Queen Elizabeth national park is located in the rift valley at the foothills of Rwenzori Mountain Range in western Uganda. The protected area covers 1,978 sq. km extending from the shores of Lake Edward in the southwest along the border with DR Congo to the northeast shores of Lake George including the 32 km long tropical Kazinga channel that connects the two lakes.
Background and wildlife in Queen Elizabeth national park
The park was established as Kazinga national park and renamed in honor of the late Queen Elizabeth II of England in 1952. The park remains the most visited in the country. Visitors are attracted by rich biodiversity which include 95 mammal species and 612 species of birds and the beautiful landscape with most of them seen during regular game drives in the park.
The park includes a variety of physical features and habitats including crater-filled lakes, swamps, escarpments, humid tropical forests including Kyambura gorge, Maramagambo and Kalinzu central forest reserves.
Tourism in Queen Elizabeth national park
The park has two sectors to consider depending on what you’re looking for in your safari experience which include Kasenyi plains and Ishasha wilderness. Kasenyi with the Kazinga channel which offers boat cruise safaris is the main tourism area due to a wide range of accommodations and abundant wildlife including herds of elephants, buffaloes, hippos, and antelope species such as waterbucks, and Uganda kobs.
Kasenyi plains are generally more open and dominated by extensive short grass due to overgrazing. Tree species such as Euphorbia candelabrum are scattered around Mweya peninsular. The herbivores sustain predators which include lions, leopards, and spotted hyenas and there’s an experiential lion tracking which offers visitors an opportunity to learn about the scientific monitoring and conservation of African lion population in Queen Elizabeth national park.
Kasenyi is also a good base for accessing other attractions in and outside the park including Katunguru and Mweya peninsular, Lake Katwe, Kyambura gorge and the new Equator monument at Kikorongo in Kasese municipality.
The Ishasha sector in the south of the park is famous for harboring a population of tree climbing lions. According to National Geographic Explorers like Dr. Alex Braczkwoski who have documented the big cats have adapted to climbing fig trees in order to escape biting insects on the floor and get a better view, a behavior that is observed in fewer parts of Africa such as Lake Manyara National Park, in northern Tanzania.
The area borders with Rwindi plains of Virunga national park in DR Congo and is characterized by a mix of open savanna and woodland vegetation with ficus trees. Wildlife species including elephants and lions move easily between Uganda and DR Congo.
As such, Ishasha attracts unique species such as forest buffaloes, topis, and bushbucks which aren’t found in the Kasenyi plains. Ishasha offers relatively fewer accommodations and unique activities like nature walks and bush dining on the banks of River Ntungwe and Ishasha that flow through the area.
Things to do and see
Boat safaris
Boat cruise safaris in Queen Elizabeth national park are available at Mweya peninsular and Katunguru community area. Mweya offers luxury and larger boats that several people at the same time including the Uganda Wildlife double deck boat and the MV Kazinga. As such, Mweya receives lots of visitors during high season and can be relatively crowded.
The Katunguru boat cruises are offered by the local community using motorized canoes with sun protection on top. Both activities offer a fantastic opportunity to view a variety of animals, such as elephants, buffaloes, hippos, Nile crocodiles, and a wide range of bird species like African fish eagles, kingfishers, and Egyptian goose.
In addition to the Katunguru experience, there are other communities that offer boat trips including the Kasoga community at Hamukungu fishing village on the shores of Lake George.
Game drives
Kasenyi plains has several game tracks such as the leopard loop, Lake Nyamunuka, Mweya and Kasenyi tracks which allow visitors to access different habitats within the park including waterholes along the shores of Lake George. The Kasenyi track is the primary track for game drives in the Kasenyi area.
It traverses the open plains and grasslands, offering good opportunities to see large herds of ungulates like buffaloes and elephants, as well as predators such as lions, leopards, and spotted hyenas. Night game drives are permitted along this track especially for those staying within the area.
Experiential lion tracking
There are over 100 lions in the park and the number has declined over the years. Due to poaching, habitat loss, and retaliatory killings that came after lions prey on livestock communities living around the park. As people bring them for water and green pastures, there’s human-lion conflict.
Lion tracking is a critical activity for scientific monitoring, research and conservation of lion population in Queen Elizabeth national park. It has been made available as a specialized Uganda safari activity for those intending to learn about behavior and movements of lions in their natural habitat.
Chimpanzee trekking
The tropical forest of Kalinzu and Kyambura gorge are home to chimpanzees and other primate species such as red tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, blue monkeys, and olive baboons. The chimps have been habituated for tourism which offers an opportunity for visitors to see them in their natural habitat.
Kyambura is 100 meter deep gorge containing tropical forests where over 50 chimps live. Seeing them involves descending down into the gorge with an armed ranger and it can be challenging due to the nature of terrain. However, you might encounter other primates as well as hippos and elephants.
Nature walks in Maramagambo forest reserve
Maramagambo is a tropical forest that serves as a wildlife corridor between Kasenyi plains and Ishasha wilderness. The reserve contains rich biodiversity including 7 primate species such as black and white colobus monkeys, blue monkeys, and red tailed monkeys. There are caves which harbor fruit eating bats (rousettus aegyptiacus).
Over 100 species of birds are recorded in the forest, making for a fantastic place to compliment your safari experience in Queen Elizabeth national park. Activities you can do include nature walks, bat cave tour, primate viewing, and birding. There’s also a viewing platform to enjoy panoramic views of the forest and also minimize contact with the bats.
Lake Katwe
Lake Katwe is located on the shores of Lake Edward 40 km (1-hour drive) from the Kasenyi plains area depending on road conditions. The lake has a high concentration of sodium chloride among other different types of minerals such as potash. Salt has been harvested there for the last 600 years. Visitors will learn about the traditional ways used such as collecting in ponds that evaporates and crystallizes into salt rocks.
Explosion crater drive
The Katwe volcanic crater field in northern part of the park contains several explosion crater-filled lakes, making for a must-visit gem in Uganda. This drive lasts for 2-3 hours between the Kabatoro entrance gate and Kikorongo equator monument.
Kikorongo equator monument
Kikorongo is a major trading center along the route from Kasese town to the park. A new equator monument was built as a stopover for photo shoots and water experiment.
How to get there
Queen Elizabeth National Park is 389 km (7-hour drive) west of Kampala capital city via the Fort Portal Kasese route and 374 km (7-hour drive) via the Masaka-Mbarara Bushenyi highway. The park can also be reached by air through Kasese airstrip through fly in Uganda safaris.