Why Uganda should be on your bucketlist - Our experience through this magical country
Uganda is famous around the world for being a unique country and one of the only places across the globe where you are able to trek through the dense jungles and witness silverback gorillas living in their natural habitat. What you may not be familiar with is the sheer beauty that Uganda exudes, no matter where you look; I know I wasn’t before heading there!
We flew into Entebbe, where our journey began in Uganda. After a long flight it was nice to be able to relax so close to the airport and prepare for our early morning journey from Entebbe to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. We hopped in our private safari vehicle and hit the open road, driving through the lively streets of Kampala; taking in the sights of the bustling markets that surround the city. We had a long drive ahead, but our guide from Pearl Nature Holidays, Robert, broke up the time by taking us to see the equator line. After standing in the Northern and Southern hemisphere, we enjoyed a cup of strong coffee at Flamingoz Joint, and took a peak in some local shops. After I had bought a dress, pants and a hat, we carried on our way. This stretch of the open road was breathtaking as we drove through Kabale, which is known as the Switzerland of Africa. From then on, everywhere I looked I couldn’t believe my eyes.
At dusk, we finally arrived at our accommodation for the night, just outside the Bwindi Forest. I had dreamt about this moment for a long time, being deep in the jungle, counting down the seconds until we awoke for our trek to find silverback gorillas. The lodge was filled with the sounds of the jungle coming alive at night as we sipped our soup and went to bed early. Well, Kris went to bed early, I didn’t sleep much because I was so excited and also a little bit worried that I was not in good enough shape for this trek! Our alarm jarred us awake at 5:00am, and we jumped out of bed to prepare for our day. I was gleaming with excitement but also nervous that I underestimated the trek and that I may pass out before I ever got to look into the eyes of a living, breathing, wild and free silverback gorilla.
We trekked for about 5 hours through some pretty rough terrain, it had rained quite hard the day before so things were very slippery but the pure adrenaline kept me on track. The trek itself was worth every minute, the views were beautiful and I love being deep inside the jungle - there is something so peaceful about it.
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse; a hairy black arm that was outstretched, pulling on a branch. My adrenaline began pumping wildly and after almost impaling myself on a tree branch, I came face to face with a male silverback, grazing on the jungle floor. I do not think you can ever be prepared for those moments, not really; witnessing something as beautiful as a family of gorillas living freely in the wild, is something I will never forget.
After spending an hour with the family, we left them to nap and carry on with their day. The trek back out was not as long and in total it took about 7-8 hours. Sweat drenched and muddy, we were presented with our certificates for completing the trek and smiled for a quick photo with our group before heading to our next destination.
Driving high in the mountains to Ihamba Residence provided some of the most incredible sights; the peaks of the mountains surrounded by clouds and the deep valleys lined with tea leaves were breathtaking. We arrived at the residence just before dusk, where we walked up the path to the house on the hill which bordered both the deep valleys and the Bwindi Forest.
After another mouthwatering meal by the fire, we laid our heads down to catch some shut eye before beginning our next journey.
The sun shone through the wall of windows in our room and we made our way down to the platform that Ihamba is known for. A long wooden deck that extends out, making you feel like you are sitting atop the trees with the jungle surrounding you.
After breakfast, we said our goodbyes and began the long journey to Queen Elizabeth National Park. After about 5 hours, we drove into the park and made our way to Marafiki Lodge to check-in. This tented lodge has an infinity pool that looks out over the water and a beautiful open air platform. Our tented lodge was amazing, you could open the entire room to look out onto your surroundings and the bathroom was equipped with a stone outdoor shower that also looked out at the hills and lake. After settling in, we headed to Kasenyi Plains for an evening game drive and spotted a female lion with a cub relaxing in the grass. As we continued on our way we saw an abundance of animals, including so many elephants, which I quickly became mesmerised by.
Our last full day in Uganda held many more incredible animal sightings. We arrived at Kyambura Gorge, where we descended into the jungle in search of chimpanzees. As we wandered through the trees, a lone chimpanzee scurried ahead of us along the path, grabbing a tree branch and joining the rest of their family in the treetops above. For the next two hours, we followed the chimps as they swung across the sky above us, hollering to each other through the trees.
We continued along, about to make our trek back up to the rim of the gorge when the lead male chimp came to the gorge floor and laid down to rest. As we stood watching this creature from a distance, he jumped up, began running to a tree. With his powerful hand, he beat on the trunk of the tree, creating a loud echo, and began calling out. Our rangers told us that this was his way of telling the family that they were moving on.
After we ascended to the top of the gorge, we made our way to the Kazinga Channel, where we hopped in a boat and sailed along the river, known for the highest concentration of hippos in Africa. One of the first animals we saw along the river was a large elephant, followed by buffaloes, hippos, and many species of birds.
The following day our journey through Uganda came to an end, and we made our way back to Entebbe to catch our flight to our next destination.
Uganda was a wildly captivating place. The scenery is some of the most beautiful I have seen and spending time watching wild animals live their day to day lives was something I will never forget. The food in Uganda was delicious, everything is fresh and full of flavour, I could definitely tell the difference! The locals also made this trip unforgettable, everyone was so friendly and genuinely cared about your experience while in Uganda.
If you are looking for a life altering experience, I would highly recommend Uganda!