Alantika Mountains

The Alantika mountains rise on the border with Nigeria west of Poli, a rugged volcanic range standing some 1,300 metres above the Faro valley, and they are among the least accessible inhabited places in Cameroon. Koma communities live in the range, farming small terraced plots on the slopes and in the valleys, in settlements that are reached only on foot and that kept their distance from the states around them for a long time. The landscape is dry rock, scattered woodland and steep valleys, hot in the low ground and cooler at height. Visits require guides, permission, several days and a willingness to walk, and there is no infrastructure of any kind.

The landscape

• A volcanic range on the border - steep rock and dry woodland.
• Koma villages in the mountains - settlements reached only on foot.
• Terraced plots on the slopes - the farming worked into the rock.
• Deep valleys and high ground - the structure of the range.

When to go

November to February, the cool dry season. Two to three days minimum, most of it walking. Guides and local permission are essential and arranged from Poli.

Before you go

There is no infrastructure, no road access into the range and no medical help. Everything is walked and carried. Heat outside the cool months is dangerous. Communities here receive very few visitors and arrangements must be made respectfully in advance.

Nearby

Poli is north-east; the Nigerian border runs along the range.

Key facts