Black volcanic beaches in the shadow of Mount Cameroon — Cameroon's Atlantic coast hidden gem
Limbe is a small coastal city in Cameroon's South West Region, sitting at the foot of Mount Cameroon — the highest peak in West and Central Africa (4,040m) — where volcanic lava flows have created dramatic black-sand beaches unlike anything else on the continent. The Limbe Wildlife Centre holds rescued chimpanzees, gorillas, drills, and other primates in large semi-forested enclosures, making it one of the most important primate sanctuaries in Africa. The town's Botanic Garden, established by the Germans in 1892, remains one of the finest tropical botanical collections in sub-Saharan Africa.
Limbe was established as Victoria by Alfred Saker, a British Baptist missionary, in 1858 as a settlement for freed slaves — one of the earliest planned coastal settlements in what would become British Cameroon. The town passed to Germany (Kamerun) after 1887 and became a significant port during the rubber boom. After WWI it returned to British administration as part of the British Cameroons mandate, and joined the Federal Republic of Cameroon in 1961. The town was renamed Limbe in 1982 — 'limbe' means 'clear water' in the local Mokpe language. Mount Cameroon's most recent significant eruption…