Page 30 - 2009 AMA Winter

HIGH ALTITUDE TREKKING IN UGANDA
Exercise DRAGON MABIRA - Uganda May 2009 by L/Cpl Robertson
Ex DRAGON MABIRA was an expedi- they were equally as worried about catch- 16 May 09
tion to the Rwenzori Mountains in
Uganda with the aim of climbing Margherita Peak on Mt Stanley; at 5109m (16 763ft) it is the third highest peak in Africa and considered to be more technical than Mt Kilimanjaro or Mt Kenya. The six day accent to Margherita Peak would give the team the opportunity to see the con- trast of relief and vegetation on offer in the Rwenzoris, from thick primary jungle up to the snow covered peaks.
14 May 09
The first day involved all the necessary admin needed before any exercise. This took the form of documentation checks and also because of the sheer amount of equipment needed by each team member a certain amount of redistributing was needed to bring the weight down to airline requirements. Once checked in at Heathrow, everyone was eager to have one last substantial meal as they were appre- hensive about what exactly would be on offer in Uganda. We would soon learn this apprehension was just; meals would often be .....on the small side. After the ‘the last supper’ we departed on the 8 hr flight to Entebbe International Airport, Uganda.
15 May 09
On arrival in Entebbe airport we all had a swine flu form stamped by staff wearing surgical masks; after all the medical briefin- gs back in the UK I found it surprising that
ing something from us. We were greeted by SSgt Cocking from the FCO who showed us to our bus, in the VIP area(!) and the team then left for the Red Chilli Backpackers, our first night’s accommoda- tion. Soon after arrival at Red Chilli we were given a full briefing by Lt Col Etherington from the FCO; the main dangers in Uganda it appears are RTAs and we were strongly advised against using the Boda Boda motorbike taxis. The embassy staff were also presented with a box of PG tips and Stilton they requested from the UK, both in short supply in the country. We then head- ed off into the city in order to exchange money; the logical step after this of course was to get back to Red Chilli for some ‘Nile Special’ lager (5.6%) - quite strong but tasted really smooth. A few exped mem- bers found this out the hard way with a sore head for the 8 hr bus ride the next day to Kasese.
Bog, bog and more bog!
Most of day three was taken up with the journey west across the country to the town of Kasese in the foothills of the Rwenzori Mountains. It was remarkable how friendly the locals were when they saw a bus full of ‘Muzungus’ (white men). People would often run over and wave at the bus with a genuine friendliness. There was a brief stop for lunch in Fort Portal, some of the team opted for the chef’s spe- cial, Chicken Lawumboo but I would strongly advise the reader against it, unless you have a particular liking for chicken bones wrapped in banana leaves that is! We arrived at the White House hotel in Kasese, had dinner, packed our kit and got a goodnight’s sleep ready for the expedi- tion to start.
17 May 09
We set off at 0830 hrs for the Rwenzori Mountaineering Services (RMS)
28 ARMY MOUNTAINEER
One of many sights we were privileged to see