SEE & DO
Dedza Mountain
This impressive mountain, its upper slopes protected within the Dedza Mountain Forest Reserve, rises to 2,198m on the northern outskirts of Dedza Town. The mountain is largely covered in plantation forest, but there are still remnant patches of evergreen and riverine forest on the upper slopes, supporting typical forest animals such as samango monkey, bush pig, baboon and even leopard. The indigenous forest is also notable for birds and epiphytic orchids, while more open areas are rich in wild flowers after the rains.
The mountain can be climbed as a day trip from town, starting from behind the Golf Club Resthouse and using any of several converging and diverging routes that head in the rough direction of the (frequently visible) communications antennae on foot, or you can drive along a reasonably well-maintained road. The guards who look after the antennae can give you directions to good vantage points, offering views as far as Lake Malawi on clear days. To reach the summit from here, you need to continue for another 3km along the ridge.
