This is Part 2 of my travel story to SW Uganda. The first story was about the 2-Day Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park; a story worthy of a separate post. http://lindawebsterphotography.com/2019/01/29/uganda-january-2019/
The rest of our 9-day trip to Uganda was fabulous as well, so be prepared for a long story with lots of photos. The trip we went on was organized by Penda Photo Tours https://www.pendaphototours.com/ with Kaleel Zibe https://www.kaleelzibe.com/as our professional, hands-on photography instructor.
The itinerary for this trip was fast-paced with tons of variety; lots of different animals and birds, landscapes, cities, villages, and people. Rather than tell the story in chronological order, I will instead tell it using the major themes/impressions. This is my second trip to Africa, the first being to Kenya in September 2016. http://lindawebsterphotography.com/2016/10/01/maasai-mara-kenya-sept-2016/ and like I found when I went to Kenya, there is something magical about Africa. The people, animals, and landscapes get into your heart and they never leave you.
For our 9-day trip, we traveled counter-clockwise from Entebbe to Kibale National Park, to Queen Elizabeth National Park, to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, to Lake Mburo National Park and back to Entebbe.
Driving through much of SW Uganda gave us an amazing glimpse into the way people live in this part of the country. I observed that many of the homes and businesses were made from brick that was made using all the rich, red clay in the area. There was electricity in nearly every village, along with satellite dishes, and cell phones and service. Water was usually hauled from a central well. Markets and stores sold everything from fruits and vegetables to timber, bricks, laundry soap, tea, meat, clothing, and even coffins. Various modes of transportation were seen, always overloaded with people and goods.
Kibale National Park
Our first big adventure was chimpaneze trekking in the Kibale National Park, just a short distance from our forest lodge, the Primate Lodge Kibale
https://www.kibaleforestnationalpark.com/primate-lodge-kibale-uganda.html
Chimpanzee Trekking
We walked a total of 6 miles in a thick forest, some of which was on a well-worn trail, but much of it was spent bush-whacking. Once the trackers located the chimpanzee families, we had to go where they went. Chimps move very quickly and are often swinging from trees. Add in low light, the photography was very challenging. I did manage to get a few photos that I liked.
Other Primates
We saw many other species of monkeys during our trip to Uganda; Black and White Colobus, Red Colobus, Red-Tailed, Olive Baboons, and Vervet. I think my favorite were the Red-Tailed Monkeys. I just loved their sweet faces with the white fur on their cheeks. In general, I loved all the primates for their very human use of their hands and feet.
Bigodi Community Walk
While we were in the Kibale National Park area, we visited a local village. This was a tourist-oriented tour (Bigodi Community Walk), but we thought it was one of the better ones we have visited during our trips to developing countries. One big difference was the lack of a hard sell of the local crafts and foods. We actually had to ask if we could purchase some baskets. The local villagers gave demonstrations of coffee making and papyrus basket weaving. We also visited with the local medicine man. One unplanned experience was when our guide climbed a jackfruit tree and picked a fruit for us. He then cut it up and shared it with us. He did all this in response to our comments about this huge and unfamiliar fruit.
Antelopes of Queen Elizabeth and Lake Mburo National Parks
We saw several different species of antelope during our trip to Uganda, most of which we saw in Queen Elizabeth and Lake Mburo National Parks. The only antelope species we did not see at all during our safaris in the Masai Mara region of Kenya was the Kob. We also saw many more Waterbucks (Dafassa) and Impalas than we saw in Kenya but far fewer Topis. No matter, it is always special to observe the behaviors of wild animals in their natural habitats.
Birds
We saw several different species of birds during our trip to Uganda, most of which we saw in Queen Elizabeth and Lake Mburo National Parks.
Kazinga Channel- Queen Elizabeth National Park
One of our favorite activities while visiting Queen Elizabeth NP (QENP) was the boat trip in the Kazinga Channel. We stayed at the Mweya Lodge which overlooked the Channel; a truly amazing location. We saw more variety of animals and birds on this boat trip than anywhere during our time visiting Kenya or Uganda. It was truly a sensory overload. We were amazed at how many different species of animals, large and small, seem to live symbiotically.
More QENP Highlights
We saw a lot of elephants in Queen Elizabeth National Park; in the Kazinga Channel, in the Northern/Central sector and in the Ishasha sector. One of the biggest adrenaline rushes of our trip was encountering a large bull elephant along the road in the park. We spotted him along the road, stopped to watch him and take photos and all of sudden he became quite agitated. He started facing off with our vehicle and started rocking back and forth and making very aggressive sounds. Our quick-thinking guide, Nicolas pulled forward and let the elephant pass behind us. Apparently, we had blocked his intended path across the road- nothing more than that. Whew!! We later saw a large family of elephants and observed many different behaviors including playfulness and nurturing.
Tree-Climbing Lions of QENP- Ishasha Sector
Our last few hours in Queen Elizabeth NP were spent looking for the famous Tree-Climbing lions. Now, we had seen lions in trees in Kenya, so we didn’t think that was unusual, but apparently it is. it is especially unusual to see male lions climbing trees. We were incredibly fortunate to be able to see this. We first saw a female in a tree, then we observed a male watching her and eventually joining her and their 2 cubs. Then the male slowly made his way over to an incredibly beautiful tree and awkwardly climbed up into it. He never appeared to be too comfortable, but stayed for longer we a very long time. He was still up in the tree when we finally had to leave to keep on our schedule. We only saw these 4 lions during our entire time in Uganda but what an amazing show they gave us!
Highlights of Mburo Lake National Park
The last national park we visited was Lake Mburo National Park. We stayed in a beautiful lodge, Mihingo Lodge, but unfortunately, we only had 1 night there.
While in Mburo, we saw Zebras, Rothschild’s Giraffes, and Mongoose; the only place we saw these animals during our trip.
Zebras
Other unique animal sightings in Mburo
We also saw more Cape Buffalo; such a different experience than Kazinga Channel.
The Faces of Uganda
A trip is never complete for me without meeting and interacting with the local people. It never ceases to amaze me how beautiful and welcoming people are all over the world. I always come home having gained so much appreciation for the diversity that exists in the world while also being incredibly grateful for my very comfortable standard of living that I enjoy every day. I am blessed to be able to travel to so many beautiful places.
