MlCRO-METHS – RUNGWE, TANZANIA. 19-20 October, 1996
Dave (Lord of the Big Ruo) Harrison
reports:
Resisting the magnetic
attractions of Southern Tanzania,
Meths Members stayed away from this meet in droves. Undeterred, the two stalwart participants
- Harrison and McMullan - converged on the regional
capital of Mbeya on the Friday night, where base camp was soon established in the flat of genial
Bob Brayshaw.
The two were regaled by their host with tales of
robbery, violence, carjackings and
murder from this most crime-ridden spot in Tanzania. Keen to be away the following
morning - for a number of reasons - 6.00 a.m. saw the two on the road for Rungwe Secondary school and Moravian Mission, some 10 miles
from Tukuyu.
At the
school one guide was requested, two were
offered and three turned up - a standard business method in Tanzania.
Leaving the school (4,600'), the party travelled east for an hour through maize shambas, including a depressing area recently destroyed by burning for cultivation. The path then swung north into the
extensive forests which cloak most of the slopes of the mountain. The last
water source was passed shortly after entering the forest, after which a four hour climb at a
steady gradient saw the party emerge from the forest a mere stone's throw from
the summit.
Guides dismissed, camp was made on the summit ridge as a thunderstorm moved closer. Aluminium tent poles
suddenly seemed not such a good idea and McMullan, emulating the Mad Axeman,
appeared brandishing a Swiss army
knife and two custom-carved
protea tent poles.
Despite the
altitude (9,770’), vegetation is still
dense at the summit and conditions
are much milder than the top of Sapitwa,
which is only 100‘ higher. Views
from the top were restricted by haze/smoke and cloud and hence Lake Nyasa (or
Malawi, depending on one's point of view) was not visible but the Porotos to the
north-west and Ngozi and Mbogo peaks to the
north and east were sighted. Good
views of the rest of the Rungwe Massif were obtained across the explosion crater and
the northern route to the summit was clearly visible.
The mountain
offers much scope for further
exploration though sources of water would need
to be found if an extended visit were
planned. No evidence of wood cutting or hunting was seen and it is likely that much of the mountain is
seldom, if ever, visited.
The main route, used by our party, is much used
by local schoolchildren as the ascent
is clearly a popular form of sporting challenge with the Rungwe Secondary School and others. It appears however that all these expeditions have as their objective the fastest possible
ascent and overnight stops or deviations
from the main route are very rare. Descent
on the following morning was
accomplished in some four hours including one or two unintentional
diversions in the maze of tracks through the cultivation below the forest.
For a first ascent, guides are essential and
the Rungwe Secondary School is geared up to this. Notwithstanding this, the usual haggling over rates can be expected. Timing is something of a problem, the dry season only lasting for around three months from August to October. Also a
return day trip occupies at least nine hours and the guides are reluctant to start much later than 6.00 a.m. We solved this by camping on top but potential day trippers would need to spend
a night near the school, the Moravian Mission adjacent to the school
or camping.
DAH
© METHS, 2023