When I was young, Radio Rwanda used to play a song that had a line "dore ibyiza byo gutura mu midugudu” encouraging people to live in group settlements where they can easily access health care and education services, among others.

I only found this song relevant when I went to hike Kijabagwe Mountain in Shyorongi Sector, Rulindo District. The A-Team, a group of weekend hikers only refer to it as Rulindo, and it is their favourite spot. This mountain is so steep, to the extent that we used our arms to hold on to grass and feet to climb. It was like we were on a ladder, or just a cocktail of mountain climbing and rock climbing.

I could imagine if a woman was pregnant and had to go all the way to the peak where she could get transport services, or if there were students who had to walk to school in such a steep, rocky place. Or what if it rained when a person was an hour or two away from the peak, what would they do?

Forget everything I said about Kanyinya the last time. Even Kagame, a local artist said in his song "Amadeni” that "Uzabaze Pendo ibyo nakoreye i Rulindo” for "Ask Pendo what I did in Rulindo”, and I am sure he meant climbing mountains. How can it be something else?

Last time, I had sworn to never go hiking again. But it was really nice; the view, the feeling of accomplishment and the people we had met who had interesting stories throughout the hike.

There I was, waiting for a bike at 6:00am with thick fog that one couldn’t even look 10 meters far. I checked the time again to confirm if it wasn’t at least an hour earlier. It was very cold and I wanted to go back to bed because honestly, there are better ways to spend a Saturday, like sleeping until midday or something restful.

I had to go hiking anyway, I could rest after the hike and procrastination goes against 2022 energy’s ‘New year, new goals.’ 

The writer (third left) poses for a picture with members of the weekend hiking team before ascending Kijabagwe mountain in Rulindo District.

More than 60 people had shown up for the hike, and it was so exciting. I could imagine the jokes that were to be made, funny songs we would sing on our way up and the sense of accomplishment. I had survived the last hike and thought I would stand up to any challenge now.

We were in a large circle at Riverside Motel known as ‘Arsenal’ at Gitikinyoni when the Captain announced that such a jolly crowd only deserved a nice hike in Rulindo. Experienced hikers cheered and made some noise before we set off to Dian Fossey Hotel in Shyorongi where we would park and hit the trail.

The good thing about Rulindo is that you start by descending from the mountain, which at this point, I think is harder than climbing up. 10 seconds when we started the journey, three people had already slid down the slope. The rescue team was doing their best to hand over people to each other and only those who didn’t get their hands held fell in the muddy grass. I started wondering if we would really make it because what an exciting way to start your trail!

We went down the mountain for more than an hour and my legs began to shake. The trail was a mixture of big rocks and muddy grass. I slid and fell to my knees, and in like 2 seconds, two strong hands were lifting me up already. They told me to wait for a bit to see if I don’t bleed or have another problem. Meanwhile, I was rushing so that they don’t get to see a big girl like me cry and shout at the same time because it was really painful.

After every milestone, the team usually waits for slow hikers who really take their time so they don’t feel discouraged that the journey is long. They call that "Inama” for "meeting,” and some team members have a couple of them to even rest for a bit. You can have as many meetings as you want.

The writer poses for a picture before the going gets tough.

We crossed about three rivers before we started to ascend, and people who had been there before would tell us that if we manage to descend, going up the mountain would be very easy. Well, they were so wrong because close to 20 meetings were held on the way.

When I saw how steep the mountain looked, I asked a colleague if it was the one were going to hike. He laughed and said "yeah, but we only go around it,” which was not completely true.

But the view was amazing! We were like in the middle of very green mountains, and river Nyabarongo meandering on the base of each one of them, with green bamboos lining on its shores all through.

It reminded me of Yvonne Mutakwasuku, former Muhanga district leader who apparently promised President Kagame that she would make its water look pure. Not a bad idea if you ask me.

Also, coffee plantations, beans, wild flowers and beautiful cascades, among others, would make the journey feel a little bearable.

Another beautiful aspect of Rulindo is that when you feel like you can’t ascend anymore, then there comes a descending moment, and then the same story. It is a cocktail of "I would rather climb up” and "I think I prefer descending” ideas running in your head. This makes the hike a little bit simpler, but the peak is never in sight, so any less steep ground may trick you into thinking you have made it.

Reaching the peak felt like a dream, after almost four hours of sweating and using the whole body to see myself on top of the mountain. And all I could think of was to be grateful for whoever planted trees on that mountain that not only supported me on my way down so that I don’t roll down, but also for the fresh cool air under the scorching sun. I now look forward to the next challenge, and hope it will be even harder and greener.