Why is Uganda referred as the “Pearl of Africa”? It is because of the endless natural wonders in the country. Queen Elizabeth National Park, the second largest Park in Uganda made it to the list of 7 incredible natural wonders within the African continent by the National Geographic (a popular travel media platform). But have you ever wondered why this wonderful Savannah National park made it the list? Therefore, this article brings you some of the interesting things within this Park, hence worth exploring while on a safari.
The famous Queen Elizabeth Game Park is situated in western Uganda and covers an area of around 1978 hence it is the second largest National Park in Uganda after the famous Murchison Falls National Park. This Park was established in 1954 and is a home to over 95 and 606 species of wildlife and birds respectively.
Why Visit Queen Elizabeth National Park
This magnificent National Park was listed after the Danakil Depression in Ethiopia, the Liuwa Plain National Park of Zambia, the Tsingy Louge in Madagascar, Namaqualand in South Africa, the Taghazout of Morocco and the Makgadikgadi Salt Pan of Botswana. These places also appear on the wonderful list of the National Geographic Nature Wonders in the African Continent. In order to explore and discover the treasures within these areas, you can visit then while on a safari in Africa.
Tree Climbing Lions
Queen Elizabeth National Park is one of the two exceptional places in the World where tree climbing lions can be spotted dangling on huge fig trees. These fascinating lions are found within the Ishasha sector (Southern side) of this National Park. It is very rare to find lions climbing trees and when you get this opportunity, count yourself lucky. When the sun becomes hot, most lions recline under shady bushes or trees which is not the case with the Ishasha lions.
However, it is believed that the lions climb trees to escape from the irritating flies on the ground. There is no other memorable wildlife experience in Africa like seeing the trees climbing lions while on a safari in Uganda.
Other Wildlife
Majority of the tourists on safaris in Uganda or Africa in general would prefer encountering the leopards to lions which is also possible within the Queen Elizabeth National Park. Possibility of sighting lions while driving through the Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park is high. Besides the popular tree climbing lions, this National Park is a haven to other wildlife species such as Uganda Kobs, Topis, waterbucks, Leopards, Lions, spotted hyenas, Buffaloes, Elephants, bushbucks, Elands, Hippos, the Nile crocodiles and many others.
Birds
Some of the notable bird species that you will encounter while on a safari in this Park include the Shoebill storks, African Fish eagles, Pelicans and Malachites among others.
Places of Interest in Queen Elizabeth National Park
Kazinga channel is a wide, 32-kilometre-long natural channel connecting Lake Gorge and Lake Edward. Kazinga channel is among the top tourist attractions in Queen Elizabeth National Park (the second largest National Park in Uganda). The channel has one of the most wonderful wildlife Ventures for water loving mammals like crocodiles, Hippos, Monitor Lizards among others. Water loving birds include the Great White and Pink-Backed Pelicans, African Shoebill, Yellow Billed Stork, Great and Long Tailed Cormorants, Open-Billed Stork, Saddle Bill Stork, Darters, Black Crake and Jacana.
On the Eastern side of the Kazinga Channel lays Lake George – which is a tiny lake with an overall depth of 2.4 meters and 250 sq km. Lake Gorge is fed by streams flowing from the spectacular Rwenzori Mountains just north of this lake. the outflow from Lake Gorge flows through this Kazinga Channel and drains west into the adjacent Lake Edward (which is among the main fresh-water lakes in Uganda) that covers a total area of 2 000 sq km.
Kazinga channel is known for hosting the majority population of Hippos worldwide. For that case, guests interested in Viewing many Hippos, Queen Elizabeth National Park is the best destination. Other mammals seen lingering at the shores of Kazinga channel are elephants, Buffaloes, Antelopes and many more. Morning game drive in Queen Elizabeth National Park offers the best view for many early raisers in the entire park including Kazinga channel.
The northern Kazinga and Kasenyi plains offers the best Views of game to visitors on Morning, afternoon and night game drives.
Things to Do in Queen Elizabeth National Park
Interesting activities to enjoy while on a wildlife safari in Queen Elizabeth National Park include game drives, birding, nature walks, experiential tourism, hot air balloon safaris and cultural encounters. Below are some of the things to do on your visit to Queen Elizabeth National Park:
Game viewing safaris in QENP
Being a savannah park enable game viewing safaris in QENP. The clear grassland enables visitors to drive in the park while seeing animals, birds, drainage features, relief features among other attractions. We recommend 4×4 safari vehicles with adjustable top up for clear viewing and excellent photography.
Night game drives enable visitors see nocturnal birds and animals like leopards, Bush babies
Birding tours on Queen Elizabeth National Park
The park hosts about 619 bird species, the second highest of any park in Africa – the 6th highest of any park world-wide. Birding hot spots in QENP include: Kazinga Channel, Kasenyi Area, Mweya Peninsula, Maramagambo Forest, Ishasha Sector, Lake Kikorongo, Katunguru Bridge area and Katwe Area Tours can be booked through Katwe Tourism Information Center.
Boat trips in Queen Elizabeth National Park
Boat safaris are among the famous activities in the park. Boat trips are conducted on Kazinga channel, Lake Kyoga and Gorge. However, tourists prefer sailing on Kazinga channel to see water loving birds and mammals like crocodile, hippos, monitor lizards among others. Currently, there are two shifts on Kazinga channel: in the morning and in the evening hours. The morning cruise start at 11:00am and ends at 1:00pm.
Tree Climbing Lions Tour
Conducted in Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park. You can hire a professional ranger guide to trace for colonies of the tree climbing lions. But still, you can drive through the trails where lions are frequently seen. Lucky visitors find the tree climbing lions swinging in the tree branches.
Chimpanzee trekking in QENP
Chimp treks are conducted in Kyambura Gorge and Kalinzu Forest. The current cost of chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth is US$50 (Kyambura Gorge) and US$40 (Kalinzu Forest) according to Uganda Wildlife Authority tariffs. Chimp treks begins in morning at around 8am but the ending time is determined by the movements of the chimps.
Cultural encounters in Queen Elizabeth National Park
You can visit Nyanz’ibiri Cave Community, Katwe Tourism Information Centre (KATIC), Leopard Village, Nyanz’ibiri Cave Community among others. While in any of the listed destinations, expect to enjoy music, dance and drama among others. Hire a local guide to narrate for you the history of those places and learn skills in weaving, singing, preparing local herbs and so on.
Wildlife research tours
For visitors yearning to engage birds and animals up close, a research trip is more rewarding. You can assist rangers in monitoring animals and birds using locator devices. The experiential tourism activities currently available are Mongoose Tracking, Lion Tracking, Hippo Census, and Bird Counts. The number of people on each outing is limited in order to reduce stress on the animals and to increase the quality of the experience for visitors.
Hiking OR Nature walks in Queen Elizabeth National Park
Nature walks to Kalinzu forest, Kyambura gorges, Ishasha River among other places. Mweya Peninsula offers savannah and woodland with beautiful views and bold warthogs.
Cave exploration in Queen Elizabeth National Park – Maramagambo forest hides Bat caves and visitors do explore them to see pythons, bats and so on. The caves at Nyanz’ibiri community where a local guide will explain to you how it was once used for offering sacrifices and cleansing misfortunes… and as a hiding place during Uganda’s rule by Idi Amin.
In conclusion, the Queen Elizabeth National Park is definitely a natural wonder in the African continent because of the exceptional tree climbing lions as well as other interesting wildlife species such as Antelopes, four of the Big five animals, warthogs, Nile Crocodiles and Hippos as well as over 606 species of birds that call the Park home.