What to expect on a safari to Mount Elgon national park

What to expect on a safari to Mount Elgon national park? Situated on the eastern side of Uganda, Mount Elgon national park is a national park every tourist needs to visit on their safari to Uganda. It’s a rewarding safari destination in Mbale district between the borders of Uganda and Kenya. Mount Elgon national park is a 1110 sq. km piece of land protected by Uganda Wildlife Authority which gazetted it in 1992 to protect the different attractions there.

Mount Elgon national park has a lot of things to offer to tourists among which include birds, animals, water sources, and then the famous Mount Elgon which is the second tallest mountain in Uganda. While on a safari to Mount Elgon national park, tourists will see a number of attractions once they take part on different tourist activities.

What to expect on a safari to Mount Elgon national park?

Will I see Mount Elgon

Everyone who visits Mountain Elgon national park is able to see Mount Elgon which is on the eastern side of the park. Mount Elgon is the tallest attraction in Mountain Elgon national park with the highest point at 4321 meters above sea level. A professional photographer can take different images of the mountain from different areas within the park.

Tourists who want to get close to Mount Elgon or even go hiking can organize with their tour operators or even the park authorities for hiking activities. Hiking Mount Elgon will enable hikers to explore the mountain and get to know the different animals, birds, vegetation, water sources, and much more that are found on the mountain.

Hiking is a 4 to 5 days activity that get hikers hiking Mountain Elgon each day for about 7 to 8 hours. During the hike, hikers are able to use different hiking trails where they meet different attractions and also see the surrounding areas on different sides of the mountain. At the summit of Mount Elgon, tourists get to see the largest caldera lake in the whole world and also hot springs.

What birds will I see in Mount Elgon national park?

Over 300 bird species are found in Mountain Elgon park and some are endangered for example the Lammergeyer. Birds of the park are seen in different locations which are accessed by foot and an armed ranger guide. Bird watching is the only activity that will enable you to see as many bird species as you can.

Birds that birders are likely to see in Mountain Elgon park include Black and white casqued hornbill, European bee-eater, rameron pigeon, doherty’s bushshrike, African paradise flycatcher, yellow-billed barbet, grey cuckoo shrike, black-throated wattle eye, speckled mousebird, Nyanza swift, barn owl, grey-throated barbet, narina trogon, little bee-eater, African blue flycatcher, cinnamon chested bee-eater, cassin’s hawk-eagle, grey-backed fiscal, black goshawk, pied cow, hadada ibis, northern fiscal.

African black-headed oriole, Abyssinian thrush, bronze sunbird, brown woodland warbler, northern double-collared sunbird, red-rumped swallow, grey wagtail, elgon francolin, red-eyed dove, northern yellow white eye, red-winged starling, ayres’s hawk-eagle, western yellow wagtail, baglafecht weaver, waller’s starling, pin tailed whydah, white-necked raven, sharpe’s starling, red-billed oxpecker, Eurasian blackcap.

Chestnut throated apalis, Angola swallow, golden breasted bunting, black and white mannikin, thick-billed seedeater, white starred robin, green-headed sunbird, northern grey-headed sparrow, African stonechat, malachite sunbird, black-billed weaver, African pied wagtail, white-browed robin chat, moorland chat, kandt’s waxbill, brimstone canary, cape robin chat, western house martin, white-headed sawing to mention but a few.

Wildlife in Mount Elgon national park

The vegetation in Mount Elgon national park is home to different wild animals though not so many live here like it is in other national parks. Animals of Mount Elgon park are seen during nature walks, bird watching, and hiking activities. Tourists should know that Mount Elgon national park is a hilly area and no game drives are done in this place.

Tourists who have been asking about which animals they are likely to see in Mount Elgon national park here they are. Animals in Mount Elgon national park include leopards, elephants, cape buffaloes, vervet monkeys, de brazza’s monkeys, blue monkeys, and black and white colobus monkeys to mention but a few.

When to go to Mount Elgon national park

June to September and December to February is when tourists should go to Mount Elgon national park. These months are the driest in the year and they are characterized by little rainfall and plenty of sunshine. During the dry season, the tourists find the vegetation in the park short and scattered hence clear views of attractions and the hiking/walking trails are dry and passable allowing tourists to move easily within the park.

Tourists can still go to see wildlife in Mount Elgon park during the rainy season but this period favors budget travelers looking at discounted tour packages. During the rainy season from March to May and October to November, tourists find too much rainfall and little sunshine in the park. The hiking/walking trails are muddy and slippery slowing down the speed of tourists, the vegetation is tall with unclear views of some of the attractions and the roads to the park are in poor conditions.