Mgahinga Gorilla National Park Things to Do

Mt Sabinyo (3634m) has 3 peaks and is nicknamed "the old men's teeth" because it's craterrim is ruined so much. The summit is the border with both Rwanda and DR Congo.

I loved this mountain most, but unfortunately I wasn't allowed to go up. The reason was, they said, that they are still maintaining the ladders. I even sent faxes and phoned to the head office of the proper authorities in Kampala, but permission was denied.

In the meantime the ascent to Sabinyo's peaks might be on offer again. Please tell me how it was....

Gahinga (3474m) is the smallest of the 3 inactive volcanoes in the Park, and the 6th highest of the 8 volcanoes in the Virunga range.

The climb (hike) to the craterrim differs from Muhabura and it's therefore interesting to climb both. Gahinga has a large bamboo zone that you cross and sometimes you need the use of ladders. The crater doesn't have a lake but a swamp. It's quite a long walk but only a relatively short climb, while Muhabura is much more demanding.

I actually climbed Gahinga on 2 consecutive days. After the clouds on Muhabura the previous day we had clouds again on the day of the first ascent once we reached the rim. I knew that the reason was that we started too late and also walked too slow.

Up to about 10AM Gahinga was usually cloudless, so the next day I demanded a climb again, but this time starting 7AM and climbing as fast as possible. This time I was rewarded with a clear sky and the views that I had looking forward so badly, were unforgettable!

****more impressions see the travelogue****