Destination Uganda

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BWINDI IMPENETRABLE NATIONAL PARK

Although small, just 321 square kilometers, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is of crucial importance as home to the world's largest population of critically endangered mountain gorillas. The park contains about one-third of the 1,000 or so alive today, with the remainder in the Virunga conservation area shared by Rwanda and Congo. Preserved on the edge of the Rift Valley in southwest Uganda, Bwindi was established in 1991 as part of the conservation effort to save the mountain gorillas. Three years later, this island of remnant forest, one of Africa's richest and oldest (dating back about 25,000 years), was recognized by UNESCO as a natural World Heritage Site. Beyond the gorillas, Bwindi is full of other life. In fact, it is one of the richest ecosystems in Africa, with 120 species of mammals, 350 species of birds (earning it the title of the Best Birding Destination in Africa by Travel Africa magazine), 200 tree species, 310 butterfly species, 88 moth species, 51 reptile species and 27 frogs, geckos and chameleons. The humans of Bwindi are also notable. The indigenous Batwa people were exiled from their historic lands when the park was created. They now reside in an adjacent buffer zone, from which they lead tours that teach visitors about their age-old hunting, hut-building, honey-harvesting, agricultural and trapping practices, as well as sharing traditional music and dance.

MGAHINGA GORILLA NATIONAL PARK

Uganda’s smallest park (33.7km2) protects mountain gorillas and other fauna on the Ugandan slopes of the Virunga volcanoes. Though small in size, Mgahinga contains a dramatic, panoramic backdrop formed by three volcanoes  Mgahinga has one habituated gorilla group. Mgahinga Gorilla National Park covers the slopes of Muhuvura, Gahinga and Sabinyo at an altitude of between 2,227m near Ntebeko Park HQ and 4,127m on the summit of Mt. Muhuvura. Though small in size, just 33.7km2, it adjoins Volcanoes NP in Rwanda and Virunga NP in Congo. Collectively, these three parks form the transboundary Virunga Conservation Area (VCA). The most famous inhabitant of Mgahinga and the VCA is the endangered mountain gorilla. Gorilla conservation on the Virungas dates back to 1925 when the Belgians gazetted the portion of the range in present day Congo and Rwanda as a national park to protect mountain gorillas. The British administration declared the Ugandan section as a game sanctuary in 1930. This was upgraded to national park status in 1991. Mgahinga’s three volcanoes provide a dramatic and distinctive backdrop to regional scenery and each has been named descriptively in the local language. Gahinga is the smallest of the Virunga peaks and its name means ‘small pile of stones;’ a comparison with the cairns piled by local farmers when clearing boulder- strewn land. The lofty Muhuvura is an important landmark and its name means ‘the guide,’ while that of the distinctive Mt. Sabinyo, with its rough, jagged crown, translates as ‘old man’s teeth.’ 

MURCHINSON FALLS NATIONAL PARK

The 3,840km2 Murchison Falls National Park is one of Uganda’s oldest protected areas. Originally gazetted as the Bunyoro and Gulu Wildlife Reserve in 1926, it was upgraded to form one of Uganda’s first national parks in 1952. The 5072km2 expanse of Murchison Falls NP and the contiguous Karuma and Bugungu Wildlife Reserves are managed collectively as the Murchison Falls Conservation Area. At Murchison Falls, the Nile explodes through an 6m wide gorge and plunges 45m into the ‘Devil’s Cauldron.’ The boat trip along the Nile to Murchison Falls is one of East Africa’s top wildlife spectacles. The northern section of the park contains savanna and borassus palms, acacia trees and riverine woodland. The south is dominated by bush and forest. 

Murchison Falls National Park lies at the northern end of the Albertine Rift Valley where the sweeping Bunyoro escarpment merges into a vast, palm-dotted savannah. First gazetted as a game reserve in 1926 it is Uganda’s largest and oldest conservation area, hosting 76 species of mammals and over 451 birds. The park is bisected by the Victoria Nile which races west through the park for 80km, descending a series of rapids before exploding through a narrow (6m) gap in the remnant rift valley cliffs. This 45m plunge drains the last of the river’s energy transforming the torrent into a broad, placid stream that flows quietly across the rift valley floor towards Lake Albert. The river below the Falls provides one of Uganda’s finest wildlife spectacles. Regular visitors to the riverbank include elephants, giraffes and buffaloes while hippos, Nile crocodiles and aquatic birds are permanent residents. The 1951 film “The African Queen” starring Humphrey Bogart was filmed on Lake Albert and the Nile below Murchison Falls. Other notable visitors to the park include Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt, Ernest Hemingway and several British royals. 

SEMULIKI NATIONAL PARK

Semuliki Forest Reserve was created in 1932 and upgraded to national park status in 1993. 

This 220km2 park lies on the floor of the Albertine Rift Valley just 670-760m above sea level. The 700m descent from Fort Portal town to Semuliki is one of the most scenic drives in Uganda. 

The only tract of true lowland tropical forest in East Africa, Semuliki represents the eastern limit of the Congo’s Ituri Forest and contains numerous Congo-Guinea species at the eastern limit of their ranges. The park’s 441 recorded bird species, including 35 found nowhere else in East Africa, 15 primate, 300 butterfly and 235 moth species make Semuliki an essential destination for serious naturalists. The Semliki Valley is the 160km-long part of the Albertine Rift Valley between lakes Edward and Albert, on the remote, western side of the Rwenzori Mountains. The valley, which is shared between Uganda and the Dem. Rep. Congo, contains wildlife from both Central and East Africa. The Ugandan section contains two wildlife protected close affinity with the jungles of the Congo basin, and Toro Semuliki Wildlife Reserve which contains classic East African savanna. The park contains 53 mammal species, including an impressive 11 primates, all of which have been found within 6km of Sempaya. Five species of large mammals and 7 species of small mammals have not been recorded in other Ugandan parks while several others, including Dent’s mona monkey, the Central African red colobus, forest buffalo and the water chevrotain, occur nowhere else in East Africa. Of the 1047 birds recorded in Uganda, 435 bird species (43%) are found in Semuliki National Park. These include Albertine Rift Endemics such as the dwarf honey guide and purple-breasted sunbirds; 35 Congo-Guinea biome species found nowhere else in East Africa, including black dwarf hornbill, Nkulengu rail, Congo serpent eagle, Gabon woodpecker; and other species with very limited ranges such as white-tailed hornbill, capuchin babbler, blue- headed crested flycatcher and the orange weaver.