Mount Elgon National Park

Mount Elgon is an extinct volcano straddling the Uganda-Kenya border, and although its highest point Wagagai reaches 4321 metres, the mountain is best known for its caldera, around forty kilometres across and among the largest in the world. The Ugandan side, some 1,110 square kilometres, has been a national park since 1992, the Kenyan side since 1968. Trekking routes climb through montane forest and bamboo into moorland with giant lobelias and groundsels. Caves on the lower slopes are visited by elephants that come in at night to gouge salt from the rock walls with their tusks.

Highlights

• The caldera - one of the largest volcanic calderas in the world, around forty kilometres wide.
• The salt caves - caves where elephants gouge minerals from the rock at night.
• The giant lobelias - Afro-alpine plants on the moorland above the tree line.
• Wagagai peak - the summit at 4321 metres, reached without technical climbing.

When to go

June to August and December to March are the drier windows and the best for trekking. The rains make the trails very difficult. Nights above three thousand metres are below freezing.

What to expect

Treks take four to six days and need guides, porters and permits arranged in advance. The elephants in the caves are nocturnal and are very rarely seen. Trails are muddy even in the dry season.

Nearby

Sipi Falls is on the lower slopes, and Mbale is west.

Key facts