Is Mount Elgon national park worth visiting

Is Mount Elgon national park worth visiting: With so many attractions found in the 1110 sq. km piece of land yes Mount Elgon national park is worth visiting. Mount Elgon national park is one of the national parks in Uganda found in the eastern side of the country. It was gazetted in 1992 as a national park to protect different wildlife species and other attractions that were in the park at that time.

Mountain Elgon national park has lots of attractions among which include Mount Elgon, animals, birds, water sources, vegetation, the largest caldera lake in the world, and many others. The so many attractions found within Mount Elgon national park and the surrounding areas make the national park worth visiting as we are to see in this article.

What makes Mount Elgin national park worth visiting

Mountain Climbing

Mount Elgon national park is a place where we find the second tallest mountain in Uganda. Mount Elgon is one of the attractions that are worth visiting in Mount Elgon national park. Hiking is the most done activity on Mount Elgon where hikers have a goal to reach the summit at Wagagai peak 4321 meters above sea level. Using different hiking trails, hikers are able to climb up Mountain Elgon with the help of armed ranger guides.

Hiking Mount Elgon is worth it because the hikers get to see the different attractions found on the slopes of the mountain. During hiking, different animals, birds, caves, and water sources are spotted. Hikers who get to the summit of Mount Elgon get to stand at Wagagai peak the tallest point on the mountain. Hikers also get to see the largest c caldera lake in the world which is about 40km long and 8km wide.

Bird watching in Elgon

There are over 300 bird species so far recorded in Mount Elgon national park of which 50 bird species are afro tropical highland biome species: Bird watching in Elgon is one of the activities that make Mount Elgon national park worth visiting. The large number of bird species in Mount Elgon national park attracts lots of birds from different parts of the world.

Among the bird species to see in Mount Elgon national park include the White necked raven, spotted flycatcher, buff-throated apalis, black-throated wattle eye, chubb’s cisticola, cinnamon bracken warbler, green-backed camaroptera, white-browed robin chat, black-billed weaver, waller’s starling, green-headed sunbird, western house martin, African thrush, cape robin chat, rock martin, eastern mountain greenbul, kandt’s waxbill, African paradise flycatcher.

Bird watching in Elgon offers more species to see such as Moorland chat, white-headed sawing, western yellow wagtail, white starred robin, meyer’s parrot, red-winged starling, chestnut throated apalis, golden breasted bunting, northern fiscal, double toothed barbet, doherty’s bushrike, grey-backed fiscal, Eurasian blackcap, sharpe’s starling, African dusky flycatcher, mosque swallow, mountain wagtail, red-capped robin chat, white-eyed slaty flycatcher, thick-billed seedeater.

Visiting the caves

The caves are worth visiting while on a safari in Mount Elgon national park. These caves are found on the slopes of Mount Elgon and tourists can visit them when they take part in short hikes. Some of the caves that can be explored on the slopes of Mount Elgon include Mackingeny, Chepnyali, and Kitum. While exploring the caves, tourists will be able to see rocks, animals, bats, birds, and much more.

When is the appropriate time to visit Mount Elgon national park

Mount Elgon national park can be visited at any time for the year but the best period is the dry season. The dry season from June to September and December to February is the best time to visit Mount Elgon national park. Dry season is the best time to visit because of the good weather characterized by plenty of sunshine and little rainfall. The hiking trails are dry and easier to walk through, vegetation is short with good views of attractions, and roads to the park are passable.

Tourists can still visit Mount Elgon national park during the rainy season which happens from March to May and October to November for the park is always open. The rainy season attracts a few people because of the bad weather that is characterized by too much rainfall and little sunshine. Tourists who visit during the rainy season should know that the hiking trails will be muddy and slippery and the vegetation on the slopes of the mountain will be tall with unclear views of some of the park attractions.

Getting to Mount Elgon national park

Tourists can get to Mount Elgon national park using road transport for 5 to 6 hours. The time taken depends on the speed of the driver and the nature of the roads. From Entebbe/Kampala, it’s about 240km, and tourists go through Mukono, Jinja, Iganga, to Mbale where Mount Elgon national park is located.