Kibale National Park and Fort Portal

Kibale NP:

At 35 kilometers south of Fort Portal lies the 766 km² big wildlife park of  Kibale. It lies between 1100 and 1600 meters altitude and consists of a savannah landscape with marsh areas, crater lakes and tropical forests. The park is located between Lake Albert and Lake Eward, near the famous Queen Elizabeth National Park which forms one big park together.

It is one of the few places in the world where a lowland area with tropical forests come together. In the wildlife park live elephants, buffaloes, knob-boars, black-and-white colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, olive baboons and antelopes, but the park is best known for its chimpanzee population of which there are about 600 of them currently. The park was established in 1932 but was only officially opened in 1993 to protect a large part of the jungle against logging.

It is claimed the odds to encounter a primate that in this park are the greatest. In Kibale you can book a bird trip (in Kibale NP 300 different species) and a night walk in Kibale, in addition to participating in an "ordinary" walk with a guide. During these walks in the dark you have a greater chance to spot nocturnal animals, such as galagos. These are half-monkeys living in the trees and only appear at night. 

Facts Kibale NP:

• Reception is in Kanyanchu;
• Entrance of the park is $ 7;
• Every day, walks through the forest are organized with a guide - these are organized from 08:00 to 11:00 and cost $ 10 p.p .;
• Chance of seeing a chimpanzee is 80%;
• You can also take longer walks from a few hours to multi-day trips;
• You can also sleep in the park (small house for 15,000 USh per night).

Bigodi:

Six kilometers from Kanyanchu, outside the Kibale National Park, is the Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary. This project started in 1992 to protect the nearby Magombe marsh. It is possible to take a walk here (with or without a guide); walks start at 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. and they last about 3 hours. Costs are $ 6 p.p.

From the guide you get rubber boots and binoculars. In the swamp area there are about two hundred bird species living (including the turaco), many butterflies and eight different species of monkeys.

Large parts of the hiking trails are made of wooden planks so that the park can also be visited if it is (partly) under water, because of rain. Bigodi is just off the road between Kamwenge and Fort Portal.

Crater lakes:

One of the crater lakes south of Fort Portal is Nkuruba which is about 25 kilometers away. You can perfectly walk here but also rent a bike or try to spot crocodiles or hippos in the crater lake.

You can spend the night in the relaxed atmosphere of the simple Lake Nkuruba Community Camp located right next to the lake. You can rent a house here, but also a tent. The shower is a bucket and is actually located outside surrounded by wicker "walls".