Cameroon is a country that is located in Central Africa and sits along the Gulf of Guinea. In terms of size the country is a medium sized African country, ranking as the 24th largest country out of the 54 in Africa. Outside of the country's coastline along the gulf, the interior of the country is luscious rainforests, vast grasslands, highlands, rolling hills and volcanic mountains. This article will discuss in detail the five largest mountains located in the country of Cameroon.
The five tallest mountains in Cameroon:
Dent de Babadjou
The mountain of Dent de Babadjou is the fifth tallest mountain in the country, reaching a elevation of 8,734 feet. The mountain is located in by the city of Mbouda in the department of Bamboutous, which is part of the West Region of the country. The area around the mountain is mostly hilly, however the western area around it is much more mountainous. The area in the vicinity of the mountain is relatively densely populated with the city of Mbouda being about 8.76 miles away. This area in the vicinity is also mostly made up of savanna woodland, contrasting the more hilly area directly around the mountain.
The mountain of Mekua is the fourth tallest mountain in the country, reaching a elevation of 8,868 feet (2,702 meters). The mountain is located in by the village of Fontem in the department of Lebialem, which is part of the South West Region of the country. The terrian around Mekuna is mountains in the southwest, but in the opposite direction of the northeast it becomes only hilly. The generally area within the wider range of the mountain is mostly made up of ssavanna woodland.
The mountain of Oku, also known as Kilum Mountain, is the third tallest mountain in the country, reaching a elevation of 9,250 feet (2,819 meters). Oku is the largest of the four volcanoes that make up the Oku Massif section in the Cameroon Volcanic Line. The mountain is located in the Northwest Region of the country in the Western High Plateau region, which is made up of mastiffs, mountains and savanna vegetation. The mountain is also cut by a large caldera, turned into a crater lake known as Lake Oku. The oldest rocks that make up the mountain are almost 25 million years old and the area around the mountain is the Kilum-Ijim forest, which is the largest remaining area of montane forest left in West Africa and home to several different endemic plant species. The area also has the highest spagnum (peat moss) bog in West Africa.
The mountain of Bottle Peak is the second tallest mountain in the country, reaching a elevation of 12,917 feet. The mountain is located near the Gulf of Guniea in the department of Fako, which is part of the Southwest province of the country. The immediate surroundings around the mountain are hilly and have mostly evergreen deciduous forest, with the terrain around the wider area of Bottle Peak being mostly mountainous. The closest city to the mountain is the city of Buea which is about 6.08 miles away.
Mount Cameroon (Mongo ma Ndemi or Fako)
Mount Cameroon, also called Mongo ma Ndemi or Fako, is the tallest mountain in the country, reaching a elevation of 13,255 feet. The mountain is also the highest point in the sub-Saharan part of Western and Central Africa, is the 28th tallest mountain in the world, has the fourth most prominent peak in Africa and the 31st most prominent peak on the planet. Mount Cameroon, located near the Gulf of Guinea, is found in the Southwest Province of the county and is part of the Cameroon Volcanic Line. The mountain is surrounded by tropical rainforest, although it has a bare summit apart from occasional snow. Although Mount Cameroon has no trees on it directly, it is the only place where Impatiens etindensis and IImpatiens grandisepala, two flowering plant species are found. The peak was first scaled by a Jamaican Baptist missionary Joseph Merrick at some point in the 1840s and is currently the location of the annual Mount Cameroon Race of Hope which serves as competitive race for runners. Mount Cameroon is a active stratovolcano and last erupted in 2012.
Why are mountains important:
Their are a number of different reasons why the mountains found in Cameroon, as well as all mountains around the world are important. Mountains have a major influence on not only the regional weather and climate of an area, but also on global weather and climate. Mountains can also provide a important source of biodiversity and a habitat for plants and animals, as well as helping to provide freshwater to many people and being the source of various rivers, lakes and streams. Speaking of people about 720 million people on Earth live on and directly around mountains.
|Rank||Highest Mountains in Cameroon||Elevation|
|1||Mount Cameroon (Mongo ma Ndemi or Fako)||13,255 feet|
|2||Bottle Peak||12,917 feet|
|5||Dent de Babadjou||8,734 feet|
|8||Lekwue Leloe||8,153 feet|
|9||Chappal Waddi||7,936 feet|