Mount Elgon National Park

Size: 1,121km²

This extinct volcano is one of Uganda's oldest geological features, having first erupted around 24 million years ago. Mt. Elgon was once Africa's highest mountain, far exceeding Kilimanjaro's current height of 5,895 meters.

Millennia of erosion have reduced its height to 4,321m, relegating it to the 4th-highest peak in East Africa and the 8th-highest on the continent. Mount Elgon is home to two tribes, the Bagisu and the Sabiny, with the marginalized Ndorobos forced to dwell deep within the forest of Benet.

The Bagisu, also known as the BaMasaba, consider Mount Elgon to be the embodiment of their founding father Masaba and refer to the mountain by this name.

At 4,000 km², Mount Elgon has the largest volcanic base in the world. Located on the Uganda-Kenya border, it is also the oldest and largest solitary volcanic mountain in East Africa. Its vast form, 80 kilometers in diameter, rises more than 3,000 meters above the surrounding plains.

The mountain's tremendous heights offer respite from the hot plains below, with the higher altitudes providing a refuge for flora and fauna. The higher slopes are protected by national parks in Uganda and Kenya, creating an extensive transboundary conservation area which has been declared a UNESCO Man and Biosphere Reserve.

A climb on Mount Elgon's deserted moorlands unveils a magnificent and uncluttered wilderness, unlike the summit-oriented approach common to many mountains. The ultimate goal of reaching the top of Mount Elgon is not the final ascent to the 4321 meters Wagagai Peak, but rather the descent into the vast 40 kilometers caldera.