Attractions in Lake Mburo National Park : Visitors to the park have plenty of choices when it comes to activities, as you will learn from a 2 or 3 Days safari Lake Mburo national park. The main activities in Lake Mburo are game drives (night and day), walking safaris/nature walks, sport fishing, horseback riding, boat trips and birding among others. A tour operator can help advise you on how best to spend your time at the park and go about with booking each of the following activities:-
Game Drives/viewing
Game drives in Lake Mburo National park allow you to spot most of the parks animal and birds that call the park home. Besides lions, the park got animals like Buffalo, Eland, Hippos, Impala, jackals, Leopards, Oribi, reedbuck, topi, warthog, waterbucks, zebras and the reintroduced giraffes from Murchison Falls National Park. One is required to pay an entrance fee to enter the park. The “leopard rock” is a popular place to spot leopards during the night safari or early in the morning. Hyenas exist in the park but are not as many as in some of the other major game parks in Uganda. The night game drives take 2 hours and are perfect for spotting genet, leopards, bush pigs, mongooses and white tailed mongooses.
Birdwatching
Lake Mburo is one of the best places for birding watching in Uganda. Birding in Lake Mburo is mainly done along the swamps of Warukiri and Miriti. Some of the species include the African grey hornbill, barefaced go-way bird, black-billed barbet, blue-napped mouse bird, brown parrot, common quails, crested francolin, emerald spotted wood Dove, greenwood hoopoe, Lilac-breasted Roller, Nubian woodpecker, Red necked Spur, trilling cisticola, white-winged warbler and the rare Shoebill stork. While at the Rwonyo camp, birders can also spot the African-wattled plover Rufous, Black Bellied Bustard, Coqui francolin, Flappet larks, red-necked spur fowl, Rufuos chested Swallow, southern Red Bishop, temminck’s courser and yellow-throated long claw. Lake Mburo is a great place to spot the rare white backed heron and African finfoot.
Guided Nature Walks
Unlike in the other park in Uganda, nature walks can be taken in any part of the park under the arrangement and guidance of an armed guard from the Uganda Wildlife Authority. While on the nature walk you will get to see the various antelopes, Zebras, buffaloes and giraffes grazing. Watch out for the butterflies and birds too. During the morning walks, you might even encounter hyenas going to their dens after the nights hunt or hippos heading to the water after grazing on land.
Related to the nature walk is the walk through the established Lakeside Track in the southern part of Lake Mburo. This track allows visitors spot bush duiker and marvel at the dense woodland. The track leads up to the Kigarama summit, which allows for great views of Lake Mburo and the greater national park, Attractions in Lake Mburo National Park
An armed ranger can lead you for the guided walk to the Salt lick where animals lick the salty soil found in the area. Observation points have been identified by the Uganda Wildlife Authority to allow visitors view all the different species of animals that come to lick the salt like zebras and antelopes. The activity usually starts in the morning and takes at most two hours.
Boat Cruise
A boat cruise along the Lake Mburo will help unlock all that is beautiful about the Park. This is more so during the dry season when most of the animals come for a drink. During the boat cruise visitors can spot zebras, antelopes, crocodiles, hippos, otters and buffaloes. The commonest birds during the boat cruise include African Fish Eagles, Blue-headed Weavers, Cormorants, Green-necked Doves, Hammerkops, Herons, Malachite Kingfishers, Pelicans, Pied Kingfishers, Rufous Long-tailed Starlings and Shoebill Storks. The duration of the boat cruise is not fixed and is open to negotiation.
Walking Safaris
Visitors who arrive by public means can opt for a walking safari around places like the Kazuma Hill. A walking safari will enrich your experience in Uganda and offer something unique and different. The Kazuma Hil offers a perfect place to spot the beautiful spots in the park ranging from the 14 Lakes, rolling hills and surrounding areas of the park. Walking alone in the park is prohibited especially because the park has buffaloes and lions. Threats can also come from hyenas and hippos that go to graze outside the Lakes at night, Attractions in Lake Mburo National Park.
Rubanga Forest Walk
The forest walk is arranged by the Uganda Wild Life Authority in advance and starts from Western shores of Lake Mburo. Rubanga forest is a great place for birding and over 42 species can be spotted during the forest walk. Some of the tree species to look out for while in Rubanga forest are Acacia, Fig Trees, Markhamia, Palm and Platycaluz among others. The bird species include the double-toothed barbet, green pigeon, Grey-backed cameroptera, harrier hawk, narina trogn and the much sought out Shoebill Stork.
Fishing
The numerous lakes and spots like Mazinga offer opportunities for fishing species like the Tilapia, Haplochromes, mud fish, lung fish and mud fish. Mazinga fishing spot is located in a safe section of Lake Mburo with no crocodiles or hippos. Visitors can take part in sport fishing and arrange for someone to help fry the fish back in their lodge. There are shades near the fishing pints that ensure relaxation in-between fishing session. Mission Africa Safaris can help arrange gear (hooks and bait) and acquire fishing licenses for travelers before they arrive for their safari.
Horseback Riding
Lake Mburo is one of the two parks in Uganda where visitors can go out to watch game from the back of a horse. Kabwoya wildlife reserve along Lake Albert is the other place where horse riding safaris can be done in Uganda. Horseback safaris allow visitors get very close to the animals. The horses appear familiar to the Zebras and even shy Eland. Though they still keep their distance, they do not run away like they do in the presence of safari cars.
Visiting the Igongo Cultural Center
The Igongo cultural Center is located 4 kilometers away from the Sanga gate. The Banyakitara use the Center to show case their cultural heritage and traditions. The Banyakitara tribes include the Bakiga, Banyoro, Batooro and Banyankole. There is a small museum where local art crafts and items related to their ancient cultural traditions are kept. Visitors have an opportunity to learn about the history and way of life of the tribes with the help of guides. The traditional huts made of grass and local food are all on show among many other items. Visitors can buy souvenirs like locally made crafts and other art pieces, Attractions in Lake Mburo National Park
Note: Although tourism activities are carried out throughout the year, the best time to visit Lake Mburo National Park is during the dry season. The roads in the park become muddy and difficult to pass through during the rainy season.
How to reach Lake Mburo National Park
Since Lake Mburo National Park is located between Mbarara and Kampala, it can be accessed from both places. From Kampala City, it takes about 4 hours of driving to reach the park headquarters. At about 211 km from Kampala on the Kampala-Mbarara highway, there is a signpost on the left pointing to the Nshara gate of the park.
If one is coming from the side of Mbarara, it takes only 47km of driving to reach the park headquarters. The park signpost indicating a right turn can be seen when you reach Sanga. From Sanga, the distance is 12 Kilometers to the Rweshsbeshebe Gate of the park. The road from Sanga to the park gate is not built with tarmac and can prove difficult to pass during the rainy season without a good four-wheel drive vehicle. Regardless of which direction visitors are planning to use, public vehicles only stop at the main highway. One will need to wait for a little while to get a vehicle from the main road to the main gate.
