Virunga Mountains: History|Facts and Tours

The Virunga Mountains are a volcanic range north of Lake Kivu in east-central Africa, ranging roughly 50 miles (80 kilometers) along the borders of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda. The range flows east-west, perpendicular to the rift valley that contains Lakes Kivu and Edward. The highest of its eight major volcanic peaks is Karisimbi, which stands at 14,787 feet (4,507 metres). The term Virunga “Volcanoes,” which is likely of Swahili origin, has supplanted the previous Mufumbiro “That Which Cooks,” which is still used in Uganda. Individual volcanoes have Rwandan descriptive names such as Sabinio (Sabinyo; “Old Man with Large Teeth”) and Muhavura, “Landmark,” or “Guide.”

Virunga Mountains|Gorilla Safaris

All six volcanoes in the center and east are inactive. Mikeno and Sabinio are the oldest, dating back to the early Pleistocene Epoch (which began around 2,600,000 years ago and lasted until around 11,700 years ago); their craters have vanished, and erosion has left a jagged relief. Later in the Pleistocene (900,000 to 130,000 years ago), Karisimbi, Visoke, Mgahinga, and Muhavura emerged, with all maintaining Karisimbi having a crater top. The Muhavura crater contains a tiny lake. Nyiragongo and Nyamulagira appeared at the western end of the chain less than 20,000 years ago, each having large craters. Nyiragongo’s main crater is approximately three-quarters of a mile (1.2 kilometers) in diameter and features a liquid lava pool.

The lava field that surrounds each of these volcanoes remains active, with significant eruptions in 1912, 1938, 1948, the 1970s, and 2002. Many times, a lava torrent touched Lake Kivu’s beach. The 2002 Nyiragongo eruption damaged part of the nearby city of Goma, Congo, displacing thousands. Many smaller cones border the larger volcanoes.

In 1861, John Hanning Speke, a British explorer, viewed the Virunga Mountains from a distance; in 1876, British explorer Sir Henry Morton Stanley had a clear but distant view of the three eastern volcanoes, and in 1894, German adventurer Count Adolf von Götzen examined the two western volcanoes. The first maps were created during Adolf Friedrich, Duke of Mecklenburg’s great expedition in 1907–08. The western volcanoes are accessible today via Goma and Gisenyi (Rwanda); the remaining mountains are located along the roads that connect Goma and Rutshuru (Congo), Kisoro (Uganda), and Ruhengeri and Gisenyi (Rwanda).

The Virunga Mountains rise from densely populated plateaus occupied primarily by Rwandan farmers and, in certain regions, cattle herders. The southern region of Congo’s Virunga National Park features the mountains within Congo; the southern flanks of the central and eastern ranges include Volcanoes National Park in northern Rwanda; and Gorilla National Park includes the Ugandan slopes of Mgahinga. Conservation efforts protect the mountain’s alpine vegetation as well as animals such as the golden monkey and mountain gorilla.