SAFARI: EQ13 RWENZORI MOUNTAIN - (mountains of the moon) (11 Days)

• After breakfast, set off for Kasese
• Stop over at the Equator line for your dream experience of being at two hemispheres at once
Proceed for a lunch at Lake View Regencey hotel in Mbarara town
• Drive and have your dinner and overnight in Kasese town at hotel Margherita

• After breakfast, have an early start to the Park headquarters and Rwenzori mountaineering services at the foot of the mountain at Nyakalengija
• Clear with the park, get accorded porters & guides and hire climbing equipment
• Leave Nyakalengija for Nyabitaba. This will take you about 5-7 hours and elevation gained of 4000ft
• Start hiking headed for the park boundary. You will walk past the mud &wattle Bakonjo homesteads.
• The trail follows river Mubuku, criss -crossing landslides. This will involve climbing over rocks and bluff reaching you Mahoma river.
• After crossing, head for a steep climb through the slopes and Podorcapus forest then reach Nyabitaba hut.
• This trip enables you hear chimpanzees and also see black, white colubus and blue monkeys behind your hut. You could also view some birds especially the bright coloured Rwenzori Turaco

• After breakfast, leave Nyabitaba and take the trail leading westward dropping steeply to Kurt Shaffer Bridge that crosses below the confluence of the Bujuku and Mubuku rivers.
• From here, start to climb anti-clockwise through a muddy - slipperly trail characterized by bamboo forest
• You will then pass through the zone characterized by the giant lobelia and grandsel vegetation only found in high altitude African mountains. The pass reaches you Nyamaleju hut with its supplementary rock shelter
• Continue through a rewarding bog to your hut at John Matte

• After a heavy breakfast, depart for Bujuku
• Crossing river Bujuku ushers you into the lower Bigo bog where you will be ingaged jumping from tussock - tussock
• Take your lunch break at the upper end of the bog
• Finally, you will climb on dry land criss - crossing the river then reach Lake Bujuku
• At lake Bujuku, you will be in position to see Mt. baker to the south, Mt. Stanley to the west and Speke to the North.

• Have your breakfast early enough to allow ample time for an early start
• Leave Bujuku using a newer trail which rises and falls twice and then climbs steeply through the moss drapped Groundsel vegetation up to Scott Elliot pass.
• After the short strong ladder, take the right hand branch leading you to Elena Hut.
• Elena hut is base for climbing the Margherita peak within Mt. Stanley complex

• After breakfast, climb to Margherita peak - the highest within the Rwenzori reaching anelevation of 5109ft!
• It's a challenging adventure involving climbing glaciers, putting on warm clothing. On this trip, crampons and ropes are essential.
• There you are! Take a rest as you marvel at this specious beauty and take photographs
• Slope to Lake Kitandara hut (4023m) through the Scott Elliott pass with good view of Lake Bujuku, Mt. Speke bypass Mt. Stanley to lake Kitandara

• Set off early for the steep long climb to the Freshfield pass
• Good views into the DRC. Margherita and it's glaciers dominate the area
• The rain and mist make the trip challenging but finally reaches you Guy Yeaman hut (3261m)

• Sef off early for nyabitaba to avoid reaching late
• It is quite a difficult pass - muddy, steep and sliperly. You are advised to descend facing the slope
• Break off and spend a night at Nyabitaba

• Drive to kasese for lunch at hotel Margherita
• Evening drive to Mweya Safari lodge/ Jacana tented camp for an overnight

• Have an early breakfast and head for a morning game drive.
• Early afternoon, take a boat cruise on kazinga channel
• Return to hotel for lunch
• Take an evening game drive
• Spend overnight

• Early breakfast
• Visit Maramagambo forest for chimp tracking
• Visit the bat cave
• Visit the blue lake - the only blue lake in this planet
• Drive to Mbarara for lunch
• Continue to Kampala to your hotel.