Katonga Wildlife Reserve

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Katonga Wildlife Reserve

Katonga Wildlife Reserve : named after the Katonga River, which flows from the swamps southwest of Lake Wamala towards Lake Victoria in the East, with lesser periodic flows from those same swamps to Lake George in the west and it also comes with mixed savanna and acacia woodlands. The reserve is located in the Ibanda and Kamwenge districts in the western Uganda, along the banks of the Katonga River. In Kamwenge district, it borders with the Biguli subcounty and some parts of the Mpara subcounty in Kyenjojo district. The reserve is approximately 200 kilometers by road, west of the capital of Uganda, Kampala. It was first gazetted as a game reserve in 1964 to serve as a corridor for migration of wildlife from Tanzania and western Uganda, in 1996 the reserve was upgraded to a wildlife reserve when a former game department and the Uganda national park merged to create the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) an administrative body managing all the protective areas in Uganda. The flora within this nature reserve consists of the rare vegetation types such as the grassland, wooded grasslands, woodland, riverine woodland, papyrus, riverine grassland and swamp. The largest part of this area is mixed savanna featuring the acacia or the woodlands.

The reserve however features permanent, seasonal wetlands and also consists of several riverine and tropical forests. Its strategical geographical location comes with magical forests, swamps and also savanna vegetation where its diverse ecosystem thrives including variety of wildlife species. The dominant flora species include; Sporobolus festivus and also Chloris gayana. They thrive together with associate species such as setaria species, hyparrhenia species and panicum maximum. The reserve’s ecosystem is interlinked with the Nile system creating a significant wetland system for human survival.  The reserve can either be explored by a canoe or by foot, it is a home to over 40 mammal species, butterfly species, reptiles and amphibians. Some of the mammal species you will come across include reedbuck, waterbucks, Uganda kob, warthogs, river otter, elephants, bushbuck, impalas, zebras, buffalos, topis, eland and many more. You will also come across various primates such as black and white colobus monkey, red-tailed monkey, olive baboons to mention a few. The reserve is considered one of the unique places to view the secretive sitatunga antelope in the Central and East Africa. Katonga wildlife reserve is also a home to over 150 bird species making it a great birding destination such as Squacco heron, goliath heron, grey heron, black-headed heron, cattle egret, dwarf bittern, great bittern, Madagascar night heron, intermediate egret, little egret, purple heron, rufous-bellied heron, great egret, striated heron and many more.

What to do at Katonga wildlife reserve

Canoeing

The canoe ride in this reserve takes you through the narrow channel and swampy vegetation of the reserve with a knowledgeable guide. While on the canoe you will get to enjoy the beautiful swamp vegetation of the reserve and also spot some bird species such as egrets, kingfishers, Egyptian goose, African fish eagle, plovers and many more. You will also see animals grazing in the reserve such as otters, elephants, warthogs, hippos, sitatungas and more. The canoe trail is approximately 2 kilometers ride through the reed and papyrus swamp guided by a local boat operator.

Guided nature walks

This activity is rewarding because the reserve has got three trails; the Kyeibbale trail which takes you through an area with tall rock formations, forested caves and valley. The Sitatunga trail takes you through the grassland and wetland, the trail offers tourists an opportunity to come across the rare sitatunga antelopes. The Kisharara trail which takes you through the main habitants within the reserve comprising of savanna, grassland and swamp fringes. It is a good trail for seeing sitatungas and other mammal species like the troop of the black and white colobus monkey and a number of bird species.

Wildlife viewing

Katonga wildlife reserve provides an opportunity to tourists to come across several mammal species and the common ones are elephants, olive baboons, Uganda kob, waterbucks, warthogs, zebras, elands to mention a few. An experienced guide will take you through this activity and feel free to ask anything about these species.

Community walks

Due to your interest, your tour guide can arrange for you a community walk in order for you to know more about Ugandan people and their way of living. The surrounding people are the Banyankore or Ankole people who are known for keeping large herds of long horned cattle. Get a chance to visit their homesteads for breathtaking activities such as how they prepare their meals, their traditional dances, games, storytelling by the elders and many more.

When to visit the reserve

Katonga wildlife reserve can be visited by tourists throughout the year, but the best time to visit the reserve is in the dry season in the months of December, February, June and July.

How to get there

The reserve straddles between Ibanda and Kamwenge districts in the western part of Uganda. It is located along the banks of the river, approximately 200 kilometers (120 mi) by road and west of Uganda’s capital Kampala, approximately 4 hours’ drive.

Kazinga Channel Exploration | Queen Elizabeth National Park

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Kazinga Channel Exploration | Queen Elizabeth National Park

Kazinga Channel Exploration | Queen Elizabeth National Park: is a long natural channel connecting two lakes; Lake Gorge in the east and Lake Edward in the west. It is approximately 420 kilometers away from Kampala, has an estimated terrain of about 914 meters above sea level. The wetland is basically a home to crocodiles, numerous bird species, sitatungas, waterbucks, among others. In fact, this channel is one of the most important features in Queen Elizabeth National Park and has got two sections; the North Kazinga and the Kasenyi plains. Besides, the Kasenyi plains offer breath taking view points of spotting game whereby you will have a better way to see the diverse wildlife living in this area. These include; elephants, buffaloes, and other wild animals that live within the grassland thickets in the Northern Kazinga just next to Mweya peninsular.

What to expect while at Kazinga Channel

In 2005, large numbers of hippos were killed in Kazinga channel as a result of an anthrax outbreak. This basically occurs when animals eat remnants of vegetation in the driest months, absorbing bacterial spores that can live for decades in the dry soil. Nevertheless, the shores of this channel draw a large number of wild animals, bird species and reptiles throughout the year. Surprisingly, it has got one of the largest population of hippos in the whole world and also plentiful Nile crocodiles.

These animals can be spotted while on a boat cruise down the course of Kazinga channel or most likely at the entrance of the spectacular Lake Edward. Other animals include; sitatungas, waterbuck, elephants, Uganda kobs, monitor lizards and many more. The boat cruise on the channel is extremely rewarding and among the finest launch trips in the country. The channel is also known as a birding paradise in Queen Elizabeth National Park since it harbors over 58 bird species which can be sighted during the boat cruise. These include; pied kingfisher, fish eagle, pink-backed pelican, yellow billed stork, African spoonbill. Martial eagle, papyrus gonolek, long-tailed cormorant, black bee-eater, African skimmer, etc.

Best time to visit

The channel can be visited anytime of the year however, the best time is during the dry season. These include; the months of June to September and December to February. Here, the channel becomes an oasis that gathers large numbers of animals that come to bathe, feed and drink water. You can also visit during the wet season in the months of March to May and December to February. The months are considered to be ideal for birding since it’s the breeding season for the birds. In fact, there is always also plenty of fruits and food for the birds in this season.

How to get there

You will drive from Kampala via Masaka, Mbarara, Fort portal, Kasese and then Queen Elizabeth National Park.  In general, it is approximately 6 to 7 hours’ drive on a tarmac road.

Kazinga Channel Wetland

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 Kazinga Channel Wetland

Kazinga Channel wetland is registered and protected through Ramsar sites rights of conservation of wetlands in Africa. It is approximately 420 kilometers away from Kampala, has an estimated terrain of about 914 meters above sea level and located in Kasese District in Uganda. The wetland is a home for crocodiles, numerous bird species, and water and land statunga antelopes, waterbucks among others. Kazinga channel is a wide 32 kilometers (20mi) long natural channel connecting two lakes; Lake Gorge in the east and Lake Edward in the west. This channel is one of the most important features in Queen Elizabeth National Park (the well-killed game reserve in Uganda covering an entire land area of 1,978 square kilometers). On the Eastern side of the channel is Lake George a small lake with an overall depth of 2.4 meters and 250 square kilometers. This lake is fed by streams flowing from the spectacular Mount Rwenzori just north of this lake. The out flow from Lake George flows through this Kazinga Channel and drains west into the adjacent Lake Edward which is among the main fresh water lakes in Uganda and covers a total area of 2000 square kilometers. The channel has got two sections; the North Kazinga and the Kasenyi plains. It’s recognized that the Kasenyi plains offer breath taking viewpoints of spotting games and you will have a better way to see the diverse wildlife living in this area within its very pristine natural environment like the elephants, buffaloes, and other wild animals that live within the grassland thickets in the Northern Kazinga just next to Mweya peninsular.

In 2005, large numbers of hippos were killed in Kazinga channel as a result of an anthrax outbreak which occurs when animals eat remnants of vegetation in the driest months, absorbing bacterial spores that can live for decades in the dry soil. The shores of this channel draw a large number of wild animals, bird species and reptiles throughout the year, with one of the largest population of hippos in the whole world and also plentiful Nile crocodiles. These animals can be seen well on a boat cruise down the course of Kazinga channel or most likely at the entrance of the spectacular Lake Edward. Other animals include; sitatungas, waterbuck, elephants, Uganda kobs, monitor lizards and many more. The boat cruise on the channel is extremely rewarding and among the finest and most liked launch trips in the country.  During the boat cruise, you will get a chance to see the fishing villages overlooking the stream such as the Kasenyi plains. On the boat, you are able to see fishermen washing their fishing nets and also have a chance to see them catching fish using a more rudiment method and traditional method (hook fishing). When you look over the stream to the fishing villages, you will also see fishermen repairing their boats and women repairing the fishing nets to make them ready to be used for fishing. It is also known as a birding paradise in Queen Elizabeth National Park because it harbors over 58 bird species which can be sighted during the boat cruise. Some of these birds include; pied kingfisher, fish eagle, pink-backed pelican, yellow billed stork, African spoonbill, martial eagle, papyrus gonolek, long-tailed cormorant, black bee-eater, African skimmer, black crake among others.

Best time to visit

The channel can be visited anytime of the year but the best time is during the dry season in the months of June to September and December to February. During the dry season, the kazinga channel becomes an oasis that gathers large numbers of animals that come to bathe, feed and drink water. These animals will be seen gathering on the shores of the channel. You can also visit during the wet season in the months of March to May and December to February though it is considered to be ideal for birding because it’s the breeding season for the birds and there is always also plenty of fruits and food for the birds in this season.

 

How to get there

You will drive from Kampala via Masaka, Mbarara, Fort portal, Kasese and then Queen Elizabeth National Park which is approximately 6 to 7 hours’ drive on a tarmac road.