Mountain Rwenzori National Park

Access to Mt Rwenzori
The Rwenzori lies a few kilometres north of the equator, rising over 4000m above the floor of the Albertine Rift Valley. The park trailhead at Nyakalengija can be reached from Kampala from the north via Fort Portal (375km) or the south passing through Mbarara and Queen Elizabeth National Park (450km).
Nyakalengija is 17km off the Kasese-Fort Portal road and 25km north of Kasese town. Charter flights to Kasese can be arranged from Kampala (Kajjansi) or Entebbe.

Flora and fauna
The Rwenzori today is remarkable for its flora rather than its fauna. Elephant, buffalo, giant forest hog, bushbuck, chimpanzee and leopard are present but are rarely seen.
However primates such as black and white colobus and the blue monkey may be seen, as well as the hyrax, the elephant's diminutive cousin.
The Rwenzori is home to 241 bird species of which 19 are endemic to the mountain. Several birds are limited to just a few forests along the Albertine rift, notably the Rwenzori Turaco. In the alpine zone look for the Malachite Sunbird.
An ascent of the mountain passes through a series of increasingly dramatic vegetation zones. Above the Bakonzo farmlands, montane forest (1500-2500m) gives way to bamboo stands and messy tangles of Mimulopsis (2500-3000m). This is followed by the lovely Heather-Rapenea zone (3000-4000m), which is characterised by giant tree-heathers (Erica spp.), garishly coloured mosses and drab beards of lichen. Spectacular forms of giant lobelia (Lobelia spp.) and groundsels (Senecio spp.) are first found in this zone. These plants persist into the highest, Alpine zone (3800-4500m) where they are joined by wiry but pretty thickets of Helichrysum or 'everlasting flowers'.
The Bigo Bogs in the Upper Bujuku Valley, are colonised by tussocks of sedge (Carex spp). These provide climbers with useful if disconcertingly wobbly 'stepping stones' with which to negotiate these notoriously muddy sections.

Accommodation
The mountain's Central Circuit is provided with basic mountain huts (you should take your own sleeping bags and sleeping mats). Camping and rooms are available at the Circuit's Nyakalengija trailhead at Ruboni Campsite and RMS Guesthouse. The trailhead for the proposed Kilembe Trail is served by Rwenzori Backpackers Hostel. Other options exist in Kasese, Fort Portal and in nearby Queen Elizabeth National Park.

The Central Circuit Trail
Day One: Nyakalengija (1615m) - Nyabitaba Hut.
The Central Circuit starts at the RMS offices at Nyakalengija. You should arrive in the morning to allow ample equipment and meet your guides and porters. The by passing through farmland to the park boundary beyond  which it follows the Mubuku river, crossing its Mahoma tributary  starting a long, steep climb up onto a massive reach  Nyabitaba hut. The hike takes around 5 hours.
During this part of the trip you may hear chimpanzee and see black and white colobus, blue monkey and t coloured Rwenzori turaco.
Day Two: Nyabitaba (2651 m) - Mubuku River (2l Matte Hut (3505m)
This involves a demanding 7+ hour trek up to John Matte hut.  The Central Circuit 'proper' starts a few hundred metres beyond Nyabitaba where the trail divides. The right fork I peaks up the Bujuku valley while the path on the left is used for the subsequent descent.
The trail leads to the Kurt Shafer Bridge which Mubuku valley just below the river's confluence with the Bujuku   valley. Beyond the river, a muddy, slippery trail steadily  up through bamboo forest.
After a five hour trek is the start of the giant lobelia and groundsel  zone, a vegetation type limited to East Africa's highest The final hour's walk to John Matte hut passes through a challenging bog full of extraordinary plants.
Day Three: John Matte (3505m) to Bujuku (3962m)
The route fords the Bujuku River as you cross the bog, A steep climb follows to reach the Upper Bigo Bogo where a boardwalk has been constructed to assist walkers. In clear weather, there are superb views of Mt. Stanley at this cavernous, glacier-carved valley. Above the bog, after a long steady climb over" glacial moraine, criss-crossing the trail reaches the lovely Lake Bujuku.
The last stage of the 3-5 hour hike to Bujuku Hut past Cooking Pot Cave is perhaps the muddiest stage of the expedition. The hut is well placed for parties climbing Mt. Speke.
Day Four: Bujuku (3962m) - Scott Elliott Pass (4372m)
Kitandara (4023m) From Bujuku hut, the trail crosses more mud before climbing steeply through a forest of giant groundsels, climbing a short metal ladder to ascend the Groundsel Gully. Above the gully, a branch in the trail climbs directly to Elena Hut (4430m) for the ascent of Margherita peak on Mt. Stanley (5109m). This climb needs an ice axe, mountain boots, crampons and ropes.
The main trail continues up a steep scree slope over Scott Elliot pass, the highest point on the circuit. The pass provides fabulous views back down the Bujuku valley and of Mts. Stanley and Baker towering above. Beyond the pass, the route runs downhill beneath the massive cliffs of Mt. Baker. After passing Upper Lake Kitandara, the 3-5 hour hike ends at the hut beside Lower Lake Kitandara, a beautiful site surrounded by towering peaks.
Day Five: Kitandara (4023m) - Freshfield Pass (4282m) - Guy Yeoman (3505m)
Freshfield is a long flat traverse through tracts of fabulously colourful moss (and more mud), beyond which the long descent to Nyakalengija begins. The hike to Guy Yeoman hut takes around 5 hours. The hut enjoys a lovely location close to the Mubuku River with terrific views of the looming Mt. Baker to the north.
Day Six:/Seven: Guy Yeoman (3505m) - Nyabitaba (2651 m)
The descent to Nyabitaba takes around 5 hours but with an early start it is possible to make it all the way down to Nyakalengija.
Below Guy Yeoman, the route descends the cliffs of Kichuchu.
Beyond Kichuchu the muddy path crosses the Mubuku River twice before climbing upwards to Nyabitaba to complete the circuit.
Day Seven: Nyabitaba (2651m) - Nyakalengija (1615m)
The descent from Nyabitaba to Nyakalengija takes 2-3 hours.
Kilembe Trail
Uganda Wildlife Authority plans to reopen an alternative route into the Rwenzori from Kilembe near Kasese. Check with UWA for developments.
Health and safety on the trail
Hikers should familiarise themselves with the symptoms and treatment of hypothermia and the various forms of altitude sickness (see Osmaston's Guide to the Rwenzori). Above 2500m, altitude sickness can affect anyone, irrespective of age, fitness or previous mountain experience. The most effective treatment is descent to a lower altitude.