What to do at Kidepo valley National park?

What to do at Kidepo valley National park? This park is one the best destination in Africa where you can have your memorable wildlife safari experience. The park was named by CNN as one of the 3 top destinations to visit in Africa. Kidepo valley national park features an attractive topography comprising of hills, mountains, and semi-arid climates which makes it interesting for photography by tourists. Kidepo national park offers a home to over 80 mammal species and over 474 bird species. It is because of these varied species that makes it so attractive to the visitors. Travelers who have ever visited Kidepo valley national park, have occasionally compared it with Masai Mara national park in Kenya and Tanzania’s Serengeti national park. No other national park in Uganda is comparable to these parks except Kidepo.

There is a variety of activities that can a visitor do in Kidepo valley National park which such as wildlife sighting game drives, birding watching safaris, guided nature walks, and cultural experience.

Game drives safaris

Forthrightly, game drives in Kidepo valley national park are the best you can do and meet many wildlife species than in any other park in Uganda. The park features most of the wildlife species that are not found anywhere in Uganda’s national parks.  At least this park has brought the attention of various travelers because of amazing safari game drives where several mammals and bird species can be spotted in big numbers like Caped buffaloes, huge Elephants, Zebras, Rothschild giraffes, Lions, Leopards, Oribi, Waterbucks, and many other species.

Guided nature walk Safaris

Kidepo valley national park is a park with mixed topography with hilly and flat savannah plains that enable travelers to have wider scenic views of the animals grazing in the nice-looking grassland. Guided nature walks are done in presence of the ranger after a briefing session at Apoka Camp. Nature walks still can be done at any time of the day. At Kidepo valley national park, guided nature walks are usually done in the Lonyili nature walks trail which is about 25km through thicket vegetation to Napusmur where you can spend about 7 hours.

The Lonyili nature walks is the bests trail you have ever walked through with rich in wildlife species. Through this walk, you will be able to see almost half of the animals within the park including buffaloes, elephants, zebras, among others nature. By walking southwards to Narus valley which harbors a lot of bird species like woodpeckers, weaver, and many more others will be interesting experiences. You can hike to a popular Morungole hill and explore the small ethnic group in Uganda of IK people as well. Taking a nature walk to explore the dream lodge which was initiated by Uganda’s only Field marshal Dictator Idi Amin but this lodge was never finished even when he was president.

Birding

Kidepo valley national park is a haven to the bird lovers with a variety of birds over 474 bird species recorded in the park. The availability of these birds’ species has facilitated the activity of bird watching. Among the birds in this park is the prominent ostrich the flightless and biggest bird which can be only found in Kidepo valley national park. The other bird species which you can encounter include the Egyptian Vulture, Pygmy Falcon, and Verreaux’s Eagle and others. Please list more birds like 200 species

Culture safari

Here tourists take tours in the villages close to the park and mingle with local people thereby learning their different lifestyles and well tasting on their local cuisines and how they prepare them. You can spend time with Karamajong communities to explore uniqueness. The region is known as for nomadic pastoralism who live in North Eastern Uganda including some areas around Kidepo Valley National Park. The Karimojong are interrelated to the Maasai of Kenya and their lives are aligned around their cows.  People here believe all cows belong to them and no other tribe and region own cows. Any steers that are not kept by them are taken to have been stolen from them at some point in the past. Because of this fallacy, the Karimojong constantly raided adjacent communities of their animals without regretting because they are taking their cattle back

A cultural tour to the Karimojong is a very fascinating experience because they are among the few tribes in Uganda that still live as they were thousands of years ago. Visiting the Karamajong is a great chance to explore all kinds of cultures possessed by people of a long ago.

Visiting the Ik People: these are interesting to visit because of their unique culture of staying on top of Morungole hill in isolated families.  The origin of the Ik people is not clear however most believe that these could have come from Ethiopia before they live normally in Kidepo. They first settled in the Kidepo area even before the existence of Karamajong. But fighting with Karamajong forced them to stay at the top of the mountain to have a better life. The Ik have a distinct language and culture that is being susceptible by modern civilization and their dwindling population. Just take a cultural tour of these unique people and explore their traditional life, as you’re entertained by their traditional songs dance, and drama.