Primates in the Mist: Climbing Mount Bisoke in the Rainy Season
The Virungas are currently in the rainy season, and hiking the volcanoes feels completely different compared to the drier months. Two brave team members decided to take on the challenge of climbing Mt Bisoke (3,711 m/ 12,175 ft): our Greek volunteer, Sifis, and Rwandan office manager, Sasha.
At the park headquarters we were paired with a guide and other trekkers; 16 people can book Bisoke daily. As we reached the car parking area, the guide provided us with walking sticks, and there were gumboots available for rent (USD 5). We were overconfident, trusted our shoes, and made our second mistake! The first one was not hiring a porter …
Entering Volcanoes National Park felt very promising. Prosper Uwingeli, the Chief Park Warden, had assured us that the weather looked good, and we were optimistic. Our ranger guide gave us the final briefing and said, “Try to hike as a group, because that helps everyone reach the top.”
The team’s initial pace was incredible but reality soon set in, and we found ourselves far apart from one another. It was very muddy, and some of us started falling. Worse, it began to rain, and we had to put on warm clothes.
We learned not to trust our guides; every time we asked if we were halfway, the response was, “In about 10 min we’ll be there.” But we made it eventually — some of us! We felt relieved and forgot how challenging the 4-hour climb had been (in the dry season, it takes about 3h). We heard that during the dry season the weather is hot and you tire easily; in the rainy season, the summit was positively freezing. Nobody stayed more than a few moments to snap some shots.
“Reaching the summit, despite the crater lake being hidden in the clouds, was surreal. It felt like we had made it to a hidden world that very few people get to see,” remembers Sifis.
Sloping down in the rain for 2.5h, we were still hoping to see some animals — antelopes, buffaloes, maybe gorillas? But they were all hiding in their shelters. The mud was very slippery; most people preferred walking in the streams. Sifis fell 30 times and was covered in mud from head to toe.
A big shoutout to the ranger guide and the porters; we wouldn’t have made it without them!
text by Sandrine Benimana; photos by Sandrine Benimana and Sifis Sareidakis
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