Chimpanzees in Kibale National Park

Chimpanzees of Kibale National Park

In the fall of 2017 I travelled to Uganda with professional photographer, Des Ong from the UK. Travelng with us was his friend and frequent travel companion, Denis (not Dennis) from France on what was to become a “Spectacular Tour of Uganda”.

After arriving in Entebbe, we were greeted by our guide Ben. He had a van equipped with a roof that can be raised to double as our safari vehicle. We traveled to our first night’s stay at the Kibale Forest Camp just outside Kibale National Park. 

The next morning we were off to trek with the chimpanzees of Kibale National Park. After a brief orientation, we started our trek and almost immediately found the group sitting along a dirt road in the park. We followed them as they stayed as they moved through the forest on the ground for most of the time. Near the end of our allotted hour with the chimps, we photographed some females with their young riding on their backs. After returning to the Kibale Forest Camp, we photographed a group of black and white colobus monkeys hanging out near our camp.

The next morning was another day of chimp trekking in Kibale. We were not as lucky as the first day since most of the time the chimpanzees stayed high in a large tree feeding on ripe figs. It was quite a scene, but not as many close photo opportunities as the first day.

One tourist was hit by chimp droppings falling from the tree. If this is lucky as getting hit with bird droppings, then he was one lucky tourist. In the afternoon we made our way to Queen Elizabeth National Park and found a pair of mating lions. We also saw elephants, Ugandan kob and African buffalo. 

Queen Elizabeth National Park and the Kazinga Channel

For the next two nights we stayed in the beautiful Bush Lodge along the Kazinga Channel and close to Queen Elizabeth National Park. As we pulled up to the lodge, we had to stop to let a group of elephants move out of the parking area. Even our large van was no match for the size and strength of these beasts. Dinner was served outside by the channel under the stars. 

The next morning I awoke early to sounds of hippopotamus grazing outside my tent.  At night the hippos leave the Kazinga Channel and graze on the grasses around the lodge, returning to the channel in the morning. The lodge guide escorted us to our tents after dark since we had to be careful to not run into a hippo. They are the most dangerous terrestrial mammal in Africa accounting for almost 3,000 deaths per year.

We started our morning visiting Queen Elizabeth National Park again. We found Uganda kob in rut, and more African buffalo, elephant, warthogs and African wattled lapwings. 

For lunch we stopped at the Mweya Safari Lodge. We had a great lunch of fresh Tilapia on the patio overlooking the Kazinga Channel. After lunch we took a boat ride on the channel which connects Lake Edward and Lake George.

On the boat ride we photographed hippo, Nile crocodile, warthog, pied kingfisher, little egret, black-winged stilt, African spoonbill, yellow-billed stork, malachite kingfisher, hammerkop, grey heron, Egyptian goose, hadada ibis, great white pelican, great cormorant, goliath heron, gull-billed tern, and sacred ibis.

Hanging around the Mweya Safari Lodge and the small rift valley museum nearby, were the “Banded Brothers,” the famous banded mongooses of Mweya. They are a group of mongoose that were subjects of the BBC TV Series Banded Brothers. They were first studied in the 1960s and have been studied continuously since 1995. 

After another nice dinner and night by the channel at the Bush Lodge, we left up for our next accommodations at the Savannah Resort Hotel. But before getting to our next lodging, we spent the morning in Queen Elizabeth searching for the famous tree climbing lions.

We found the lions in a tree, but it was hard to get a good shot of the lions because of thick branches, so we moved on. We spent the morning photographing a pair of mating lions on the savanna. They both had radio collars so that the park can track their movement. We also saw topi for the first time as well as elephant, Uganda kob, and a lone black-shouldered kite.  That night at the Savannah Resort Hotel, we had a good dinner on the patio and slept in traditional round style bungalows.

The next day we continued the search for tree climbing lions. Thanks to our excellent guide, Ben, we found a group of lionesses in a tree doing what lions do about 20 hours a day, sleeping. Ben parked our van close to the tree and we had the best vantage point to photograph them as they rested in the tree. As the word got out, more vehicles arrived, but we were in the best position for great images.

Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Mountain Gorillas of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

After our afternoon with the tree climbing lions, we drove to our next destination, the Buhoma Community Haven Lodge. This was my favorite place we stayed during our trip. The lodge is high in the mountains overlooking the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and was built with funds from the United States African Development Foundation (USADF) and Uganda taxpayers. The proceeds benefit the Buhoma Community. We stayed here for the next two nights to visit the famous Mountain Gorillas.

The next morning we went to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (Bwindi Forest National Park) to trek with the mountain gorillas. There are 13 groups of gorillas that you can visit in Bwindi. We were assigned the Habinyanja or H-group of approximately 17 individuals led by Makara the lead Silverback. The guides gave us some instructions before leaving for the trek. We drove up a dirt road into the forest where we received some additional orientation and paired up with a porter to carry our bags.

Since it can take five hours or more of hiking in dense forest to see the gorillas, it is a good idea to hire a porter. The money for the porters help support the local economy. My porter told me that she only had the opportunity to guide once a month, so our tips must last her and her family a long time.

I was ready for some all day trekking, but we only needed to walk about 10 feet off of a dirt road, up a small bank and a few feet into the thick forest to find the gorillas. Sitting in the early morning light in the forest was the Habinyanja Group, less than 30 feet from the road. The dominant Silverback, Makara, was leaning against a tree surrounded by ferns. The rest of the group was all around him.

We were not allowed to approach the gorillas, but sometimes they decided to walk toward us and pass right by. Since this group has been visited since 1996, they were very comfortable with us being close by. The allocated one hour with the gorillas went by in a flash and it was an experience I will certainly never forget.

Silverback Mountain Gorilla in Mgahinga National Park

Mountain Gorillas of Mgahinga National Park

The journey to our next destination was nothing short of “spectacular”. We traveled through beautiful mountains patchwork quilted with small villages and their vegetable gardens. We took a short break when the van overheated, then cooled after Ben added some more water to the radiator. Fortunately there were no leaks in the system. As we continued the drive through the mountains, we photographed a Jackson’s chameleon crossing the road. They are a bright green with yellow spots and three horns on their head.

Our next stop was the Travellers Rest Hotel in Kisoro. It is known as the meeting place for famous gorilla conservationist Dian Fossey. It is located in the south-west corner of Uganda on the borders with the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. From our hotel courtyard we could see the three towering cones of the Virunga Mountains.

After breakfast, we headed to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. The dirt roads were very rough as we winded our way up the mountain. Going through a small village in the hills, people were gathering with poles and large bags. Our guide Ben told us it was time to harvest potatoes. Both the young and old were gathered to get on trucks to spend the day digging potatoes by hand. Ugandans especially like Irish potatoes and Ben bought a large bag to take home to his family.

Once arriving at the parking lot for Mgahinga, there was a long steep climb up the mountains to meet the guides and porters. The Nyakagezi Gorilla Family is the only habituated gorilla group in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park and can be difficult to get to. We climbed and hiked for about three hours to find the group sleeping in a stand of bamboo. Some individuals were still sleeping high in the trees including a large silverback that climbed down very close to us. For the next hour we photographed this large family group in the bamboo. This was another wonderful experience with these amazing creatures.

Golden Monkey in Mgahinga National Park

The Golden Monkeys of Mgahinga National Park

The next day we returned to a different entrance to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park to photograph the Golden Monkeys. We hiked for about two hours and found them in a stand of bamboo. They came down out of the trees to pick bamboo shoots, one of their favorite foods. Getting good photos of the Golden Monkeys in the thick stands of bamboo was difficult because they moved really fast and the light was very low.

Our trip to Uganda was amazing. Our guide, Ben took care of us from meeting us at the airport upon arrival to dropping us off at the airport for our return flight. Our leader, Des Ong, took care of all of the arrangements, led us to some great photo opportunities and provided great photography advice. The country has survived Idi Amin and civil unrest that lasted into the nineties, as well as the civil wars of neighboring countries, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. However, the people of Uganda were friendly and generous even though their resources are very limited. 

If you want a spectacular photographic adventure with a great photographer, check out Des Ong’s workshops and tours at https://www.desong.co.uk/.

Check out my image gallery from Uganda here https://www.lookingatnature.com/uganda/.