Murchison Falls National Park is a fantastic destination of the Pearl of Africa. It is situated in the northern part of Uganda in the Nwoya district, surrounded by the Bugungu and Karuma game reserves. It is Uganda’s largest and oldest conservation area covering an area space of approximately 3,840 square kilometers, the park is bisected into 2 by the Victoria Nile stretching across the wall of the Albertine rift valley and the extending shores of Lake Albert. During the reign of Uganda President Idi Amin Dada, the ecosystem was at one time named the Kabalega National Park. It was a gazette in 1952 named after the magnificent Murchison Falls after which it is named and is managed by the Uganda wildlife authority.
The centerpiece of the Murchison falls national park is the great waterfall it is one of the world’s most powerful falls, the waters of the Nile dramatically squeeze its self through the 8-meter slit on the escarpment forming a thunderous wild roar dropping down the plunge with a smooth floor into Lake Albert, the river separates the park into zones of different vegetation, this consists of woodland, tropical forest of the Budongo and Kaniopabidi, savanah grasslands dotted with trees like acacia and palm trees, the ray of habitats is home to a number of wildlife species including the so called big four of the wilderness( lions, leopards, African elephants, African buffaloes), in the early 90’s all of the top five wild animals could be found here including Rhinos however due to the continued hunting and poaching these went extinct and can therefore only be seen at the Ziwa Rhino sanctuary.
The presence of the vast number of attractions offers an opportunity to engage in activities like game drives, these are done beginning early in the morning through the well-distributed channels of the park, expect to see animals like the Roth child’s giraffes, African buffaloes, Jackson hartebeests, olive baboons, Nile crocodiles, and hippos. Over 300 bird species have been recorded in the national park some of which are endemics to the great Albertine Rift Valley region, Examples of species include pelicans, along the marshy swampy areas there is a chance to see the critically endangered shoe bill stock, other birds like the African fish eagle, pelicans, sunbirds, plover birds, great blue turaco, piapiac can be sighted while here.
A boat cruise to the bottom of the falls is the major highlight of the national park, it is an amazing thing to experience in the national park, takes place to the bottom of the falls along Victoria Nile a cruise to the region is a magical time, there are stunning views of the walls of the Albertine escarpment, the Nile crocodiles are sighted basking along the banks of the river, cruises are done in sessions in the early morning and afternoon time by the Uganda wildlife authority and private entities like exclusive camps.
Chimpanzee tracking in Budongo forest, to the south of the conservation area, is the Budongo forest, home to Mahogany,chimpanzee tracking is one of the special beautiful activities, chimpanzee are said to share up to 98 % of the human DNA, they live within the forest nesting in the tree canopies, a group of six is allowed to do the tracking starting from Budongo eco-lodge, a briefing is conducted by a game ranger after which you head out on a guided nature walk in search of the primates, this takes 2-3 hours.
Murchison Falls National Park is can be accessed by road from Entebbe or Kampala through the Kampala Gulu highway, there are several gates of the park that can be accessed with a mandatory payment on park entrance fees, foreign nonresidents are charged $45, foreign residents $35 and east African citizens 20,000 shillings, scheduled or charter flights can be arranged to land at the Pakuba airstrip of the Chobe airstrip thereafter you can be transferred to your respective lodges. it can be visited all year round but is best during the dry season between December -February and June -September. There is available accommodation in Murchison Falls National Park for travelers that come to the destination Examples of facilities include Chobe Safari Lodge and the Nile Safari Lodge.