Albertine rift valley (western side of the eastern rift valley)

This is the western part of the East African rift valley, and it spans the boarders of various countries for instance Democratic republic of Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. The Albertine rift valley stretches over a distance of 1000km extending from the northern end of Lake Albert to the southern end of Lake Tanganyika. It is one of the few rich regions with a high number of vertebrate species with in the African continent.

The Albertine rift valley is mainly composed of mountains such as Rwenzori mountains, and the Virunga ranges, valleys, lakes such as Lake Victoria, Lake Edward and Lake Kivu, rivers such as the White Nile and river Semiliki, forests and also vegetation cover.

The Albertine rift valley vegetation compromises intermediate, that is, between lowland and montane forests occurring at elevations from around 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) to 1,750 metres (5,740 ft). Montane forests covering the slopes from around 1,600 metres (5,200 ft) to 3,500 metres (11,500 ft) and the areas above 2,400 metres (7,900 ft) are made of bamboo and elfin forest. Heather and grasses are predominate above 3,500 metres (11,500 ft).

Landscape of the Albertine rift valley

The Albertine rift valley is mainly composed of mountains, valleys and escarpments for example from the north to south parts you can spot these mountain ranges. They include Lendu plateau, Virunga mountains, Rwenzori mountains and also itombwe mountains. This landscape is mainly based on the diversity of the climatic regions.

 Mountains in Albertine rift valley

Rwenzori mountains

The Rwenzori ranges also referred to as Ruwenzori, is situated in the south western parts of Uganda bordering the Democratic Republic of Congo, on the eastern sides of the western rift valley. The mountain is also referred to as the mountains of the moon due to its permanently glaciated and snow capped peak, Magherita.

The massifs of the Rwenzori mountain include; Mount Stanley, mount Speke, mount Baker, mount Emin, mount Luigi Di Savio and mount Gessi.

However, there are still some isolated mountain blocks that are in the southern parts of the Albertine rift valley and they include Kungwe-Mahale mountains (western Tanzania), Mount Marungu in (DRC), and also Mount Kabobo (western Tanzania).

Virunga massif of Albertine rift valley

The Virunga massif is a chain of Volcanic mountains in East Africa situated along the boarder between DRC, Uganda and Rwanda. These mountains are found between Lake Edward and Lake Kivu. The Virunga massif is composed of eight volcanoes and two of them are still highly active  which is (Nyamuragira and Nyiragongo) in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The 8 volcanoes of the Virunga massif include mount Karisimbi, Mount Nyamuragira, Mount Bisoke, Mount Nyiragongo and many others.

The Virunga massif is popularly known for its rich biodiversity including being home to one of the world’s most endangered species, the mountain gorillas.

The Virunga massif is also composed of national parks that is, Virunga National Park (DRC), Mgahinga gorilla national park (Uganda) and also volcanoes national park (Rwanda)

Lakes and rivers

The Albertine rift valley is also a home to many rivers and lakes including Lake Rutanzige also known as Lake Edward, Lake Albert and many others.

Lake Edward is fed by various large rivers including Rutshuru river then drains its waters through Semliki River into Lake Albert. The Victoria Nile flows its waters from Lake Victoria into the northern ends of lake Albert and exists as White Nile that flows northwards into the Mediterranean Sea.

In the southern parts of Virunga, Lake Kivu flows through the Ruzizi River and pours its waters into Lake Tanganyika then from here Lake Tanganyika drains its waters into the Congo river via Lukuga river.

Bio diversity of the Albertine rift valley

The Albertine rift valley is one of those areas in Africa with a rich bio diversity and is highly important for global conservation. Being one of the most highly bio diverse areas in Africa, the Albertine rift valley has numerous attractions for example bird species, mammals, amphibians and plants.

Other than the numerous attractions, this place also harbours the human population with over 1000 people per square km.

The best time to visit Albertine rift valley

The western part of eastern lift valley or call it Albertine rift valley can be visited through out the year with different activities being done at different times of the year. From hiking to sport fishing all activities can be done with that region of great rift valley region of east Africa. The best time to visit this region will entirely depend on what you are interested in to do on your visit to this region.

Dry season of June to September and December to February is the best time for the game drive safaris and hiking activities plus gorilla trekking as the terrains where these activities are done tend to be slippery and the skies are less clear during the wet season which might greatly affect your experience during your visit to the region.

However, the wet season of march to May and October to December are considered to be the best months for the bird enthusiast as more birds tend to migrate to different parks in this region to add on already rich bird diversity in the region.

Our Safari Packages that covers Albertine rift valley region

The 3 days Rwanda gorilla Tour takes you through the Kigali, for the city tour to Volcanoes national park where you will have a life time experience, visiting the mountain gorillas and live you with a memorable experience from the unforgettable photos and videos you will take, a visit to the twin Lakes

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The 6 Days Rwanda Primate tour Covers two National parks, Nyungwe and Volcanoes National park. In the first place, the Visitor will enjoy the Chimpanzee tracking, canopy walk then Continue to enjoy the Gorilla tracking and visiting the Twin Lakes of Rubondo and Bulera.

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This is the most rewarding adventure among all adventure safaris in Rwanda, it explores the 3 Rwanda’s National Parks. The adventure starts from and ends in Kigali, tracking through Akagera National Park for wildlife rewarding boat cruise and game drive, Volcanoes National Park for gorilla trekking

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