people brutally, leaving his legacy pockmarked with controversy and disgrace.

Rwenzori dreaming @ Bamwanjara Pass (alt. 4,450m) (Photo courtesy of J. Chow)

After our photo and video opportunities, complete with rock star poses, most of the glorious peaks were covered. At the summit, we are really hoping to get the same momentous clarity that we just experienced! We now needed to descend into a valley untouched by the great fire. This drop was the most treacherous thus far. It was extremely muddy and steep, and now I had a full blown headache. We spotted the gem of the range, the Rwenzori Turaco, that I described 2 days ago. I was still moving with just one trekking pole whilst using my other hand for support on rocks, twigs etc., and it was clear that my strategy had to change because I slipped and landed on the walking stick, bending it. Before long I switched to 2 sticks, at James's suggestion. It would allow my shoulders to contribute to the effort. The descent, towards the Kachope lakes valley, seemed never ending. However, we were finally rewarded with the mountain flora and fauna that Rwenzori is known for: everlasting flowers, giant heather, tussock grass, sunbirds, Rwenzori turaco etc. We were able to look up at the grand pass and, with great disbelief, the boggy trail that was much easier now than in the rainy season! This psychological boost seemed to be working because my headache started to ease off.

The everlasting flowers with the petals open. This means that it has not been raining for a while.

The petals close when it rains

A sunbird surveying its domain

A Rwenzori turaco feeling safe on its perch. My camera was on full zoom whilst taking this shot.

The colour of rocks on the peaks surrounding this valley varied from brown to green then to white. This valley cascaded down from lake to lake, marsh to marsh. Just like the day before, rain and hail engulfed us - this time rather early. We sought refuge , tightly huddled, under some rocks and decided to have our lunch there and then, like true cavemen. Richard moved forward to see if he could find us a better shelter. Creamy potato and sweetcorn, apple and mango juice was on the menu in a contrasting damp setting between a rock and a wet place. We found Richard in a neatly tucked away cave a couple of metres down the trail, looking like a fugitive on the run. The terrain began to level out albeit still boggy, with loose rocks, hidden tree stumps to jar the toes and all sorts of odd bends. Mt. Baker came back into view and from this point we could see the sun rays reflected off the corrugated roofs of Mutwanga, a Congelese town to our west. It used to be an important camp for Rwenzori expeditions. It is in the politically unstable DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) region of North Kivu having experienced years of civil war and therefore it is not a favoured starting point.

A hazy glimpse into the troubled region of North Kivu

All we now need was one last onslaught to Hunwicks Camp at 3,974m. Hunwicks Camp turned out to be bloody freezing! We had arrived at around 4pm, and the winds were getting stronger. The route to the toilet via a broad walk was probably the most hazardous amongst the camps as frost gathered on the planks in the middle of the night. As we huddled into our cabin, another trekking group arrived from Margherita Camp after having summited that very morning. They were six, plus a two guides, and they arrived simultaneously in groups of three. One of them had should and knee injuries after a fall and arrived an hour later, with the second guide, at around 6pm. There was a stubborn seventh person in the group but he refused to take the normal descent route after Margherita, so we heard.

Hunwick's camp and the view around it

Mt. Baker loomed over us. The weather was too overcast to spend much time admiring it. Dinner was an all vegetarian affair even though we packed away a lot of carbohydrates in the pasta and yet another sumptuous peach and rice pudding desert. It is amazing how much I appreciated some of the canned foods that I normally loathed. One then quickly realises that such long expeditions are not possible without the ability to can and preserve food. Tomorrow is going to be a relatively short route so Richard has told us that we can rest much more here and then depart at 9am tomorrow.