UGANDA 2020 - A TALE OF 7 SPECIALS

[xelas]

LAKE MBURO / 26^TH– 29^THFeb

 

 

Yep, another long drive was in front of us. Lake Mulehe was the most western location of our itinerary, and turning point back to East and Entebbe. With a stop at another National Park. Disclaimer: the section between Lake Mulehe and Lake Bunyonyi is wrong. See below at @Galana's post for correct itinerary.!

 

 

We have started at 8:00 am and have arrived at 16:00; relying on Google Maps driving times is just not a good decision.

 

 

Living in the countryside is basic. Much of work is still done manually. And transportation also rely on manpower heavily.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gas stations are located almost in every village but the rental car agencies are telling their clients to use only major brands like Total and Shell. Gas stations also doubles as pick-up points; In the car I have counted 7 persons and driver. Not all of them wear safety belts.

 

 

 

 

A quick pit stop was done at Heritage Campsite in Buko again, this time weather was lovely and sunny.

 

 

 

 

Education is very good in Uganda, literacy among the highest in Africa. Emmy told us about how private schools are taking over state ones. Private schools are expensive but as elsewhere, parents wants only the best for their kids.

 

 

 

 

 

Around midday Emmy pulled off at a lodge and convention center for a lunch break. This place has some interesting and some awkward looking art on display.

 

 

 

 

 

 

To keep us happy on this long drive Emmy feed us with excellent bananas which can be bought at many roadside markets.

 

 

 

 

Edited April 9, 2020 by xelas

[Galana]

37 minutes ago, xelas said:

; relying on Google Maps driving times is just not a good decision.

Especially as Google have you driving a road that does not exist. Our route was back to Kisoro, a different way around the airport and over Kanaba to Muko.

[xelas]

Thank you, Fred. Myself I am not a fan of Google Maps as a navigating tool. I have read on forums too many scary stories when GM took drivers over some goat tracks, rice paddies and jungle roads to their final destination.

 

When self-driving ourselves, we are using maps.me app, and when possible a paper map.

Edited April 9, 2020 by xelas

[xelas]

As the sun was still high and the weather lovely, we have had no intentions to drive directly to the lodge (or some of us did not have that intention). A short detour Emmy took us on, offered a nice overview of what this park has to offer.

 

 

 

 

This particular MARABOU STORK used a similar hunting technique as used by Black Herons.

 

 

 

 

ROTHSCHILD GIRAFFES were reintroduced to the park back in 2015. They came from Murchinson Falls NP, and they are a beautiful species to observe.

 

 

 

The park has more than 68 mammal species, including zebra, impala, topi, eland, bush buck, buffalo, warthog, leopard, hyena and jackal. During our visit we have seen many of them.

 

WARTHOGS were most prolific, and they do take good care to stay in numbers.

 

 

IMPALA is the most gracious mammal in the park, easy to spot.

 

BUSHBUCK was a less seen grazer.

 

Due to its size and shape, a WATERBUCK can also be easily spotted.

 

 

And not forget the birds. There are about 310 different bird species counted within park boundaries, and we were trying to find them as many as possible.

 

GREEN WOOD-HOOPOE has shown us some of the aerial acrobatics,

 

 

LILAC-BREASTED ROLLER announced loudly that “the gang has come to the park”,

 

and STRIPED KINGFISHER has taken the place of the Bulbul on my personal “look there is a bird” list.

 

 

 

Edited April 9, 2020 by xelas

[xelas]

Arcadia Lodge- https://www.arcadialodges.com/lodges/lake-mburo- was our base inside Lake Mburo NP. Close the the park’s headquarter and the lake, it is also centrally positioned for game drives. Self-standing cabins are 4 at each side of the main building.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friendly staff, good food but the best asset of this place is its first floor terrace with view over the lake itself. The terrace even has its own bouncer, smaller in size but feisty one he was, I can tell you that much!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Galana]

1 hour ago, xelas said:

WOODLAND KINGFISHER has taken the place of the Bulbul

Striped? 

 

The lovely butterfly is a Citrus Swallowtail. Sometimes called "The Christmas Butterfly" as it often first appears around December.

Edited April 9, 2020 by Galana
Additional text.

[xelas]

11 minutes ago, Galana said:

Striped? 

 

The lovely butterfly is a Citrus Swallowtail. Sometimes called "The Christmas Butterfly" as it often first appears around December.

 

To my only defense ... there is no excuse . Mea Culpa.

Edited April 9, 2020 by xelas

[kittykat23uk]

26 February 2020 to Lake Mburo

 

Well not much to add to @xelas  detailed description of our drive to our last stop so all is needed is to show a few more photos. First before leaving Lake Mulehe Gorilla Lodge, time for a final snap of a White-necked Raven.

 

P2260071 (2) white-necked raven (Corvus albicollis) by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

We were told no birding en route as we had a really long drive, but we did sneak  a few birds in on the way..

 

P2260103 (2)  yellow-billed stork (Mycteria ibis) by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P2260141 purple heron (Ardea purpurea) by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P2260207  woolly-necked stork or whitenecked stork (Ciconia episcopus) by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P2260441 African Pygmy-kingfisher (Ispidina picta) by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P2260480 striped kingfisher (Halcyon chelicuti) by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

A real treat awaited us at yet another swamp as we had a clandestine drive down to the shore to snag the much sought-after Rufous Bellied Heron:

 

P2260572 Rufous-bellied Heron (Ardeola rufiventris) by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P2260606 Impala by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Broad-billed rollers were very common in this park

 

P2260701 broad-billed roller (Eurystomus glaucurus) by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P2260724 broad-billed roller (Eurystomus glaucurus) by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P2260734 Grey Kestrel by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P2260750 Common Bushbuck by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P2260776 Defassa Waterbuck by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20200226_190252 Sunset by Jo Dale, on Flickr

Edited April 9, 2020 by kittykat23uk

[Galana]

Before we go on a few game drives let me add a bit about my choice of Arcadia Cottages. Having tried one or two other lodges dotted around the area outside the National Park boundary I keep coming back here for two or three reasons (despite the quaint concrete 'log cabin' effect).

It is inside the park and centrally located. 

The staff are some of the friendliest you can meet.

Wildlife can and do pass through the grounds and being used to people some normally shy creatures will not instantly flee as you appear. Lake Mburo is the one park where you can  see Impala as it is an eco-extention of the Serengeti in Tanzania. This is how Kampala got  its name as it means "Hill of the Impala!"

Of course this means you should have an escort after dark as whilst there are no ellies in the park there are hippo and buffalo. 

Here is a clip from my Camera mounted just by my cottage that shows some of the night activity.

If you listen carefully you can hear voices from time to time including us returning from a night drive.

 

It is a pity that too many TOs prefer to put their clients outside the park but there again their loss is our gain.

 

Edited April 9, 2020 by Galana
amended text.

[Soukous]

1 hour ago, Galana said:

It is a pity that too many TOs prefer to put their clients outside the park but there again their loss is our gain.

 

Location, location location. 

Wildlife Camp is not inside South Luangwa but the wildlife one can see there is better than many of the lodges inside, and the value for money is way better. 

[Galana]

59 minutes ago, Soukous said:

Location, location location. 

I could not agree more. I was being specific to Lake Mburo National Park where there are only two lodges located centrally inside the park where the wildlife is. The borders of this Park are hemmed solid with agriculturalists as my companions will no doubt reveal in their photographs of Ankola cattle. Totally different conditions to South Luangwa which I also know well.

[Chakra]

@Galana I sometimes think of you as a bottomless pit. I mean in a good way . Or perhaps the fountainhead of all knowledge. Is there no end to your knowledge  ?  Those  UFOs  sighted on the top of peaks are just like cherry on the top.   I have been in love with Virunga for a while. Believe it or not I made concrete enquiries a couple of years back about Virunga National park, not only for gorillas but also to hike to the crater of  Mount Nyiragongo, one of the very few places in the world where one can see a lava lake. Security reasons stopped me from travelling and currently  sadly my wings are clipped ! I do donate to the Virunga Fallen Ranger fund regularly  and hope to see these absolutely stunning area one day. 

A little geology lesson is good from time to time. 

[Galana]

24 minutes ago, Chakra said:

I do donate to the Virunga Fallen Ranger fund regularly  and hope to see these absolutely stunning area one day. 

A little geology lesson is good from time to time. 

Why thank you Chak!

I am sure you will make it to this beautiful part of the world one day soon.

 

I had few regrets about leaving school 'abruptly' but one of them comes back to haunt me from time to time. I never got to finish my A level Geology course.

[kittykat23uk]

2 minutes ago, Galana said:

Why thank you Chak!

I am sure you will make it to this beautiful part of the world one day soon.

 

I had few regrets about leaving school 'abruptly' but one of them comes back to haunt me from time to time. I never got to finish my A level Geology course.

 

They only taught us A level geology in our sixth form so I had to complete the course in only a year, compared to the standard two years for all my other A levels. We had the best and craziest geology tutors at my school. I was a joy to study that course! 

[xelas]

(EARLY) MORNING GAME DRIVE / 27^thFeb

 

 

Last three days in Uganda, so early morning game drive was on the schedule. Fred opted to skip it, probably knowing that we will be stuck for a long time starring at a large bush. 

 

Out of the lodge before sunrise, and cruising along the trails, Emmy has spotted an impala carcass near a large bush. Nothing moved, and we drove away, then returned to the same spot. Our patience was rewarded.

 

7:47 – first usable sight of the leopard

 

8:12 – hiding in tall grass

 

8:37 – coming out to assess the situation

 

9:04 – out again, this time already a bit annoyed as we did not moved away

 

 

 

 

 

9:20 – has enough of it, decided to move to take the prey

 

Next few minutes the leopard was working on moving the carcass into the bush

 

 

 

 

 

Emmy told us that this is probably a female, and that there might be cubs inside the bush. We have waited a bit longer but she (?) did not appeared again.

[xelas]

That was already as much excitement as we needed for one day. Yet there were other sightings before our return to the lodge, for lunch. I have chosen this 4x3 series:

 

DWARF MONGOOSE

 

 

 

LILAC-BREASTED ROLLER

 

 

 

VERVET MONKEY

 

 

 

BUTTERFLIES

 

 

 

[Galana]

2 hours ago, kittykat23uk said:

They only taught us A level geology in our sixth form

Mine too as it happens but this is supposed to be a trip report not School report!

[Galana]

2 hours ago, xelas said:

Fred opted to skip it, probably knowing that we will be stuck for a long time starring at a large bush.  No I am not that good. I think it was option b. "Out of the lodge before sunrise."

 Nice sighting. (Except the bloody Vervets!) Love the Dwarf Mongooses. My favourite.

You may want to know that your two Butterflies, green and brown, are the same species. Green Patch Swallowtails  . Male green, female brown.

Edited April 9, 2020 by Galana
Corrected text.

[xelas]

9 minutes ago, Galana said:

You may want to know that your two Butterflies, green and brown, are teh same species. Green Patch. Male green, female brown.

 

I leave them without ID on purpose  (not really). Thanks for identifying them all. I might find some more.

[Galana]

Looking forward to more text and photos of our time in Lake Mburo National Park it occurs to me that a map of the park may help orientation?

I hope so.

Brief details are we entered at Sanga gate and paid our fees etc., and then drove to our lodge via Impala track to turn south to take the Waruki track to loop around back towards the lake to our Lodge which is more or less just south of the Lakeside campsite 3 on this map.

This is also where there is a small restaurant and souvenir shop as well as the jetty for boat trips.

You will also see how far it would be to drive in and out each day from a Lodge outside Sanga and Nshara gates.

Next morning the 'team', less myself headed north through the Park HQ and again on the Waruki track where the leopard was seen just about on the corner under the 'k' on waruKi.

 

And there I will leave it for now and leave it to @xelas to tell the tail or is it tale?

[kittykat23uk]

Well @xelaswill have to wait until I have caught up and created a video of our leopard encounter. But unfortunately for our audience I was distracted by a nice owl this morning and in the meantime Ian has stolen my laptop lead to set up an old computer for a friend. So it may be a while yet... 😁

[Galana]

Well without us waiting while Jo finds a new elastic band or whatever for her compooter here is an account of my busy morning with more maps and notes about the National Park..

I rose at a decent hour after sunrise and enjoyed a nice quiet breakfast of eggs etc., and then busied myself around the camp grounds. Sadly there were not many mammals around apart from the pestilent baboons and vervets but I did pursue some butterflies.

Here you can see both female and male of Papilio phorcas the Green Patch Swallowtail together in a mating display.

 

Male.

Female.

Back at the main Lapa I was having a quiet morning with a cup of Coffee when who should come walking up the path but my good friend Moses . Moses Matsiko is a Sergeant of the Ugandan Wildlife Authority Rangers and is a birder of repute who I have known for years. There are not many parts of Lake Mburo NP we have not visited at one time or another. Sadly due to other commitments, he was guiding two Belgian ladies, he cannot take us on the afternoon boat trip but I made arrangements for us to pick him later around 19.00 at Nshara Gate to go on  a night drive. No doubt more on that later. (Not too much later I would hope!!)

 

As to Lake Mburo National Park it is one of Uganda's smaller parks at 260sq km. but fairly unique in that it is the only NP that is home to Impala and one of only three that have Burchell's Zebra. I think I mentioned earlier that ecologically it is an extension of the huge Serengeti system that lies to the south in Tanzania and shares a lot of commonality of wildlife such as Eland, Topi, De Fassa Waterbuck, Bohor Reedbuck and Oribi as well as Buffalo and Hippo etc.,

As Alex has said twelve of the beautiful Rothschild's Giraffe was introduced to Lake Mburo in 2018 from the resident population in Murchison Falls N.P. They are doing well and increasing.

Not to be outdone the Warthogs are doing well too. Is this how the term Piggyback originated I wonder?

I won't elaborate other than to say it was not what it seemed and did not end well for the male!

 

There are Spotted Hyena and Leopard but no Elephant as their migration routes have been cut. The once healthy population of  Lions have been hunted to extinction but from time to time some do wander  in. I was lucky enough to see one pride on one of my earlier visits but sadly they don't last long before being poisoned by the 'farmers'. In 2018 we glimpsed the phantom male that had just arrived but did not hear him this trip. However I was told by Moses that he is still around despite the agriculturalists attempt to do him in. Now we need an equally secretive female for him. He gets my vote!

With the absence of dangerous game, apart from buffalo,walking safaris are a great way to leave the car and get some exercise in the presence of Zebra, Impala and even Eland.

Impala Ram.

Topi.

Eland.

 

Finally, for now, two more maps of our drives.

Our arrival route on 26th including a scenic circuit. Emmy NEVER goes direct to anywhere!

 

and

Our drives on 27th. The straight line does not mean we flew. It means that the morning "sunrise shift" were using the socket for a spotlight or charging their plethora of electronics.

Until I got in in the afternoon.

[xelas]

BOAT RIDE / 27^thFeb

 

 

We have returned to the lodge around 10:00 o’clock, for having a brunch. Boat ride was one of the planned activities, and as the weather was sunny we have opted for doing it this day. Tickets were bought at the shop where the boats are moored, at 30 USD pp. Two boats of smaller size were on duty, while the larger one was on dry land for repairs. The one on the left with padded benches was ours. The roof comes handy being it rain or shine. Our was a shine, not the best for photography but always beats the rainy conditions.

 

 

We have been checked-in by a group of hippos. We have seen several groups but they were all very lazy … or tame.

 

 

We have warmed up our gear with taking photos of various birds, among others

 

MALACHITE KINGFISHER

 

AFRICAN FISH EAGLE

 

RED-HEADED WEAVER

 

 

However the real fun started when a rare bird was spotted. I have read in other trip reports that this is a shy and hard to see and even harder to photograph bird, yet ours was a very relaxed exemplar of a male AFRICAN FINFOOT.

 

 

 

 

For an intermezzo there was a BLACK CRAKE walking on the shore,

 

 

and then the second wave of photo snapping ensued when a female AFRICAN FINFOOT emerged from the bushes, showing us from where the name comes.

 

 

 

PIED KINGFISHER  was an omnipresent bird at almost every water body; after first 100 photos next ones are usually overlooked. But not when it displays a “fish tendering” technique.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After 2 hours our boatman Nicholas took us back, another hippo has checked us out, and the boat ride was over. What to say. Boat rides are always a pleasure to have. If nothing else, ride is way more smooth then on the game tracks.

 

 

Back on the shore, a fruiting tree has attracted various birds, like this DOUBLE-TOOTHED BARBET.

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

Wow, that's a voracious Kingfisher!

[xelas]

AFTERNOON GAME DRIVE / 27^thFeb

 

 

At 14:00 the day was still young, and there was still a long way to our beds. First it was time for afternoon game drive. Fred joined us, as did his trusty Gladys (map is already posted above). There were mammals and birds and we have had soon cards full of nice photos. Specially nice was to observe many young mammals.

 

BURCHELL’S ZEBRA

 

TOPI

 

DEFASSA WATERBUCK

 

PORTRAITS

 

 

 

 

Birds were just too many to post them all, so only a short selection is presented.

 

BROAD-BILLED ROLLER

 

BRUBRU

 

CRESTED BARBET

 

GREY WOODPECKER

 

AFRICAN GREY HORNBILL

 

GREEN WOOD-HOOPOE

 

 

 

 

Back to lodge for a tasty dinner. But there was not yet time for bed as Jo’s favorite drives are night drives. 

 

For night drive we have had to be accompanied by a ranger, who was waiting for us at the Nshara gate, about 45 minutes drive from the lodge. Moses is a sergeant in UWA, and Fred knows him for many years. He is a truly remarkable guide, with great knowledge about the park he is managing. We have enjoyed our time with him.

 

Cost of the night drive is same as any other activity offered by UWA, 30 USD pp.

 

The drive itself started at around 20:00, outside was pitch black already. Gladys was left at home as the spotlights have occupied all electrical outlets. No map, sorry.

 

As nighttime photography is really not our thing, @kittykat23uk will lead and show us through the drive. And the promised video, of course !

Edited April 10, 2020 by xelas