Lake Mburo National Park

Lake Mburo national Park acquires its name from the Fresh water lake Mburo which is located within its boundaries. This park is the closest to Kampala the capital of Uganda and one may take about 3 hours to 4 hours to get there. It is strategically positioned on the western highway giving travellers a chance to take an excursion through the park as they drive from other parks located in western Uganda.

The park occupies an area of 370 square kilometers but shares grazing land with the local community who are majorly cattle keepers. This park is composed of gallery forest, open savannah, rock kopjes, seasonal and permanent swamps and acacia woodland.

Birds are common members of this park and some of them include saddle billed stock, African finfoot, Abyssinian ground hornbill, brown chested wattled plover, Tabora cisticola, pelicans, Carruther’s cisticola to mention but afew. Over 315 bird species have been recorded to live in this park including the renowned shoebill stock. They live in the acacia woodland and others in Rubanga Forest.

What activities to do In Lake Mburo National Park

Game drives are the major activities in Lake Mburo National Park where you may have the chance of seeing some Zebras, impalas, klipspringer, bushbucks, bush duikers, giraffes, and a variety of birds that fly around the park.

What you may expect
in Lake Mburo National Park

Several tracks have been created by the regular game drives and have been named according to the commonly seen animals as you take there route like the eastern hinterland of Lake Mbruro is served by a network of game tracks like impala track where impalas can easily be spotted, Zebra track where zebras normally feed, Kazuma Track, lake side track home to the bushbucks.

Bird watching is another commonly done activity where you may be able to see birds like brown chested wattled plover,herons, fish eagle, Tabora cisticola, pelicans, Carruther’s cisticola, the rare shoe bill stork to mention but a few. The best moment to see a variety of birds is during the boat trip. You bypass the shores of the lake where the birds normally congregate.

Guided nature Walk can also be arranged from Rwonyo which is the tourism center in the park. From here you have the chance of listening to the unique history of the park and even identify the animals that the park hosts by pictures placed on the walls.

What Fauna And Flora is found in Lake Mburo National park

Lake Mburo National park has a variety of vegetation habitats that are surrounded by open water of Lake Mburo.on the western bank of Lake Mburo is the grassy escarpment rising above a shoreline fringed with acacia forest and the closed canopy Rubanga Forest. As you traverse the Northern and eastern side of Lake Mburo, you observe the interesting grassy valley floors that are made seasonally lush and soggy by rain. They are placed amidst a series of undulating hills.

Numerous wildlife find home in this park like the burchell’s zebras, impalas, herds of buffaloes, waterbucks, bushbucks, reed bucks, oribi, elands, warthogs, Klipspringer, recently introduced giraffes. The list is endless. At times some leopards, lions, hyenas can be spotted but this is a rare case.

wildlife game drives in queen eilzabeth national park

A visit to the salt lick area keeps you wondering how nature thrives. This place is normally visited by animals as they enjoy the tasty salty lick from the soil. You may spot them from the timber platform that was constructed.

A guided forest walk through Rubanga forest can be arranged on the western side of Lake Mburo. This gives you the chance to feel a tropical high forest with closed canopy which is home to various forest bird species.

A boat Ride on Lake Mburo

During this boat trip, you will get the feeling of freshness, pure nature and watch the birds do there day to day activities. Birds flock the shores of Lake Mburo to feed on the marshy rich banks. Others lay there eggs in the close by swamp while others build there nests close to the lake. The shores are busy all day long. Schools of grunting hippos can be seen and crocodiles too. Some wild animals can also be seen quenching thirst from the banks of the lake.

At times local fishermen can be seen spreading their nets in the lake but this is done on arrangement as this lake is within the boundaries of Lake Mburo National Park which is a conservation area.

How To get To Lake Mburo National park

Lake Mburo National Park is situated closer to Kampala the Capital of Uganda than any other park. The drive from the capital is about 228 km for approximately 3 hour and a half. You go through Kampala-Mpigi-Masaka- Mbarara.

From Kampala you take a turn to Nshara gate which is 13 km from Lyantonde. Another gate is Sanga gate which is about 27 km from Lyantonde. To get to the park information center in Rwonyo, it may take about 20 minutes from either gate.

Accommodation in Lake Mburo National park

Several accommodations are available for your overnight in Lake Mburo National Park. They vary according to ones’ budget like high-end accommodations, Mid-range accommodations and Budget accommodations. Request for your most preferred accommodation type.

3 Day Uganda Safari To Lake Mburo National park

Day1: Drive To Lake Mburo National park.

Early in the morning, you will be picked from your overnight hotel and taken to Lake Mburo National park. Enjoy a break at the equator where you can perform the water experiment while standing on both sides of the earth. Carry on and arrive ready for a guided walk in the Park.

Accommodation: Mantana Tented Camp/ Mihingo Lodge/ Rwonyo Rest Camp

Day 2 Game drive And Boat Ride

Rise up early for a game drive where you may have the chance of seeing animals like the zebras, buffaloes, giraffes, bushbucks, reedbucks, impalas, warthog, Uganda Kobs and so much more. Birds fly by and rest on the tree branches too. Return for breakfast and head to the pier for a boat ride on Lake Mburo. Along the banks of the lake are several birds and you can also spot a school of hippos and crocodiles. Return to the lodge and relax.

Day 3 Return home

After this great encounter, drive back to Entebbe to catch- up with your return flight. You may request for a day tour to Uganda Wildlife Education Center or Ngamba Chimpanzee Island.