What to do in Kidepo valley national park after game drives?

What to do in Kidepo valley national park after game drives?: Located in the northeastern part of Uganda Kaabong district, Kidepo valley national park is a beautiful hidden gem for wildlife viewing. Kidepo valley national park was gazetted in 1962 to protect several wildlife that were finding home in the park. The national park of 1442 sq. km harbors 76 mammals and 28 of these cannot be found elsewhere in Uganda.

Game drives are the most done activities within Kidepo valley national park but the park has more to offer. Game drive activities are a 2 to 3 hours activity within this park and tours are free to participate in other park activities if they still have time in the park. Kidepo valley national park does not only harbor animals but also birds. The park is also surrounded by different cultural tribes so there is a lot the park has to offer than game drives.

Depending on the time one has or the number of days to be in the park, tourists can participate in different activities organized within the park. Each park activity in Kidepo valley national park comes with its surprise therefore tourists who have enough time within the park should try as much as they can be part of the different activities that take place in the park.

Activities to do in Kidepo valley national park after game drives

Bird watching in Kidepo

Kidepo valley national park hosts over 476 bird species which makes it one of the best bird watching destinations that Uganda has. On a game drive safari to Kidepo valley national park, tourists that love birds can take part in bird watching activities in order to lots of bird species said to be living in the park.

In Narus valley, Kidepo valley, and areas around Apoka Rest Camp is where the best watching spots are. The activity is done in the form of nature walks and a bird guide leads the activity protecting bird lovers from animals that could be dangerous as well as showing them different bird species. Bird lovers are asked to move with birding booking, a camera, and a pair of binoculars to see birds clearly.

Bird watching in Kidepo valley national park gives tourists an opportunity of seeing birds such as little bee-eater, black-breasted barbet, dark chanting goshawk, Kori bustard, ostrich, red and yellow barbet, Abyssinian roller, greater kestrel, rufous chatterer, pygmy falcon, Karamoja apalia, D’Arnaud’s barbet, northern carmine bee-eater, red-throated bee-eater, and golden pipit to mention but a few.

Cultural visits in Kidepo

After game drives in Kidepo valley national park, one can be part of the community tours where they can visit and get to know about culture. The IK and Karamajong are the two tribes living around Kidepo valley national park. These can be visited at any time of the day as long as you make a program with the locals as well as the park management.

A visit to IK or Karamajong is led by the local guides and this is because they know what is in their community and can easily interpret for the locals as well as tourists. A visit to any of the communities will take you around their homes where you will interact with the elders, members, get to learn about their history, and see how they live their day to lives. At the end of the visit, tourists are entertained through dance and drama.

Nature walks

With nature walks in Kidepo valley national park, you leave your car and move on foot and this gets you so close to nature. Nature walks are the best way of discovering what Kidepo valley national park holds when it comes to biodiversity. Nature walks in Kidepo valley national park take you to areas such as Kidepo valley, Narus valley, Apoka, Kalebe Rock, and Kanangorok hot springs among others. Nature walks will expose you to different animals, birds, vegetation, and nonliving things.

Best time to visit Kidepo valley national park

Tourists can take visit to Kidepo valley national park at any time of the year because the park is always open. The dry season which is from December to February and June to September is the best to visit the park because that is when the vegetation is short with clear views of wildlife and the game tracks are dry and easier to drive through due to little or no rainfall received.

Tourists especially budget travelers can still visit Kidepo valley national park in the rainy season. This is because there are discounts on accommodation facilities as well as tour packages. Tourists visiting Kidepo from March to May and October to November should know that the park experienced heavy rainfall, game tracks are muddy, and the vegetation is tall with unclear views of some of the wildlife.

Accessing Kidepo National Park

Kidepo valley national park is found in Kaabong district and can be accessed by both road and air transport. Travelling on ground takes 10 to 12 hours while air transport takes 2 to 3 hours.

Accessing Kidepo National Park by air transport:  tourists do use airline companies such as Aerolink Uganda, Kampala Executive Aviation, or Bar Aviation Uganda from Kajjansi or Entebbe international airport to connect to Apoka Airstrip.

Accessing Kidepo National Park by road transport: tourists can access Kidepo valley national park using different routes. Kampala/Entebbe via Jinja, Mbale, Kapchorwa, Nakapiripirit, Moroto, Kotido, and Kaabong. Kampala/Entebbe via Luwero, Nakasongola, Karuma, Gulu, Kitgum, Karenga, and Kaabong to the park.