My journey of discovering and
uncovering this gem of the Eastern circuit, begins a long way from the long
distances and unmatched beauty Sipi falls, The wet roads of Pian Upe wildlife
Reserves and the stunning sceneries of the true African Wilderness Kidepo
national park.I start my journey very early in
the morning around 06:30am driving from Entebbe to Kampala city to meet my
colleagues at the Uganda house, which is one of the famous waiting places
around town where most excursions start if not at the national theatre because
of the parking space. |
| Entebbe Expressway |
Driving on the Entebbe express way
on cold chilly morning watching the cattle egrets making the V- shape in flight
and songs from the hadada ibis and the sun raising from the east makes you wish
if you can drive till the road gets to the end unfortunately you either have to
branch off from Kajansi or continue to Munyonyo and the northern bypass to access
the city from different parts.
We started our journey somewhat
late because one our vehicles had some issues and I would I recommend if you
departing from Kampala to leave as early 07:00hrs to try and avoid the traffic
jam of Kampala because it’s you could be stack in jam for more than two hours
before you make your way outside Mukono town. One of the important things to
note that while you are taking on this route, you able to have stop at Mabira
forest reserve for quick birding if you are spending a night in Jinja or if you
have enough time. As for my team, and I, we had a stop at Najembe part of
Mabira where we bought some roasted chicken, Cassava, beef and ordered rolexes
and cold drink to push us to the next town, which was to be Mbale town. For
those who like venturing and exploring local foods and dishes can always try
out this place. However, the vendors have a habit of storming passenger vehicles
selling bottled water, cold sodas, and other food staffs which may seem strange
if your new to this kind of life and if you’re a first time visitor but they
are harmless and just trying make sales for the day and provide what to eat for
the family back home.
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Vender at Najembe Mabira
|
Anyway, cutting story short, our
first night, which we were meant to overnight in Sipi Falls, had to be spent in
Mbale town because of curfew and avoiding to drive after 19:00hrs that when it
starts getting dark here in Uganda.
Waking up to beautiful sunrise
from the hills and ranges of mt Elgon is one of those few great memories you
will go back home with when spend your night here in Mbale town that’s less crowded
and is estimated to host about 72,000 people. After our morning coffee and
delicious katogo (Boiled Matooke/Banana with beef or sometimes with beans) we
drove towards north east of Mbale town to Sipi falls.
Having bird lovers on this trip was
a plus for the team meaning that we would be able to stop here and there to
identify and watch some birds in flight or along the rocks in the sharp corners
of kapchorwa. There is this common phrase that goes like, if something good
happens, travel to celebrate, if something bad happens, travel to forget and
nothing happens, travel to make something happen. Sipi falls is the perfect
destination for you to be able create more memories with your loved ones be it
family, friends, work mates among others. |
| Sipi Falls and Great spots for photography |
In the same manner, I have come to
realization that traveling opens your mind, broadens your mind, and fills your
life with stories to tell as per my experience while on this trip. Upon arrival
at CASA Lodge, we meet our guide William and head out for the photographic
moment just a few steps from the lodge dining area, which is one of the perfect
spots to take great shoot of the falls.
As confirmed by William and Job
who are local based site guides that are borne and raised in this part of the
country, Sipi falls is found in Kapchorwa on the slopes of Mt Elgon which holds
the world’s largest caldera on the planet and these falls generate their waters
from Sipi River that flows from the ranges of mount Elgon. The Sipi Falls area
is particularly famous for locally grown Bugisu Arabica coffee that only grows
at an altitude of between 1,600 and 1,900 meters. As enjoyed by many tourists
to this destination, a Coffee tour organized through guides or the lodge with
knowledge of coffee farming, processing and roasting is one of those activities
you should not miss if you love your coffee fresh, hot and concentrated.
After a photographic moment at
lodge, the team decide to have different teams hike different falls because we
couldn’t cover all the three falls in the limited time we have since we were to
drive to Pain Upe game reserve that same day.I decided to join the team hiking
falls that were near Sipi river lodge and one of three main falls with a
man-made cave.
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| View of the falls inside the cave |
The view of 65 meters long falls
inside the caves is really stunning though according to our guide William, the
cave had shallow depth about 2 meters deep behind the three cascades of falls
divided by the hanging rocks at the edge of the river flow which was in habited
by the Sebei tribe, who were the early inhabitants of this region. The Sebei
belong to the Nilo, Hamites group of people who migrated from Ethiopian
Highlands and In their journey trends, they never had permanent settlements and
natural caves were an ideal place to live in since they were great warriors,
hunters, great fishermen, great warriors and fruit gatherers.Caves were their favorite hiding
places and their ancestral homes, so when they arrived, here they had to look
for natural caves nearer to the water source and this cave was perfect home for
them. Since they were many and the cave was small so they had to dig more
deeper inside to provide enough space for the vulnerable family members mainly
those who were affected by tribal wars during their exodus from Ethiopia,
pregnant women, infants and elderly People who couldn't go for war. As of
today, this cave is part of the most romantic waterfalls of Sipi with natural
showers and the sounds of nature lies here
After our lecture
under the cave as we were observing the falls, we decided to descend down and
get back to the car and drive off for our next destination. As were trying and
struggling not to fall because of the slippery wet soil after it had rained
the whole afternoon, we meet this beautiful chameleon and I had to pull out my
camera and photograph him for few seconds and one or two three posses and we
continued descending to find our vehicle at the Sipi river lodge.
We departed Sipi falls around
14:00hrs to Pain Upe wildlife Reserve. Sitting at the back of land cruiser as
you traverse the beautiful plains of Karamoja should be among a hundred ways to
be happy in life 😊.However, on a rainy day, the story is very
different and this was the case when we visited this region.
Actually when the trip was completed, i reconsidered the title of
this blog from The Un Forgiving Lands of
Karamoja to the Untold Story of the Karamoja region because of the rains at
the moment. Personally, i recommend against anyone travelling to this part of
country during the rainy season because the roads gets muddy, flooded, slippery
and un accessible even if you have 4x4 land cruiser with new tires. At some
point, in some of the bridges are washed away by the seasonal rivers and you
will most likely not enjoy your safari or even find big truck stuck in your way
and you can’t cross till the next day.
After driving for about one hour,
it started raining and the roads started get wet which we had not anticipated
but we had to continue since we were determined for Pian Upe. Several times we
had to get out and push, pull or first test how deep the seasonal rivers were
above the bridges until we made to the park gate. Because of the weather and
the bad roads, we arrived late and we went to pitching our tents on the camping
site and hoped the next day would be better and perhaps a different story.
As a passionate but armature
photographer, I made sure that I set my alarm at 06:00hrs to ensure that I do
not miss the morning stunning sunrises of the game reserve that my friend
Jonathan Benaih had always told me about. As some of my colleagues were busy
snoring and dreaming or perhaps still tired from the previous journey, my alarm
came through and I had to wake up and see if I could actually capture something
on camera.
There is this feeling when you a
hiking a mountain and you finally it to the top and you feel like screaming out
loud Yesssssss I have made..Yesss.. I had the same exact feeling early this morning watching the life
changing sunrises of Mt Kadama, watching a flock of blue napped mouse birds
feed on the nearby acacia and hearing calls of Black headed gonelake made me
feel as if the world is whole again and brought back the old memories of the
real safari days, in the world where corona would a nightmare.
 |
| Sunrise in Pian Upe game reserve |
The air tastes different and bird
songs are out of the ordinary. Pain Upe had always been my next dream
destination to visit.
A warm welcome and the smiling
faces of the local people around the manyatas is a day done. Having missed the
foxes weaver, i feel like this is the best day of my life. We have to leave and
these beautiful loving people follow us as they
are singing good bye and see u again songs. Am leaving but my heart has been left behind by the love and
top hospitality around here. The elders and children and all people are so good
and welcoming.
As we were walking back to the
campsite with my colleague Allen Tessie confesses that most people on the trip
did not want to go for the cultural tour but at the end of the tour everyone
was wearing a smiling face and so happy even though we had missed the Fox's
Weaver but we have to move and proceed to our next destination.
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| The gazelle group |
We depart Moroto
12:54 through the remote to proceed to Kidepo valley national park. There about
about 200k which on a normal day you will drive about 2-3 hours. However, the
drive from Moroto through Matheniko game reserve is totally a must do for bird lovers
and people love just driving through the sparsely populated rural areas of
Karamoja. For those who are versed with the endless plains of Masai Maraa and
Serengeti, wait did i say Maraa Serengeti? yes i did!! This game reserve Is
gifted with stunning endless plains and a lot of bird life.
The reserve is
said to be one of those that a threatened because of the human conflict with
the conservation efforts of Uganda Wildlife.
The game reserve
is also famous for the Tepeth nomads who are part of Karamajong communities
that's still live in their norms and culture of the nomadic pastoralists that
depend on cattle for food and Wealth and according to them the modern day life
style is just a waste of life. In case you would love to visit these nomads or
you love culture, I will leave an email at the end of this blog and u can inquire for more details.
We had several
stops to identify some special bird species and if you have not been to this
part of the country every bird specie you will see might be a lifer or bird
that has been missing from your checklists or perhaps the one that crossed from
Kenya to Uganda. The birds we sighted here include Barbets etc. which can only
be found in this region.Because we were
camping and cooking our own meals we had to stop in Kotido and buy some supplies
for our next four days because this is the nearest town you will. We also had
to refuel because its also the only place where you can buy gas or fuel at
competitive price or else you can buy fuel at Apoka lodge or if you have enough
you can be able to refuel in Kitugumu or Gulu on your way back to Kampala or
Murchison falls depending on which one is you next destination.
After shopping
and washroom break, we decided to continue and head to Kidepo. From Kotido to
Kidepo there about 70km of unmatched road and can be wet and dusty in rainy
and dry season respectively. At this time of the year it’s supposed to dry but
because of global warming and climate, it was raining and this was not good on
our side because the soil here is very slippery as well though most of the
parts will dry faster after the rain in case it shines and you good to go. The
only thing you need here are new tyres and 4x4 Vehicle and I would recommend a
Landcruiser when its a wet season or rainy season otherwise you might be stuck
with limited or no help so timing and weather is one of the things to consider
while traveling to Kidepo.
Another thing you have to consider is the time you
leave Kitugumu town to Kidepo and i would suggest before 15:00 to give you enough
to drive to the park at your own pess with less pressure of making it to the
park in time.
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| Kidepo Valley National Park |
As it has been the case, before i
cover my tent, i ensure that my alarm is well set to ensure that i don't miss on
the beautiful sunrises. I woke to wet morning with all the grass wet and
started walking towards the Uganda wildlife bandhas to see if i could capture
something on my camera.
After a few shoots of the sunrise,
i head back to my tent ️ to get ready for our morning game drive after breakfast. We set
off at around 7:30 to go and look for the big game. So we take on Kakaine track
since all the tracks were un accessible and somehow some way we would be stuck
in mad for hours if not the whole morning.
Kidepo is known to be the most
isolated furthest northern national park in Uganda with more than 10hrs drive
to get to the park covering about 570km from the Capital Kampala using Masindi-Gulu-Kitugum.
However, the long drive is one of the most rewarding encounters that has
exceptional un matched beauty and outstanding scenic grassland plains.
The park has worn several awards
and many online newspapers what have published about the beauty of Kidepo
national park including BBC, CNN, and Lonely Planet among others because of her
untapped nature. The park is gifted with stunning dramatic Disney like sceneries.
The park also boasts abundant birdlife with over 470 bird species that can
found here. So if you are bird nerd, Lister or just love birds, this is the
place to be especially if you have semi-arid birds on your checklist. The other
aspect that someone should not miss is the cultural communities just outside
the park, which are part of the Karamojong people.Getting back to the game drive, we
took the airstrip circuit to see if we could find something on the rocks
especially for the cats. Davis, Jovia, Hamidah, Veronica and i were the 5 part
of my team in the vehicle since we were only allowed five Pax in the vehicle
because of the Standard Operating procedure introduced by the Ministry of
health. A game drive in Kidepo is a must and Kidepo wildlife numbers can never
disappoint. Because most of park was un accessible, we did one track which was
product in just one day. We were able to see many animals including Elands,
Zebras, Elephants, Buffaloes are hard to miss and among other antelopes.
Unfortunately, because of our
timing, we missed out on cats but our list was rich with birds species,
antelopes and beautiful memories. During the evening campfire, the team decided
it was better to exit the park the next morning and drive back to Kampala.
However, the team decided to have a break of day so that we did not drive over
10 hours to Kampala so we made plans to visit any destination along the way. |
Aruru falls
|
We decided to visit Aruru falls,
which is just before Gulu town. However, the other option would driving to
Murchison Falls and break the long distance.
Where to sleep in Sipi Falls, Sipi
Falls Lodge, Sipi River Lodge, and Rafiki Lodge
Where to sleep in Pian Upe, there
are no fully developed accommodation properties in the reserve however UWA has Self
Contained Banda’s for accommodation and Camping is not out of the question if
you would love to enjoy the wild
Where to sleep in Moroto. Hotel
African (Moroto) and Karatunga Safari Camp
Where to Sleep in Kidepo. There
are many accommodation facilities in this park ranging from upscale midrange
and budge. These include Apoka Safari Lodge, Kidepo Savana Lodge, and Adere
Safari Lodge among others. However, the park also has great camping grounds in
Kakaine Circuit and Nogosokipire.Where to sleep between Kampala and
Kidepo. Gulu town has good accommodation and Masindi would be a good option in
case one does not want to drive from Kidepo to Kampala.
For more details, kindly send us an email d.jungle@safaritoeastafrica.com
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