Things to see and do Vallée De La Semliki

Protected since 1926, the reserve is one of the oldest in the country. Covering an area of 542 km², it extends to the southern shore of Lake Albert with landscapes made up of acacia woods and lush savannah interrupted by palm islands and swamps. On a clear day, one can guess the outline of the Rwenzori and the Blue Mountains of the Congo. Before the civil war, the reserve was very rich with some of the biggest lions in Africa and many leopards. Today, although some of these felines are still present, you will have the opportunity to see Ugandan cobes, buffaloes, primates (colobus, chimpanzees...) and, eventually, elephants. In these conditions, the safaris are not as spectacular as in Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls National Parks, but lovers of tranquility and birdlife (440 species recorded) will appreciate. In this respect, the waters of Lake Albert provide one of the best opportunities in the country to spy on the shoebill. If you are not a client of Semliki Safari Lodge, you can organize your activities - such as primate walk (US$ 30 for 3 to 4 hours of walking) or Nile Shoebill watching (US$ 100/boat; over 3 passengers, US$ 20/additional person) - through the UWA. The government agency has a camp (with a canteen) at Ntoroko (count 40 to 82,000 shillings for a banda): reservation required.

Formerly known as the Bwamba Forest, this 220 km² territory acquired national park status in 1993. At an altitude of about 700 m, it is home to a virtually unspoiled sylvatic forest that is an extension of the Ituri Forest that stretches across the Semliki River in the DRC. As a result, it is home to species unique to the Congo Basin that are found nowhere else in Uganda, such as the okapi (three individuals recorded). Given its small size, the park has an extraordinary diversity of fauna: more than 300 species of butterflies and 435 species of birds, including several endemic to the park, which is a must-see destination for birdwatchers. With about fifty representatives, the list of mammals is not the most impressive in the country but, once again, some animals are unique such as the aquatic chevrotain (or doe pig). Chimpanzees (unaccustomed) and Brazza's cercopithecus (extremely rare in Uganda) are also present, as well as forest elephants, buffaloes and sitatungas, while crocodiles and hippos frequent the Ntotoro and Semliki rivers. However, the hot springs of Sempaya remain the main attraction of the park. Named Mumbunga ("meeting place") by the locals, the "male" (12 m in diameter) and "female" (which spits out boiling water, around 103°C) springs were indeed used by the natives for various purposes: washing clothes, cooking food and curative treatment (against skin rashes, epidermal mycosis, venous return or joint problems). The guided tour of the hot springs (1 hr.) requires only the payment of park entrance fees. Nature walk (30 US$ for 2 to 6 hours of walking) and bird watching (30 US$ itou) are also included in the program. If you opt for the first one, which lasts between 3 and 6 hours in the dry season and between 2 and 3 hours in the rainy season (because the progression in the mud is not a piece of cake...), expect to meet primates (such as the guéréza colobus, the samango or the red colobus) and, of course, butterflies and birds. If you choose bird watching, which starts (ideally before 8 am) from the UWA offices in Sempaya or from the Bumaga camp (2 km further south, close to the Fort Portal-Bundibugyo National Park), be aware that the guides, Alex and Moses in particular, are experienced ornithologists.