Climate
Rwenzoris are definitely alpine, however equatorial they may be, this is rough. Expect rain in all seasons, and avoid the rainy season march - jun, september-october. It is muddy, wet and windy, and weather changes in minutes.Although the RMS see fees/permits rent equipment, this is not high quality stuff. Bring your own WARM sleeping bag, mat, and waterproof, high quality mountaineering clothes. You will need it.
If you go for the less exhilerating community walks from Kilembe, some warm underwear, jacket, and ordinary shoes will do.
Landscape, flora and fauna
Up to 2100m is generally inhabited and cultivated, with mixed harvests as bananas, potatoes, yumyums and coffee. The coffee-enthusiasts can find local coffee beans at the sunday/wednesday morning market in Kilembe. 2100 - 3000m is forested with heavy underbush, trees rarely exeeding 30meters, and bamboo forests. You may meet monkeys and chimpanzees, elephants and big cats are very rare.3000-3800m is still forested, but with increasingly distinguished flora, trees with hanging moss. Alpine zone starts from 3800m
Understand
Rwenzori National Park is a mountain range in south-west Uganda bordering the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is 120 km 75 mi long and 48 km 30 mi wide, covering almost 100 000 ha. The highest peak is Mt. Margherita 5109 m, though Mt. Speke 4980 is the more popular and less daunting climb. The region's glaciers, waterfalls and lakes make it one of Africa's most beautiful alpine areas, according to UNESCO (http://whc.unesco.org/en/...) the end of 2006, its ice cap has retreated from 6.4 square kilometres 2.5 sq mi a century ago, to less than a 1.28 square kilometres 0.5 sq mi.
History
The area has for political reasons been off limits for long periods. The last couple of years it has been stable, and tourism is picking up, though 500 visitors a year at the great circuit is not exactly mass tourism.
The war in Congo is of course a concern, but it is less than likely to run into the LRA in the alpine areas of Rwenzori, nor in the Ugandan hillsides in the east.