LAKE MBURO NATIONAL PARK WILDLIFE SAFARI TOUR
Lake Mburo National Park is ideal for a short safari tour, it’s 235kms from Kampala City, found in the south western part of Uganda, and is the smallest among the Uganda’s national parks dominated by the impressive Lake Mburo, from which it derived its name, with forest-fringed shores hemmed in by rolling green hills. Although Lake Mburo National Park is small, only 370km², in comparison to other parks in Uganda, it has a total of five lakes within its boundaries. These lakes along with another nine form part of an important wetland system for the area.
Though it is the smallest park in Uganda it is conveniently accessible and located close to many other sites worth visiting like the Igongo Cultural Center and the Equator. Below are the activities to do while at Lake Mburo National Park.
Wildlife viewing plus Game drives.
The park is home to 69 mammal species among which are Antelopes, Common Duiker, Defassa Waterbuck, Bofor, Impalas, Buffalos, Bush pigs, Giraffes, Eland, and Zebras. Plus one can explore the wild by hiking; on horseback which is a safari option only offered at Lake Mburo, bike riding through the rocky rough terrain or a day or nocturnal game drive. The beauty about the variety of means available to explore wildlife at this park, is that the adventure is not only in what you see but also how you see it. The biking safari is a challenging thrill for the cyclists because of the uneven terrain and the horse back safari is a welcome break from the sound of running engines.
Birding in Lake Mburo National Park.
The park has approximately 350 bird species, birding is a must do activity. The birds in this park include; Red-winged Francolin, Blue-spotted Wood Dove, Brown Parrot, Barefaced Go-away bird, Blue Quails, White-headed and Black-billed Barbet, Greenwood Hoopoe, Blue-breasted and Shining-blue Kingfishers, Lilac-breasted Roller, African-grey Hornbill, Grey Woodpeckers. Wing-snapping Cisticolas, Red-necked spurfowl, Black-bellied Bustard, African-wattled Plover Rufous napped and Flappet larks, Rufous-chested Swallow ,Yellow-throated Longclaw, Black-winged Bishop, Chubb’s & Carruther’s Cisticolas, the Lesser and Great Swamp Warblers, Black Crake, Common Squacco, Striated, Black-headed, Herons, Great White and Pink-backed Pelicans, African Fish Eagleetc. Warukiri, Miriti, the Rubanga Forest as well as the platform above the salt lick have been acclaimed as being the best birding spots
Mburo National park has a bounty of tracks to tread on a nature walk provided you walk in the company of an armed Uganda Wildlife Authority guide. With the hilly terrain of Lake Mburo National Park, a walk to the hilltops will give you a panoramic view of the park is one of the nature walk trails available. If taken in the morning, you will chance upon hyenas heading back to their dens, colorful birds and butterflies flying fleetingly all over the park. For a morning nature walk, viewing animals at the salt lick is an ideal one hour experience.
The Crocodiles crawling into the water, hippos dunking themselves in the lake to escape the heat at high noon, zebras, antelopes, and buffaloes coming for refreshment during the dry season are sights that await you while on a boat ride. Being up close with these animals in their habitat is one of the best experiences a boat ride can give.
At Lake Mburo National Park there are 5 lakes in total but Lake Mburo is the largest of them all. A safari to this lake-filled national park would be incomplete without a fishing expedition or experience. Mazinga has been set aside as the designated fishing spot because it is crocodile and hippo free. For one enthusiastic about sports fishing, it can be done here albeit with a license. The tilapia is a local favorite and one likely to be your catch among the 6 fish species in the lake.
