Uganda Wildlife Explorer

Overview

Uganda Wildlife Camping Explorer

“For magnificence, for variety of form and colour, for profusion of brilliant life – bird, insect, reptile, beast – for vast scale – Uganda is truly ‘the Pearl of Africa’. The Kingdom of Uganda is a fairy tale. The scenery is different, the climate is different and most of all, the people are different from anything elsewhere to be seen in the whole range of Africa….what message I bring back…concentrate on Uganda”. So wrote Winston Churchill in his 1908 book “My African Journey”. On this Uganda Wildlife Camping Explorer we take you on your African journey to discover these things that so excited Churchill.

This tour completes a circuit that covers most of the country, and includes all the highlights – trekking in indigenous forests to see wild gorillas and chimpanzees, boat trips on the Nile, tree climbing lions in Queen Elizabeth National Park, an endless variety of animals and plants, and the warm and friendly people that make Uganda special.

Weather, roads, and other local conditions can vary enormously, and will influence the route chosen on each tour. We may run the tour in reverse if required, so you should be flexible in this regard. To make the most of Uganda you will need an open mind and a spontaneous disposition, but if you come prepared you are set for a remarkable experience.

ROUTE : Entebbe to Jinja
DEPARTURES : Every Second Sunday
VEHICLE : Custom 17-seater Adventure truck
DURATION : 12 Days (9 nights Camping, 3 nights Cabin)

INCLUDED HIGHLIGHTS:

• Equator
• Lake Mburo National Park
• Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and surrounding villages
• Gorilla trek (permit included)
• Village walks
• Birding walks
• Queen Elizabeth National Park
• Tree climbing lions
• Kazinga Channel
• Rwenzori Mountains view
• Murchison Falls National Park
• Chimpanzee trek (permit included)
• Murchison Falls
• Victoria Nile boat trip

OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES:

• “Source of the Nile”
• Pygmy village visit
• Nile white water rafting

Please note: We will implement a minimum requirement of 4 passengers to confirm a tour departure. Our reservation office will be able to assist with any request or questions.
Excludes single supplement. However, if you are happy to share – no single supplement will apply.

Prices are subject to changes. Prices are person sharing and excludes single supplement and any activities and meals not set out in the itinerary

*** Please note that the itinerary may deviate from the one set out, please request itinerary for your selected tour dates

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Distance: 230 km

Our adventure begins at 08h00, when we depart from our hotel in Entebbe to head south west through verdant green hills and countless villages. We will stop frequently at local markets, including a drum market, and at the equator we’ll experiment to see which way water really drains from a bath. We have lunch at the equator (own expense).

We arrive at our camp in the late afternoon. An upgrade to accommodation is possible, but to ensure availability this should be pre-booked.

Distance: 250 km

This morning we enter Lake Mburo National Park early for a game drive. Lake Mburo is just one of a group lakes scattered like jewels between the hills, and the park is well known for its herds of plains game, and especially for the numerous hippos in the lakes.

Leaving Lake Mburo, we travel through a lush tropical landscape of rolling green hills covered with a patchwork of banana plantations and market gardens. Look out for the impressive, long-horned Ankole cattle. The roads are rough as we pass remote villages, often shrouded in mist, toward the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.

We set up camp for the night at the edge of the forest and prepare for the gorilla trek the following day.

The gorilla trek is undoubtedly the highlight of the entire tour. The mountains and tropical forests are spectacular in their own right, but spending time with a group of Mountain Gorillas is an experience that really defies any description. Many people are moved by the obvious kinship we share with these magnificent animals. We split into small groups and trek up into the forest, each group led by a local guide, in search of a different family of gorillas. The going can be quite tough, and you should come prepared for a hike through dense forest, up steep, muddy paths over uneven terrain.

The gorilla permits are limited, with strict rules to minimise the impact on the gorillas, so we allow two days for trekking to ensure everyone gets their chance. You must be prepared to be flexible with the timing and the location of your trek. On occasions when permits are only available for Day 4, we will visit Lake Bunyoni on Day 3, but where permits are spread over Day 3 and 4, those not trekking have the option to visit a local village, led by a local guide. The forest also offers fantastic birding .

Distance: 150 km

Leaving the mountains and forests behind us, we drop down to the grasslands of the Queen Elizabeth National Park. Here we spend two nights camping at a remote site within the park. The Ishasha area is renowned for its huge tree climbing lions, but fantastic bird life, numerous species of primates, and abundant plains game, including the kob that the lions prey on, are also found here. We will game drive extensively, searching the tall fig trees for lions, while our guide explains what we see.

Distance: 120 km

Today we travel the length of the park, through the Maramagambo Forest and over the Kazinga Channel which links Lake Edward and Lake George, to exit the park in the north. We pass through the town of Kasese, before stopping at a viewpoint where we have lunch, with the Rwenzori Mountains in front of us. The “Mountains of the Moon” rise over 5000m above sea level, with slopes covered in tropical forest and the highest peaks permanently snow-capped, a bewildering sight considering their proximity to the equator. Glaciers high up form one of the sources of the waters of the Nile River.

Tonight, we camp amongst the tea plantations near Fort Portal.

Distance: 300 km

We have a long drive today, over some rough roads, so we leave early this morning. We pass through the luminous green tea plantations surrounding the town of Fort Portal before the long road, via Hoima, to Masindi, our stop for the night. Given the long drive, we don’t camp tonight, staying at a local hotel or lodge.

Distance: Roughly 50 km per day

This morning we enter Murchison Falls National Park, where we spend the next two nights. Here we will track chimpanzees on foot, game drive in the park, view Murchison Falls, and take a boat cruise on the Victoria Nile River. The program is flexible, depending on the season, road conditions and availability of bookings, but all these activities will be included.

The southern part of the park is heavily forested, great habitat for chimps, with the northern part, where we game drive, open savannah with abundant plains game, including the relatively rare Rothschild’s Giraffe. Getting to the northern part of the park means crossing the Nile using the ferry at Parra, an adventure all on its own.

Distance: 430 km

We leave the park early this morning to drive south towards Jinja, near the source of the White Nile where the water pours out of Lake Victoria in a wild torrent.

The area around Jinja is regarded as east Africa’s adventure capital, and we spend a full day here so you have time to participate in any of a number of adventure activities: white water rafting, bungee jumping over the source of the Nile, boat cruises, horse riding, visiting local community projects are all options (own expense).

Distance: 116 km

The tour officially ends after breakfast this morning. The guide and vehicle usually leave for Kampala immediately after breakfast, in order to attend to post tour responsibilities. You are welcome to ride along, at no charge, to Kampala, but be aware that this trip to Kampala, and the timing, are not guaranteed.

Alternatively, you can extend your stay in Jinja (We can book post tour accommodation for you), or you can participate in further optional activities and take a later transfer directly to Entebbe, which we can arrange on your behalf.