National parks in Uganda - Nationalparks in Uganda

Location map of Uganda
Kampala
Kampala
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Murchison Falls
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Kidepo Valley
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Mt. Elgon NP
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Bwindi NP
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Mgahinga
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Bunyonyi lake
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Kibale NP
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Lake Mburo
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QENP
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Ruwenzori
Uganda with the national parks
Wildlife in Ugandan National Parks
Lioness in the tree in QENP.

To visit the National parks in Uganda is a permit (permit) the 1 Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), 7 Kita Rd, at the National Museum in Kampala, necessary. The fees due, foreigners pay about three times as much, are calculated from a daily fee (24 hours) per person plus entry fee for vehicles, depending on their size and whether it is a car registered in Uganda or abroad, the latter is a hefty price tag . Extra may still be received Gorilla permit.

Hikes must then be organized / paid for on site, the ranger provided (also for car tours) costs extra.

You can contact the UWA or one of the numerous tour operators that are members of the Association of Uganda Tour Operators are, book safaris or tours. There are no upper price limits, depending on the chosen package. Practically all accommodations in the parks are luxury class. Most often, indigenous-style huts are offered (bandas) or permanently erected living tents.

Individual national parks

Plants in Ugandan national parks
Scarfling (Gymnopilus) in Kibale NP.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Around half of the world's mountain gorillas live in this 321 km² showpiece, rightly recognized as a World Heritage Site. There is also a rich flora with around 160 tree species and around one hundred different ferns. There are also 348 species of birds, 23 of which are endemic, and 225 butterflies, eight of which only live in the region. Many species are threatened with extinction.

The park is divided into four sectors, named after localities: Rushaga Sector, Nkuringo Sector, Buhoma Sector, Ruhija Sector.

A total of 88 Gorilla permits sold, waiting times of five months are common, for the high season it can be up to two years. If no animals are found, there are refunds. Ten gorilla families live in the park and wander around. It makes sense to book accommodation and living space close together. There has been an opportunity for two gorilla families living in the Ruhija sector since 2014 Gorilla habituation permit book for US $ 1500. A four-hour contact (instead of the usual one hour) is guaranteed.

There are guided hikes along certain routes:

  • Kashasha River Trail, 8-9 hours, at the end an ascent of 600 meters in altitude.
  • Mubwindi Swamp Trail, 4-5 hours.
  • Bamboo trail (in the Ruhija sector), 7 hours with an ascent to the 2600 m high Rwamunyonyi Hill.
  • Muzabajiro Loop Trail, 3-4 hours, ascent to Rukubira Hill.
  • Ivy River Trail, 6-7 hours, 14 km through the jungle on the path between Nkuringo and Buhooma. There is also a shorter, more direct route between these villages. Alternatively, a trip to the Munyanga waterfall (33 m) is also available.
  • Ruizi River Trail, all day. Especially for bird watchers.
  • BaTwa Experience, leads into the surrounding area to the pygmies, whose resettlement was necessary (and armed) due to the designation of the national park.
  • Bird watching tours around Buhoma and Ruhija.

getting there

The 520 km (8-9 hours) from Kampala on the route to Kabale (420 km) then further 110 km via Kanungu-Kanyantorogo to the Buhoma Park headquarters. Alternatively from Kabale 95 km via Ruhija and Buhoma.

From Kampala buses go to Butogota (via Rukungiri and Kihiihi) a village 17 km from Buhoma, which can be reached by taxi.

Of Kigali you should expect a 3-4 hour drive (border formalities). The company also has buses Virunga Express.

accommodation

Accommodation directory

Tour provider usually in a package with overnight stays

Immediately on the access road before the start of the parking in the area of ​​the 2 Bwindi Community Hospital a good fifteen accommodations in each price category are lined up.

trips

The Mutanda and Bunyonyi lakes and the forests of Echuya are also part of the park's surroundings. These have a lower protection status.

The 1 Bunyonyi lakeLake Bunyonyi in the Wikivoyage travel guide in a different languageLake Bunyonyi in the Wikipedia encyclopediaLake Bunyonyi in the Wikimedia Commons media directoryLake Bunyonyi (Q1010056) in the Wikidata database is free from schistosomiasis, hippos and crocodiles, so it is suitable for swimming. Canoes can be rented. There are 29 islets in the lake, some with more or less exclusive accommodations. The next larger town 1 cabal is 407 km from Kampala (Horizon bus) and 113 km from Kigali.

Kibale National Park

Tree house for observation in Kibale NP.

The park is 26 km². That closes in the south Kibale Forest Corridor Game Reserve that extends to Lake George (a total of 766 km²). On the other hand is the QENP.

The main attraction in Kibale NP are chimpanzees. 1450 specimens in 13 species were counted, which is the highest density of primate in the world. There are two 2-3 hour hikes from the information center every day. Eastern monkeys also come to the park (Allochrocebus lhoesti) and red colobus monkeys.

The non-tourist commercial use of the forest is not prohibited. On the one hand, you harvest wild Robusta coffee, on the other hand, logging occurs.

getting there

Out Kampala it is 300 km to the shortest distance 2 Fort portal. From here it's 26 km to the southeast 3 Kanyanchu. There is a camp and two lodges near the tourist information office.

If you branch off to the southwest in front of the park, you get to the small one Lake Nkuruba Nature Reserve With Community Camp (☎ 256 7732 66067. 2018: Huts in double 52-100000 USh) Here, too, foreigners are required to pay five times the parking fee (2018: 10000 USH). If you are lucky you can see different primates.

To the east of the park, in the Magombe Swamp, you have that Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary designated in which guided hikes for bird watching are offered.

accommodation

Directory of lodges

Kidepo Valley National Park

The 1442 km² park is primarily savannah. The area stretches along the valleys of the Kidepo and Naru rivers, the deepest points of which are 910 and 1200 m respectively. The heat 2 Kanatarok source is the only permanent one in the park, it is near the limit.

The Rothschild giraffes, which were still common in the 1960s, are largely extinct. The usual big savannah game, zebras, leopards, lions, cheetahs, around 600 elephants, African buffalos, spoonhounds and a good 500 species of birds live here. Characteristic plants are the liver sausage tree (Kigelia africana) especially on the Naru and the desert date (Balanites aegyptiaca).

The documentary film The Wild and the Brave was created in 1974. On the other side of the border is im South Sudan the protected area Kidepo Valley Reserve.

To stay overnight at Apoka there is the 1 UWA Campsite and the 2 Apoka Safari Lodge. The little one is in the park 1 Kidepo AirportKidepo Airport in the Wikipedia encyclopediaKidepo Airport (Q6404741) in the Wikidata database(ICAO: HUKD).

Lake Mburo National Park

The area of ​​a larger park was already a protected area in 1933. The natives of the Banyankole tribe continued to farm cattle until it was designated a national park in 1983. There was anti-government fighting in the region in 1985-6 Milton Obotes, the following government designated only about half of the original area as strictly protected with 370 km². You can see savanna animals such as zebras, warthogs, elan and ima antelopes as well as predators following them.

getting there

The park is about 30 km from 4 Mbarara away. This town is on the Kibale Highway. It is 267 km to Kampala via Masaka.

Mount Elgon National Park

The border with Kenya cuts through this 1110 km² park. On the Ugandan side you drive 225 km from Kampala 5 Mbale.

The slopes of the 4110 m high volcano are very rainy. Leopards, eland, buffalo, bushbuck and giant forest pigs live here. The few elephants still living here, an estimated 200, are shy. Occasionally they go into caves where they eat the salty soil.

The resettlements of the Sabiny tribe who lived here before the park was expelled were forcibly carried out at gunpoint in 1983 and 1992.

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park

tip
Compared to Rwanda, the Ugandan gorilla permits are a bargain. There, their price has been doubled from US $ 750 to US $ 1500 (2018).

With 33.7 km² the smallest of the Ugandan national parks is between 2200 and 4100 meters above sea level. The reserve goes in the south in the Rwandan Volcanoes National Park above.

Besides the mountain gorillas, for whose protection the park was primarily established, ten other primate and 39 other mammal species live here. There are also 115 species of birds, including 14 of the 24 endemic to the Rift Valley.

In order not to disturb the eighty mountain gorillas too much, only eight per day Gorilla permits issued. In 2018 they cost US $ 600 for foreigners in the high season, US $ 450 in the low season. The corresponding tour, you only get one hour for the actual monkey watching, starts at 7.00 with an introduction at the Ntebeko Visitor Center.

The day tours to find golden monkeys are much cheaper (2018: US $ 100).

The 200 m long 3 Garama cavewho lived here until 1991 BaTwa-Pygmies was sacred is to be visited. This displaced people can also be supported by taking part in their hiking tours (US $ 80 / day). These guided hikes go along the lower reaches of the Muhavura and Gahinga volcanoes.
Also organized are ascents of the volcano Mount Sabyinyo, 3600 m.

getting there

The park can be reached via 6 Kisoro. There is that too Mgahinga National Park Office. There are several inexpensive guest houses in the village.

The bus companies drive from Kampala, 480 km Gateway and Horizon. The airport Kisero (ICAO: HUKI) only serves tourist charter flights of small planes.

accommodation

Immediately before entering the park with the 3 Mgahinga National Park Visitor Center is this Amajambere Iwacu Community Camp and the luxurious Mount Gahinga Lodge (July 2018: from US $ 275 p.p. in a double).

Murchison Falls National Park

Most of the rain falls in the April-May and October-November region, when the falls are the most impressive. The main attractions are the eponymous 43 m high waterfalls, crocodiles and hippos on the Victoria Nile as well as the (attempted) chimpanzee observation in the southern area. At the mouth of the Victoria Nile, a wetland delta has formed in which a number of bird species are native.

getting there

From Kampala you drive 220-250 km, depending on the route 7 Masindi south of the park. Busse runs the company Link. From here you can only continue into the park with your own vehicle or a tour operator. A local company is Yebo Tours, which offer relatively cheap 1-2 day trips. The Red Chilli Hostel has an offshoot near the ferry across the Nile in the park.

Queen Elisabeth National Park

Location of Queen Elisabeth National Park in Uganda.

The QENP, located between Lake George and Lake Edward in 1972 km², is the most visited in the country. There are 93 species of mammals and around 500 species of birds. These include the "classics" such as hippos, crocodiles, elephants, African buffalos, leopards, lions, etc., with the latter climbing trees here, which is unusual.

The animals living on the water can be observed particularly well by boat trips (2 daily 2-5 hours) on the forty kilometer long Kazinga Channel. Chimpanzee herds can be found in the Kyambura Gorge.

In geologically more recent times, volcanic ones emerged Explosion crater. Today they are inhabited as small lakes by water birds, e.g. flamingos.

Conservation Through Public Health is a development aid organization active in the region that aims to protect various animal species by improving the health of the people who live here. Human colds or diarrhea can be transmitted to great apes.

Arrival and accommodation

There are several such “signs”, like this one near the QENP, pointing to the equator in Uganda.

From Kampala it is a 5-6 hour drive via Mbarara another 104 km to the southern park entrance 8 Kichwamba where there are also several lodges.

From Fort Portal in the north, parallel to Kibali NP 97 km on the A109 to the northern park entrance near the 9 Kikorongo Junction (also bus stop).

Directory of Lodges and luxury camps

Ruwenzori National Park

The Nyiragongo lava lake, just across the border in the Congolese part of the Ruwenzori Mountains.

On the Ugandan side, the national park is called Rwenzori Mountains (about 1000 km²) on the Congolese side Virunga National Park (7835 km²), which was named in 1925 as Parc National Albert was founded and has had its current name since 1969.[1] On the conflicts there, see the Oscar-nominated documentary Virunga from 2014.
In 1994 both parts of the Ruwenzori were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

The highest peak Margherita Peak of Mt. Stanley, soaring 5109 m, which is why the landscape is spectacular. Mount Speke and Mount Baker range just over 4800 m. The higher elevations of the park in particular are very rainy, but some have an alpine climate. There are glaciers.

Because of the alternating high-altitude climate, there are five distinct zones in which there are several endemic plant species. There are four primary species of fauna, 89 species of birds and 15 species of butterflies.

getting there

This park can also be reached from the north via Ft. Portal, or through the QENP from the south.

Other protected areas

A distinction is made between strictly protected Wildlife Reserves and with lower protection status Wildlife Sanctuaries.

Wildlife Reserves
  • The 4 Bugungu Wildlife Reserve joins the Murchison Falls National Park in the west on the shores of Lake Albert. To the east of this is that 5 Karuma Game Reserve.
  • The 6 Kigezi Game Reserve joins the Queen Elisabeth National Park in the south. There is one 4 campsite at the ranger camp.
  • The Semuliki Wildlife Reserve extends from the junction of the road north of Fort Portal to the place 10 Ntoroko on the south bank of the Albertsee. She's in the middle of the park 5 Semuliki Safari Lodge.
  • In the east of Uganda, forming a 150 km long strip from north to south, are the animal protection areas of 7 Matheniko, 8 Bokora and 9 Pian up. It can be reached from Kampala via Mbale (225 km) a good 200 km to 10 Moroto. Various roads branch off there in the vicinity.
Wildlife Sanctuaries

Named after the next larger town:

  • Entebbe Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Jinja Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Kazinga Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Malawa Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Mount Kei Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary in conjunction with Uganda Wildlife Education Center (UWEC)
  • Ntoroko-Kanara Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Nyaburogo Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Otze Forest Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary (rhinos)
Protect wetlands according to the Ramsar Convention

These include parts of the mentioned national parks Murchison Falls, Rwenzori, Nakivali wetlands on Lake Mburo and Lake George, south of Kibale National Park. Farther:

  • Lake Bisina
  • Lake Nabugabo
  • Lake Nakuwa
  • Lake Opeta
  • Lutembe Bay
  • Mabamba Bay
  • Nabajjuzi
  • Sango Bay-Musambwa Island-Kagera Bay

Big game hunting

It should be noted that in Uganda it is also possible to kill various animal species, e.g. zebras, in hunting grounds. There are twelve protection zones (Controlled hunting areas ) where hunting is restricted. It is always necessary to acquire a launch permit, which is usually obtained from a specialized travel agency. Typical fees in 2018 were in the range of US $ 1500-2500 depending on the species (buffalo US $ 3500-4000). The cheapest is bush pig (US $ 600), the most expensive is Sitatunga (US $ 5000). There are strict requirements for aids. Also for the necessary gun licenses (US $ 100 per safari day) and the customs documents CITES the organizer will take care of the importation of any trophies to Europe. Three quarters of the hunting fee goes to the local community, the rest to the central government.

Uganda permits the import of two long guns per hunter. Ammunition is not restricted, but airlines typically do not carry more than 10 pounds.

Buffalo and hartebeest are hunted from December to April. Other species January to November.

health

Serious safari operators usually offer additional rescue flight insurance with the local provider AMREF (2018: 30 days US $ 16 or 24). There are also annual packages that include ambulance transport and rescue flights (usually only covered to a very limited extent by foreign health insurance), depending on the option, in some or all of the East African countries.

literature

  • On mountain gorillas: work from and about Dian Fossey
  • Kaser, Georg; Osmaston, Henry; Tropical glaciers: glaciers and glaciations of the Rwenzori Mountains, Uganda; Cambridge 2002; ISBN 0521633338
  • Lind, Edna Margaret; Morrison, Michael E .; East African vegetation; London 1974; ISBN 0582441498
  • Rotter, Peter; Ruwenzori (Rwenzori); Munich ²1996 (Rotter); ISBN 3922396232

Web links

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  1. ↑The Congolese part has been affected by armed conflicts for years and was closed until further notice on June 4, 2018.