Uganda Parks
By Ariadne van Zandbergen
Ariadne is a renowned Africa expert and frequently visits Uganda. She and her husband are a travel photography/writing team with many Africa guidebooks under their belt, including the Bradt guide to Uganda.
Budongo Forest has the largest number of chimpanzees in Uganda with a population of about 800. Budongo's main attraction is tracking a troop of habituated chimps at Kaniyo Pabidi. Your guide will take you, on foot, along the forest trails to find them. Once found, you can observe them for one hour. They may be feeding in the canopy, or if you’re lucky they will be resting and grooming on the ground, although they are often on the move. If so, you will have to walk at a remarkable speed to follow them.
Wildlife Highlights
Aside from chimpanzees, other primates that can be seen along the forest trails include black-and-white colobus, red-tailed monkey, blue monkey, and olive baboon. Nocturnal primates include potto and various forest galago species. The rarely seen tree pangolin is also resident. Keep an eye out for the checkered elephant shrew on the forest floor and the forest giant squirrel up in the trees.
Best Time for Wildlife Viewing
Trekking chimpanzees can be done throughout the year, but the success rate is highest in the drier months (from December to March and June to July). The park stays open throughout the year but, in heavy rain, the trails might be difficult to walk.
