Uganda – Safaris in Queen Elizabeth National Park

Queen Elizabeth is Uganda’s premier tourist destination for wildlife tours, chimpanzee tracking and bird watching. This park is located on the floor of the great rift valley, between Lakes Edward and George and covers an area of ​​1,978 square kilometers. Established in 1954, this park is named after Queen Elizabeth 2. It has a wide variety of bushy grasslands, woodlands, acacia woodlands, and lakeside vegetation. Due to the impressive variety of habitats, this park is home to 95 species of mammals and 612 species of birds. It has the highest biodiversity ranking in the entire world. It has the largest number of mammals in all of Uganda.

Some of the animals found in the grasslands include the elephant, buffalo, Ugandan goat, water deer, warthog, lion, leopard, hyena, and giant forest hog. Common bird species seen in this area include lesser and greater flamingos, African skimmers, rosy-backed pelicans, shoe-billed storks, white-winged warblers, and papyrus canaries. Primates such as chimpanzees, red-tailed monkeys, and black and white colobus are found in the forests of the Kyambura Gorge and Maramagambo.

The Kazinga Canal, which is 40 kilometers long, connects Lake Edward and Lake George. Along this channel you will have the opportunity to see many hippos, buffalo and elephants. You will see birds such as osprey, kingfisher and pelican. You will also see the famous tree-climbing lions near Ishasha. Many people suggest that lions climb fig trees to enjoy the cool breeze and escape tse-tse flies.

Katwe Salt Lake is the oldest salt mining industry which started in the 14th century. Today, salt is still mined from this lake using traditional methods. Game drives are held early in the morning and late at night. The best time to visit Queen Elizabeth National Park is during the dry months of January to February, when many animals stay close to the waters. This park is located at an altitude of 900 m at Lake Edward and 1845 m at the top of the escarpment in the western rift. The main activities in this park are wildlife viewing, chimpanzee tracking, bird watching, boating, and nature walks.

You can reach this park by road from Kampala, the capital of Uganda, which is about 420 kilometers away. You can also use a light or larger plane from Kasese City.