Karisimbi, “White Shell” in Kinyarwanda, is a dormant volcano in northern Rwanda, part of the Virunga Mountains on the border with the DRC.
After a somewhat chaotic bus journey, I arrived in Musanze where my guide, Jones, picked me up. He was excited to break the record for climbing the mountain and showed me an Instagram post claiming that “a mighty hiker from the UK dares to conquer Karisimbi in one day.” I was annoyed he’d misspelt handsome, but I was up for the challenge.
Unbeknown to me, I’d inadvertently signed up for this supposed record attempt. Though no official record exists, park guards said finishing in a single day was rare and required government permission. The fastest they’d heard of was ten hours - the stage was set.
After a short acclimatisation hike (thankfully I was still fresh from Kilimanjaro), we woke before dawn to get our permits. Due to admin issues, Jones couldn’t join me. Instead, I was accompanied by a full patrol of the Rwandan army - machine guns, rocket launchers and all. Their commander said it was to protect me from gorillas, though I suspect rebel groups were the real concern.
Armed with enough firepower to start our own militia, we climbed through the forests and up to the summit. I tried to get the soldiers in my summit photo for effect - they politely declined. “What if I held the machine gun?” I gestured. The soldier turned to his colleague, then shook his head. Foiled again.
Victorious, we descended to regroup with the rest of our military entourage before heading back. I was flying home later that day, so with no time to celebrate, I showered and hopped straight on the bus.
Note: I have registered this as an unsuported attempt, I carried all my own food, water and myself up and back under my own steam. I was however, required by law to have a military escort. While there’s no official Fastest Known Time (FKT) for Mt Karisimbi, my 8:22:04 may be the fastest “tourist” ascent. I needed special government approval and proof I could manage it in one day (usually two). That said, the Rwandan military look like they could eat the mountain for breakfast - and likely have