The Ascent of Waggagai Peak
                                                       Craig Thompson
 

After two months working within the cold damp montane forest, it was finally our chance to see the top of the mountain. Whilst trekking to some of our more distant sites we had caught glimpses of what we suspected to be to be the caldera rim. As the end of our work became nearer, our desire to see what other sights the mountain could provide increased. As we had been camped next to Piswa patrol hut at 2850m we had a head start on the mountain and had all acclimatised ourselves to this altitude.

Packing for our ascent was tinged with regret as our base camp and home was finally disassembled. Despite this there was a buzz in the atmosphere as we all speculated about what we were about to see. After a couple of months of largely the same habitat we were looking forward to once again experiencing life without the great tree canopies all around. Many of our Ugandan colleagues joined us as well as two guards and nine porters, and Michael acted as our guide. This was just as new an experience for some of our Ugandan friends. George told us that although he had lived all his life in Kamunargut at the base of the mountain and had studied the caldera during his A level in Geography, he had never been to the top.

The first hours of our trek took us along the well worn paths we had trekked almost every day on the way to our sites. After several more hours the familiar sights of high canopied forest gave way to a thinner and lower canopy and finally we walked out onto high montain heath land surrounded by giant heather and everlasting flowers. Almost exhausted at the end of the day we lay in a field of red hot pokers next to our campsite and enjoyed the last of the sun’s warm rays. We were still on the outside of the caldera rim although it’s jagged contours appeared deceptively close. The porters slept in a low cave in a large boulder (known as "Hunters Cave"). They insisted this was the best place to sleep and looked at our tents with a degree of scepticism. The camp site backed by a small cluster of giant senacios and commanded the most incredible view, sweeping down the shallow gradient of the mountain over the forest canopy and on to a horizon blue and blurred with the distance. The next morning we all woke up surprised to see that both our tents and the surrounding area had a sparkling layer of frost and ice. Slightly bemused by this first feeling of intense cold since we had left Britain we all braved a wash in the stream, cooked some bread and  readied ourselves for the trek into the caldera. As the first light strengthened, a rainbow appeared over the cave. As we started to walk the sun gained strength and because of the thinness of the air we all had to don hats and suncream to avoid sunburn. By now we were all used to the lack of trees. The botanists were enthralled, and spent a great deal of  time trying to identify the bounty of new species we encountered. This caused slight frustration amongst the guides and porters who were always anxious to hurry us on. Martha was told on numerous occasions that it would take us a month to get up and down if she did not stop photographing every new floral species we passed.

Picture courtesy of EWP

In the late morning we found ourselves slogging up a steep rocky slope in the sun, then suddenly we were on the edge of the caldera with a cool breeze blowing over us. It was an incredibly impressive sight, much larger than any of us had imagined (8km across). The rim is broken into a series of jagged peaks and pinnacles, surrounding a shallow basin filled with low-lying vegetation and dotted with giant senatios and lobelias. Small rivers traced their way deep into the rock, forming many waterfalls. Duikers were glimpsed darting off through the scrub, as we made our way down to the Suam river in the bottom of the huge basin. The Suam river cuts the caldera nearly in half and forms the border between Uganda and Kenya. We walked several kilometers into the centre then down the Suam gorge the most spectacular break in the caldera rim and the site of some hot springs. As we got closer to the sulphurous smell the entire Ugandan contingent produced a range of empty bottles that had hither to been hidden. They had previously salvaged all possible vessels that could hold any water from our rubbish bin. It was believed on the mountain that the water from here had fantastic curative properties for just about every ailment known to man. This water was very precious as not many people are able to come this far up the mountain. Slightly more sceptical as to the abilities of this water the British contingent contented themselves with warming their hands and feet in the water. Almost immediately after we had been told that this spot was also popular with the wild buffalo (they come to lick the walls around the spring as a mineral supplement) we were advised to leave as several dead buffalo and some poachers had been spotted on the other (Kenyan) side of the river. As the rangers wanted to ensure our safety we were made to retrace our path back up into the centre of the caldera as fast as we could. It amazed the group that in the midst of such an urgent retreat Martha still maintained her interest in the details of the flora and had to be persuaded not to stop to collect specimens. The guards we were with were visibly upset by the deaths of the buffaloes and were determined to tackle the poachers as soon as they could make sure we were safely out of the way. As the poachers had several tonnes of meat to smoke and transport from the caldera the rangers calculated that they would be there for about a week.

That night we camped next to a huge and solitary pile of boulders exactly in the centre of the caldera. This was my our favourite camp site as the distant and jagged wall of the rim surrounding us gave a feeling of great solitude and concealment from the outside world. The following morning we set off for the highest point on the rim a peak called Wagagai (4321m). After traveling the 4km to the rim, we split up from our porters and our equipment, sending them through a break in the rim on to our next camp site. Accompanied by our ranger we climbed a steep heather-covered slope. After an hour of climbing we noticed that our porters down below had started running. We found out later that they had seen two cattle rustlers and fearing the theft of our luggage they had ran to avoid meeting them. The final stage of our hike up Wagagai was slow and laborious as these were the steepest gradients we had encountered. The effort was rewarded by the most fantastic views into the caldera and over the idyllic lakes that were spotted round the area. As we neared the top, a large dark cloud rolled in on us. The sun was completely blocked out and the temperature suddenly dropped to freezing temperatures. As a result the summit did not provide the magnificent view we had hoped for. Instead we stood getting frozen and drenched by sleet beside a small cairn at the top, surrounded by  cloud. After George told us, "my hands refuse to move in their specific directions" and we all decided we were just as cold and retreated in search of a better climate. On the way down, to our great surprise it started snowing. This we were told, was a very uncommon experience. As would be expected, a snowball fight ensued. In the UK we had all laughed at Mark when he cunningly packed a pair of ski-gloves and all now competed to borrow them. The Ugandans with us were at first shocked by what must have seemed to them to be violent and illogical behaviour but soon realised it was fun and joined in whole heartedly.

Upon reaching Mude Cave where our third night was to be spent we discovered all our luggage in a pile. It was all intact despite the porter’s hurried retreat from the rustlers and had been put under the fly sheet of our Himalayan Hotel, but as the fly sheet was actually touching the luggage, everything was soaked. Mark decided to squeeze into the tiny cave with the porters but the rest of us tried to dry out the tent with our towels and eventually went to sleep almost floating on our sleeping mats over a pool of water.

The rangers walked several hours from Mude cave down to Sasa patroll hut to report our encounters with the poachers and mobilized a team of rangers to return to the hot springs to catch them. Dr Edroma, director of the Uganda Wildlife Authority, has since informed us that in response to this incident, security measures within the park have been increased and extra patrol units have been assigned to the caldera and to combat poaching in general.

After returning to what was our original base camp (Piswa Patroll Hut) by another route, we threw a party for the rangers and guards that had helped us on the mountain. A goat had been bought before the ascent for the occasion and was enjoyed by all (except Mark who saw it being killed and gutted, and Martha who received a blow by blow description of how the animal met it’s end from Mark during the feast). Although each of us felt a great sense of achievement as we had now completed all our work and had visited the summit, we were all very sad to be leaving our ranger and porter friends, and the mountain which we had all learned so much about. The expedition drew to a close with much speech making from ourselves and the rangers which became more elaborate as the beer began to flow. That night we all slept in the rangers hut, reunited with our half a tonne of scientific equipment. In the morning the last goodbyes were said and a grand procession of porters wound its way down the mountain.
 
 

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