Game Drives in Kidepo National Park
Game Drives in Kidepo National Park are the major activity in the park as travelers spend more time driving around the park searching to see wildlife. The game drives are also the reason as to why a lot of travellers choose to take the eastern route to kidepo national park. Kidepo National Park is one of the secret magical places of Africa where you can find unique wildlife and rare to east Africa. Kidepo national park is one of the major 10 national parks in Uganda where you can go for game drives. The wide savannah of kidepo national park makes game drives very magical as you can see a lot of animals in the short dry grass of the national park.
What is unique about game drives in kidepo national park?
There is something about the Kidepo national park game drive activities. Unlike the other national parks in the Wild West, kidepo national park has a wild range of wild animals and some are in a large population. Kidepo national park game drives are mainly done in two places within the park, Narus valley, and Kidepo valley. Narus Valley is characterized by wide grassland over the undulating terrain of the area spiced up with a clear view of the high inselbergs in a distance. Narus Valley is where you can find a permanent water source of Narus River which supplies water to the area all year round. During the dry season, Narus valley attracts a high concentration of wildlife animals from all the corners of Kidepo national park.
The valley of Narus in Kidepo National Park is a great grazing ground for the savannah elephants, Uganda kobs, waterbucks, hippos, buffaloes among others. However, the presence of the herbivores attracts a number of carnivores to the game such as the lions, leopards, and hyenas among others. The hippos in Narus valley of kidepo national park are found in the waterlogged areas of the park. The dry season collects almost all the animals along the water edge of Narus River; this is the time when the game drives are very interesting because you get to see a lot of wildlife at a glimpse.
Secondly, you can take on the game drives in kidepo valley, which are the second valley of kidepo national park and also a derivative of the name to the area. Kidepo valley is, unlike Narus valley, dry in nature, therefore, it does no attract a lot of wildlife like Narus valley of kidepo national park. Despite the low counts of wildlife, a game drive through kidepo valley of kidepo national park, it is one of the things you will live to remember. A game drive in Kidepo valley will give you a chance to see the giant ostriches. You can also visit the hot springs of kanangorok; it is a time to appreciate nature and the way it unfolds as hot water runs out of the rock openings. The Kanangorok hot springs are found about 11m north of the Kidepo River near the border of south Sudan.
Kidepo valley of kidepo national park is supplied with a seasonal river called kidepo; however, it floods during the rainy season and sometimes dries completely during the dry season, only leaving a seasonal swamp in the river bed. The game drive in kidepo valley of kidepo national park is a chance for you t see the cheetahs and the ostriches, which are the most unique wildlife species of kidepo valley national park. You can also enjoy the zebras, kangoni, hyenas, lions, buffaloes, elephants, bush duikers, jackals, bushbucks, leopards, elephants, warthogs among others.
Kidepo valley national park is a sanctuary for a wide range of wildlife; unique, rare and some are endangered species of east Africa. Game drives in Kidepo valley national park offer you a chance to see a lot of wildlife species in a natural and untouched environment. The valleys harbor unique species of animals found nowhere Uganda and, perhaps, other parts of east Africa. For example, there is greater and lesser kudus, elands, cheetahs, the wolf eared bats among others. Kidepo valley national park is also home to the black-headed hyena, the spotted hyena, Burchell’s zebra, bush pigs, bohor reedbuck, giraffes, oribi, waterbucks, Jackson’s hartebeests among others.
Other things to do in kidepo valley national park
Besides the enlightening game drives in Narus and kidepo valleys, you can also enjoy the nature walks in the area. The nature walks in kidepo valley national park are done around the Apoka camp. The park is not all safe since in accommodated wild cats like hyenas, lions, cheetahs, and leopards among others. However, the visitors can enjoy a guided nature walk in kidepo valley national park, around the Apoka camp, any time of the day. A nature walk in kidepo valley national is an opportunity for you to see the zebras, giraffes, bulbuls, reed busks, elephants among others. The nature walk in any national park is a chance to see the wild animals at a closer distance and more clearer.
You can also enjoy mountain hiking in kidepo valley national park which is conducted on Murongule ranges in western uganda. Murungole is found just a few kilometers north of Apoka and a trip to kidepo is your chance to climb this highest peak in the area. When you reach the top of morungole ranges, you can clearly view the wildlife below grazing in the open savannah. The hike to the mountain is better done with a guide who will help to explain the different features and wildlife you may spot during the hiking trail.
Visiting kidepo valley national park is chance for enjoy the community walks with in the area. The community walks in kidepo valley national park may lead you to one of the Karamojong homesteads in the area. The community walks in kidepo valley national park will help you learn a lot about the cultures, dressing style, dances and the past history of the Karamojong people. You can also enjoy the folk lore as told by the old people of the Karamojong community.
Bird watching is an awesome activity done in kidepo valley national park. The clear skies due to the climatic condition of kidepo valley national park, makes bird watching an awesome activity and very interesting. Birders join their guide for birding in the morning to see the morning sunbirds; however, birding is also done in the afternoon where you get to see a variety of birds playing in the clear skies of the area.
To note, kidepo valley national park is a home for the fiercest wildlife in Uganda such as the lions, cheetahs, and the leopards. Therefore, it is ideal if you consider moving with an armed game ranger for safety reasons. Also, a guide is the one who can help you see the lions in the dry savannah grasslands, and on the different rocks with in the valleys. Also the nature walks have to be strictly guided, in order to ensure a good experience. Remember to book for kidepo valley game drives with your travel consultant any time for your Ugandan safari.
