Agandi Uganda - a whirlwind tour!

[Biko]

Another great TR of you, Michael. Wonderful pictures.

[Atravelynn]

Page 1--the shoebill really does look like it is smiling.  Such great shots of this target, and right away.  Very odd Andreas had someone else's picture on the visa.

Page 2--I am struck by how many pairs shots you have of the birds.  Or am I seeing double?

We can only hope for the best for Murchison Falls with its abundance of oil.  I remember hearing that animals were being shot in huge quantities in Murchison Falls so that the area would be seen as devoid of wildlife and more susceptible to takeover by mining. 

After a dull rainy day at the start it seems your weather and lighting were great.

Edited April 16, 2022 by Atravelynn

[Atravelynn]

The Whydah ballet is quite enchanting.  It may have been whirlwind, but you saw a bundle so far. 

Uzuri does have an impressive website.  They'll even arrange for you to visit "happening night spots."

Edited April 17, 2022 by Atravelynn

[pedro maia]

Wonderfull trip and report Michael, the Kazinga Channel looks like a highlight from the trip, that and the the chimps, would love to see them.

[madaboutcheetah]

What a wonderful report, Michael with spectacular photography ....... Thank You!!!

[michael-ibk]

Many thanks @Kitsafari, @dlo, @Galana, @kilopascal, @Biko, @Atravelynn, @pedro maiaand @madaboutcheetah!

 

On 4/16/2022 at 5:21 AM, Atravelynn said:

I am struck by how many pairs shots you have of the birds.  Or am I seeing double?

 

How many drinks Lynn?

 

On 4/16/2022 at 5:21 AM, Atravelynn said:

I remember hearing that animals were being shot in huge quantities in Murchison Falls so that the area would be seen as devoid of wildlife and more susceptible to takeover by mining. 

 

Fortunately that was not my impression at all. All the animals were super-relaxed - clearly they were totally unafraid of man. And there´s still a lot of grazers in Murchison.

 

On 4/17/2022 at 3:57 AM, Atravelynn said:

Uzuri does have an impressive website.  They'll even arrange for you to visit "happening night spots."

 

Why do you think we chose them?

[michael-ibk]

On the way to Bwindi Emma convinced me to buy a Rolex. Me, who´s not even wearing a watch! A Rolex in Uganda is something else, though:

 

 

The biggest risk I took during this trip. I bravely and foolishly had - street food! A Rolex is a wrap, filled with an omelette basically, and some onions and tomatoes added. In the cities you can get all kind of Rolex (with meat, cheese, everything you fancy basically), but this here seems to be the "classic" one.

 

I was slightly hesitant, and while the "chef" encouraged me his assistant did not seem to have total trust in him:

 

 

One simple travel rule for us feebly-stomached Mzungus is - never have street food! Never!

 

 

"Don´t do it Mzungu!"

 

But (unlike much more careful Andreas who preferred to just watch) being sane and intelligent never really has been my thing.

 

 

And it was really good! Surprisingly - and totally undeservedly - I did not suffer any unfortunate after effects. Uganda Rolex rules!

 

 

Not the most dramatic picture - but these hills are already in Congo, this was the closest we came to the border.

 

 

 

The higher we moved the more the landscape changed - many tones of lush green everywhere, Uganda´s montane areas are wonderfully fertile and pretty.

 

 

 

 

B&W Shrike-Flycatcher

 

 

 

Cinnamon-Chested Bee-Eater

 

 

Another Hornbill - we saw them all the time.

 

After a pleasant drive we reached the Buhoma sector of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest NP. I really love that name btw! Did not dare to buy the T-Shirts saying "I penetrated the unpenetrable" though - they really sell those!

 

 

Our base for the next two nights was the Ride 4 A Woman Guesthouse - a lovely place I would gladly return to. The absolutely nicest staff, the people there are just a pleasure. Food was very good, and the rooms comfortable and clean.

 

 

There are only four rooms (all next to each other), so it never feels crowded, and it´s nice and easy to start a chat with the other guests. When we´d return from trekking or birding somebody would always come and ask if we needed anything, and were happy to serve coffee, drinks and cookies here.

 

 

 

The lounge

 

 

Africa´s rarest bird - just for @xelaswho absolutely adores them.

 

 

White-Eyed Slaty Flycatcher

 

 

A little creek runs through the garden - I always enjoy that.

 

 

And the guesthouse is not only very nice, it´s also a good thing - I´m stealing from their homepage:

 

"When you stay with us you are giving back…

 

Income generated from our guesthouses is used to support the women and families of Buhoma and Bwindi through the creation of jobs, the opportunity to gain new skills, the provision of safe drinking water and by providing access to microcredit for small business development.

So when you stay with us you are giving back to a whole community, helping to drive the local economy and supporting the progress of women and their families in Uganda."

 

The ladies are selling their craft next to the guesthouse. Some nice stuff, we did buy. Unfortunately we did not read that guests are actually encouraged to take photos, and we are never really quite comfortable taking photos of people without explicit permission, so cannot show that here.

 

Edited April 21, 2022 by michael-ibk

[Atravelynn]

I'm glad the Rolex incident turned out so well.

[michael-ibk]

Originally we had planned to do our Gorilla trek in Buhoma. But after we had reshuffled the itinerary a bit Uzuri could not get permits for the next day anymore, and that activity was switched to Ruhija. So all-out-birding in Buhoma it was, fantastic! For some unfathomable reason Andreas decided he did not need to run around in the forest catching climpes of some obscure Warblers and preferred to have a quiet afternoon on the veranda for a change. Some people!

 

I also decided that Emma really deserved some time off, so told him to do just that. But he arranged for our birding guide Matthew for the next day to pick me up already this afternoon, and everyone was happy! Almost - as it turned out Emma still had to drive us to the entrance road of the park since Matthew said that would be the best spot.

 

And it really was, lots of stuff to be seen. But don´t worry, just gonna post a small excerpt here.

 

 

Brown-Capped Weaver. The name makes more sense than it would appear here - the female Brown-Capped Weaver is Black-Capped!

 

 

Paradise-Flycatcher

 

 

Colobus trying to photobomb.

 

 

Dusky-Blue Flycatcher

 

 

These cute Monkeys are quite common and approachable in Bwindi - D´Hoest's Monkey.

 

 

So I had enjoyed some good afternoon birding, Andreas some rest, Emma some free time, birding guide Matthew some extra money - everybody was happy.

 

The next day we went for an all-day hike into the park. Quite an expedition, we had to take two armed rangers with us, and also employed a porter. Then there was Emma of course and Matthew. A really good birding guide - he´s here on FB: https://www.facebook.com/matthew.twongyeirwe

 

 

Park HQs, also the assembly point for Gorilla trekking.

 

 

We even had some sun in the morning - very enjoyable!

 

 

Lüdher´s Bushshrike is not uncommon here - but damny skulky!

 

 

Even more so the Banded Prinia - tried for 10 minutes and this was the best I could get!

 

 

The main path was very easy - we did use some sidetreks into the forest, but it was never really difficult.

 

 

A Yellow-Billed Barbet - a cool bird to see.

 

 

 

 

White-Bellied Robin-Chat. Like all these forest dwellers not easy to get.

 

 

 

African Shrike-Flycatcher. We had seen the female in Kibale, good to get the male.

 

 

 

This little guy was singing his heart out - an Olive-Green Camaroptera

 

 

One of my main targets for this walk was Barred Trogon. Really needed some patience - heard some several times but were unable to locate one. At one point one wonderfully presented itself on a branch - but for just a second, then was gone and I had been too slow to get a shot. Frustrating!

 

But when I already had given up on finding one we heard the harsh hooting again, and Emma manged to spot it after searching for a long time. High up, and very concealed, but a Barred Trogon it was - Hooray!

 

 

A stunning bird - fortunately it hopped out into a better position after a while.

 

 

 

Not only birds in the forest, we enjoyed seeing hundreds of butterflies in all kind of colours.

 

 

Also some less attractive creepy-crawlies.

 

 

Equatorial Akalat

 

 

 

Another important target was Black Bee-Eater. A bird we had glimpsed in Gabon but not in a very satisfying way. Again, we already had given up hope but eventually found two late in the afternoon.

 

 

 

Concluding with another Yellow-Billed Barbet

 

 

This was a highly enjoyable day - I love forests like this.

 

Edited April 21, 2022 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

9 minutes ago, Atravelynn said:

I'm glad the Rolex incident turned out so well.

 

It did, but don´t worry Lynn, I was punished for my recklessness! Karma struck, serious injuries and severe illness still to come up in this report. But before that - Gorillas!

[Atravelynn]

I'm glad you saw the gorillas before the serious injuries and severe illness.  Now you have me worried!

Just saw the full day of birding.  Very productive!

Edited April 21, 2022 by Atravelynn

[TonyQ]

That forest walk in Buhoma looks lovely, and very productive.

Beautiful photos.

The Guest House looks very good, as well as being for a good cause 

[Galana]

Following you every inch of the way. Even recognising some of the landscapes.

Well done for trying a Rolex.  Not a risk at all.

You even scored two prospective 'lifers' that I have yet to find in Buhoma.

Perhaps your difficulty in finding a Barred Trogon was the tail?

l'hoests are almost habituated in Buhoma, quite approachable and very photogenic.

Looking forward to Ruhija.

[offshorebirder]

Thank you so much for this detailed and photo-laden trip report @michael-ibk.   Such helpful info like guides and safari outfitters are a boon for those of us who have yet to visit Uganda.   I will strongly consider Uzuri Safaris plus Emma and Matthew when I visit Uganda for the first time.

 

You are making me drool with African Shrike-Flycatcher male and YB Barbet, B&W Shrike-Flycatcher, and more.    You really crushed a lot of birds including the Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater.  

 

And that Papyrus Gonolek was crazy extroverted!   

 

Edited April 21, 2022 by offshorebirder

[dlo]

Could it be that my having had food poisoning in Africa 6 times might have something to do with me eating basically anything? Nah couldn't be,glad you enjoyed your Rolex keep living it up Michael😁. 

 

That forest walk looks great and I definitely agree that nothing beat a walk in the woods. I am a little saddened that my trip report didn't motivate you to go for a bike ride in Buhoma but it seems Andreas has the same common sense as my wife and enjoyed a bit of a rest from our craziness. 

 

And just like me you get switched to Ruhija. Hope it goes well.

[xelas]

On 4/21/2022 at 7:31 PM, michael-ibk said:

Africa´s rarest bird - just for @xelaswho absolutely adores them.

You are such a friend, Michael! Muchas gracias, amigo. Your introduction to Buhoma is extraordinary, and weather on your first day really looks fantastic.

Edited April 27, 2022 by xelas

[michael-ibk]

On 4/21/2022 at 9:12 PM, Galana said:

Perhaps your difficulty in finding a Barred Trogon was the tail?

 

Oh, that´s embarrassing. One month after the trip I´m already forgetting all the names! Bar-Tailed Trogon it is of course.

 

On 4/21/2022 at 10:40 PM, offshorebirder said:

I will strongly consider Uzuri Safaris plus Emma and Matthew when I visit Uganda for the first time.

 

I´m sure you would not regret it, they are great people doing a great job and deserve all the business they can get.

 

On 4/22/2022 at 12:29 AM, dlo said:

I am a little saddened that my trip report didn't motivate you to go for a bike ride in Buhoma

 

Just too difficult with a DSLR hurled around! That´s my excuse and I´m sticking to it.

 

On 4/22/2022 at 12:29 AM, dlo said:

just like me you get switched to Ruhija. Hope it goes well.

 

Let´s see:

[michael-ibk]

We had an early rise next morning - it´s quite a long drive from Buhoma to Ruhija. So get up at 05:00 in the morning, and we left about 06:00 in the dark. Still already lots of people on the road, many kids on their (long) way to school. Emma (who´s from Bwindi) told us he had to walk 12 km to school every day - and back.

 

When the sun rose we got even more excited about our trek - it was a lovely sunny morning, everything looked great.

 

 

There are only four families trekkable from Ruhija. Still we expected way more people at the assembly point - but it was just eight in total, so one group.

 

 

The typical pre-trek entertainment program. Some people don´t like this stuff, "too fabricated, too unreal, too touristy." But I always quite enjoy it, simply because the ladies really and genuinely seem to have a good time, and their good mood is infectious.

 

 

Then the main guide arrived and did the "Welcome to Bwindi", "How to behave stupid tourists" introductory speech. Everybody always gets very impatient during this, I most certainly do. After all you really wanna see The Gorillas, get going, and not hear about where to Nr. 1 and where to bury your Nr. 2 should that become necessary and why you should not beat your chest when the Silverback looks at you. And the speech went on and on and on.

 

But know what?

 

 

Benson here really did an amazing job, I would instantly vote for this man as president simply because he was so earnest and enthusiastic and so convincing in his love for Bwindi and the Gorillas. It was a really touching speech, and when he ended that basically all of us and the animals are a part of nature and thereby family we all sobbed uncontrollably. Well, almost.

 

I would almost have fallen a bit in love with Benson but then he spoilt it all. When he explained about the Silverback he checked our group and then declared that if we all were Gorillas I would be the Silverback of the group. Pfffffffff!

 

Finally we got going - just a short 10 minutes drive with the car along the main road, and then we descended. Ruhija is steep - walking sticks were vital. The path was quite ok though and it was not too tough (much more exhausting on the way back.) After a while we had reached a kind of valley, and down there it was quite easy - and beautiful in a fantastic forest!

 

 

Just two quick mobile snaps here.

 

 

It was only 50 minutes when we met the trekkers! Which meant we were close, and the excitement grew. Also the anxiety - how difficult would this be? Would we have good sightings? Good light? Would it be very dark where the Gorillas were? Lots of machete-hacking through the thickish to even get there?

 

But no, again it was quite easy, and after five minutes we were there:

 

 

Our first glimpse of the Silverback!

 

 

And his family.

 

 

The Mukiza group - which means "The One That Helps." If you want to know who is who in the upcoming photos, sure, no problem, help yourself:

 

 

Personally I´m much too lazy to work this stuff out. But a fantastic No-Prizes to anybody who can name everybody.

 

 

"Do you think I have prominent eyes Darling?"

 

 

Big Boss was really impressive, such a huge and powerful animal. And so relaxed and calm. It was really fantastic to see him so close. (Although I have to say he not only looked like a Silverback  - he also smelled like one. ) If he set his mind to it I´m sure he could just tear you apart. But, as I was told, Gorillas apparently have never injured tourists. They have stolen cameras though. But they can be dangerous during the habituation process - apparently a few rangers had body parts ripped out.

 

 

But Mukiza here looks much too nice to do something like that.

 

 

A Silverback´s silver back.

 

 

 

The little ones were a bit too fast for me - or up in the tree. Getting running Gorilla youngsters is near impossible - the light is very low here, even when going down to ridiculously low shutter speeds my ISO shut up to 8000 and more.

 

 

One of the kids - must be a boy since he was a bit rude. The little rascal hit me from behind! Happened to Andreas in Rwanda, now it was my turn to get some Gorilla love up close and personal. One is told to always keep a distance of about 7 metres to the Gorillas. But they don´t respect that, and it´s impossible to get out of the way in the forest. Some of them passed us by just one metre away or so.

 

 

Andreas behaved better - a perfect 7 m distance, isn´t it?

 

 

This one here obviously enjoys her food a bit too much. Looks quite content and happy. And Gorillas here have every reason to be - it was good to hear that their numbers have been going up, and their status has been changed to "Endangered" from "Critically endangered". The last census (two years ago) resulted in 459 individuals in Bwindi. There are only 1059 E. Mountain Gorillas in the whole world. Since they don´t survice in captivity parks like Bwindi are absolutely vital! It was encouraging to learn that the park (founded in 1991) has also been expanded, from 298 to 331 km². (There you see, I did pay attention to Benson. )

 

 

I talked about the youngster often coming very close. It is a bit more exciting when the Silverback does that! Big Guy was coming straight at me! Since I can be a bit pea-brained at times I thought "Very cool, nice photos, I´m just gonna sit here and he´ll come closer and closer to my 50 mm lens." Fortunately Benson knows how stupid tourists can be, especially those darn camera people, grabbed me and put me out of harm´s way.

 

Docile as he may be, Mukiza probably would not have appreciated me blocking his royal aisle.

Edited April 27, 2022 by michael-ibk

[Biko]

Sensational pictures, and I love the story!

[michael-ibk]

The group started to move, and the rangers tried to safely lead us after them, which was not too easy with all the twines and roots.

 

 

And even though they were not in a hurry at all Gorillas are far more adept at moving in surroundings like this here.

 

 

Fortunately they´d always stop to snack on the way.

 

 

This swamp was where they were heading. The Rangers always wear rubber boots - this is the reason why. It is very, very wet down here. Our shoes would look "fantastic" afterwards, one wrong step and you would be in the swamp knee-deep. One member of the group lost a shoe for a few seconds (fortunately managed to get it out again), and he threw them away afterwards. That said rubber boots still would not be a good idea - much more important to wear stable, ankle-stabilising footwear. Unless you were born in Bwindi and are absolutely used to move here. So we were wet and dirty from the swamp, and it was getting really hot now. Did we mind? Not at all:

 

 

It was great watching the family eat out in the open, and again we felt blessed that we could experience this, be almost welcomed amidth them.

 

 

Confession time - when we first started discussing Uganda we pondered not doing Gorillas. We had seen them before after all, and it is a lot of money - even if Uganda still is "cheap" (USD 750,--) compared to what they are charing in Rwanda now (USD 1.500,--). What a mistake this would have been! It´s such a magical, wonderful experience, one of the best wildlife experiences imaginable. It was an absolutely breathtaking, exhiliarating and moving hour, definitely the absolute highlight of this trip.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pretty much when our 60 minutes were over the family decided to retreat where we could not follow. Perfect timing. Our whole group was abolutely beaming with excitement and happiness on the way back - even though we´d soon start sweating and swearing on the very steep way back. But did not matter. What a fantastic experience this had been!

 

Edited April 27, 2022 by michael-ibk

[Atdahl]

Fantastic!

[dlo]

Awesome stuff and I'm so glad you decided to go. It's the most worthwhile outrageously expensive thing I've ever done.

 

Congratulations on the honorary silverback designation, you wear it well😘

[Galana]

Rivetting and entertaining. How could you not go to visit? It's family after all.

And it is a nice walk back up whatever folks may say.

[NancyS]

I LOVE your gorilla pics! I definitely want to experience that. I am going next Jan and I can't wait.

[pedro maia]

Wow!!!