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Fishing Experiences on the Congo Nile Trail
Three connected boats, powered only by singing fishermen with no engine in sight — the Dutch TV crew was impressed! They came to Rwanda to film a travel documentary for 3 op Reis/BNNVARA, with the Congo Nile Trail as a featured highlight. Since the trail hugs Lake Kivu’s shore, capturing lake life was essential. Consider…
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Eggs! Eggs!! Eggs!!!
Let’s rewind to Christmas 2024 for a sec — remember what you were doing? Eating too much and dodging awkward family convos? Meanwhile, at Edirisa on Lake Bunyonyi we were on the edge of our seats. Because on 23 December, drumroll please, 300 fluffy little layer chicks landed — all alive (imagine that!!!), all peeping,…
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Fertile Trails: Hiking Through the Rich Soils of the Virungas
📁 HikingWhen your hike takes you into the rich agricultural soil of the Virungas — like our three Slovenian trekkers doing the Volcano Quest route from Lake Bunyonyi to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park — take a moment to fully appreciate the fertile wonder beneath your feet! Here, nothing goes uncultivated, and one could easily get addicted…
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Mama Nelly: A Pillar of Hospitality on the Congo Nile Trail
Mama Nelly has long been a beloved figure among travellers exploring Rwanda’s Congo Nile Trail (CNT). For years, she’s been offering delicious homemade meals to adventurers passing through her home village of Nkora. Stopping by her modest eatery has meant more than just a taste of traditional Rwandan cuisine; it has provided a genuine connection…
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Self-Declared Nomad With a Cam
Guess who’s been camping at Edirisa on Lake Bunyonyi for a week? Jonathan Fontaine – winner of a 2023 World Press award for documentary photography! He popped by for “just a couple of nights” (famous last words), and ended up sticking around much longer, bewitched by the calm charm of our village haven. Have a…
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Chillin’ on the Trail, Thanks to Mansuet
A good trekking guide can elevate your hiking experience no matter where you are. Here’s an example involving a group of British students on the Congo Nile Trail (CNT) … Amri, Amy, Georgie, Kitty, Matthew and Ryan were guided by Mansuet Umugwaneza — simply because Ryan thought it was important to have an expert at…
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Virunga Valley Academy: Why We Made Our Home in the Virungas
We could be based anywhere in the Gorilla Highlands region, but our choice is Musanze under the Virungas. The reason is very simple: it isn’t easy to get quality education in rural Africa, and here in the north of Rwanda we have found a remarkable international school. We’ve invited our little Lan to tell you…
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Cyimbili on the Congo Nile Trail: Now & 50 Years Ago
Cyimbili may well be the most peculiar overnight stay on the Congo Nile Trail. It’s staggeringly picturesque, lying right on the sandy Kivu waterfront and with an iconic island just off shore — yet it does not feature on everybody’s itinerary! Cyclists skip it because it’s a bit too close to Gisenyi/Rubavu while some hikers…
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Why Get a Guide for the Congo Nile Trail?
Are you wondering if it’s worth getting a guide for the Congo Nile Trail (CNT)?Whenever our team meets hikers or cyclists with a guide, they start talking about the greatness of their experience. But when we run into self-guided travellers, they ignore everybody else and head straight to the guide in our group. They have…
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20 Kilometres of Hiking Can Sound Terrifying!
Sure, sure — the Congo Nile Trail is supposed to be 227 kilometres (141 miles) in total. But that doesn’t mean you can’t just enjoy a day or two and still have a blast! Nuša and Marko’s adventure is a perfect example, so it shall be our showcase … The route through villages, fields and…
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Crazy Weather of Lake Bunyonyi
So, summer’s just about to pop its sunny little head round the corner. You’d think that’s all sunshine and hammocks, right? Well, not quite. Around Lake Bunyonyi the weather has been strange for almost a year, to put it mildly. First, there was too little rain and the farmers were worried. The locals were pointing…
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Mt Gahinga, the Volcano for Families & Beginners
If there’s a neglected child in the Virunga family of volcanoes, it’s Mt Gahinga. This “pile of stones” — as its name translates — is an ancient offshoot of Mt Muhabura, dating back some 100,000 years. At 3,474 metres (11,398 feet), it’s a proper mountain by any measure. But Gahinga sees remarkably few hikers. It…
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Virungas vs Bwindi: Where to Track Gorillas in 2025?
If you’re not a huge fan of crowds, wrestling through dense bushes or sweaty hikes, you may find that the Virunga volcanoes offer a more enjoyable gorilla tracking experience than the better-known Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Bwindi is Uganda’s go-to spot for seeing gorillas, but the Virungas — linking DR Congo, Rwanda and Uganda —…
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5 Historical and Cultural Curiosities of Lake Mutanda
Lying in between Uganda’s Mgahinga and Bwindi National Parks, Lake Mutanda is a handy spot to relax after your gorilla tracking. There is much more on offer here, however, than its awesome views of the Virungas and many water sports … 1. Island of the Dead, Kyangushu The island was traditionally used as a burial…
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How to Get Out of Musanze Caves with Photos You’ll Treasure
It’s always nice to be surprised, to come across something unexpected. A field of wildflowers on your game drive, perhaps. Or a cave system when you think you are in Musanze merely to hike the Virungas and see gorillas? It’s a nice way to spend 2.5 hours with an expert local guide, and you don’t…
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Volcanoes That Connect Old Friends
“Slowly by slowly,” as people say here, we’ve been building a library of tales from the Virunga volcanoes, of the lakes that cradle them, and the towns that breathe beneath their gaze. Years into this journey, the time has come to shine a deeper light on this sacred spine of the Gorilla Highlands region. Here,…
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No Land, No Problem: Lake Bunyonyi’s House Boat
Tourism round Lake Bunyonyi? Still pretty fresh, buddy! Before Dr Sharp opened his guesthouse in the 1920s, hardly anyone beyond the town of Kabale had a clue this slice of paradise even existed — land was dirt cheap ’cos it was all just farmland. You could spot the locals who wandered into Kabale from a…
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Rest in Peace, Pleasure Katusiime (June 2024 – April 2025)
Before we all dive headfirst into the craziness of a new week, we want to take a moment and raise a feathered toast to a tiny legend who somehow stole all our hearts — our cheeky little Pleasure Katusiime (or just PK, if you were lucky enough to know her). She wasn’t just flapping about…
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