Travel Guide Vallée De La Semliki

This sumptuous valley is wedged between the Rwenzori foothills to the south and Lake Albert to the north, while the Semliki River, which occupies its thalweg, marks the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. The northern projection of the Rwenzori massif divides the valley into two distinct biotopes: on the one hand, the humid undergrowth and savannahs of the Toro-Semliki Wilderness Reserve, and on the other, the jungle of the Semuliki National Park, which is home to animal species that are unique to Uganda, but which are found in the evergreen forests of the former Zaire. The region is inhabited by bwamba farmers, bakonzo farmers, who live on the slopes of the Rwenzori, batuku pastoralists and pygmies from Ituri. The latter, who are very few in number, were brought to this side of the river in the 1920s by their farming bosses. They have long been marginalized and oppressed by the other ethnic groups in the region; the situation has improved, but certain prejudices against them remain tenacious... During the 1990s and 2000s, the Semliki region was rarely visited by tourists because of the danger posed by frequent incursions by rebel militias operating from the DRC. Things have now calmed down, but it is still prudent to get information on the situation before making a trip to the valley