KIDEPO VALLEY National Park
The True African Wilderness
The park contains two rivers – Kidepo and Narus – which disappear in the dry season, leaving just pools for the wildlife.
The local communities around the park include pastoral Karamojong people, similar to the Maasai of Kenya, and the IK, a hunter-gatherer tribe whose survival is threatened.
Kidepo Valley National Park lies in the rugged, semi arid valleys between Uganda’s borders with south Sudan in the north west and only 5km from the eastern border of Kenya, some 700km from Kampala. Gazetted as a national park in 1962, it has a profusion of big game and hosts over 77 mammal species.
Kidepo is Uganda’s most isolated national park, but the few who make the long journey north through the wild frontier region of Karamoja would agree that it is also the most magnificent, for Kidepo ranks among Africa’s finest wildernesses. From Apoka, in the heart of the park, a savannah landscape extends far beyond the gazetted area, towards horizons outlined by distant mountain ranges.
During the dry season, the only permanent water in the park is found in wetlands and remnant pools in the broad Narus Valley near Apoka. These seasonal oases, combined with the open, savannah terrain, make the Narus Valley the park’s prime game viewing location especially with its dense populations of Lion,Buffalos,Elephant and many similar angulates.
Kidepo’s elephant population has surged from around 200 in the mid 1990’s to between 650 and 1000 today. The African Buffalo population is now estimated at 10,000-15,000.The Rothschild Giraffe is very notable ,breeding more than 50 individuals from the bottleneck of the mid 1990’s population of three and supplemented several from translocation.
The bird checklist of over 476 species with the common Ostrich, secretary bird,northern carmine bee eater, little green bee eater, Abyssinian scimitar bill and many more colorful and visible species.
What to do at Kidepo Valley NP?
WILDLIFE
Perhaps surprisingly, given the harsh climate, Kidepo’s savanna, bush and forests habitats support a wide diversity of mammals with 86 species. Indeed it is the only Ugandan refuge for number of species, including cheetah, bat-eared fox, striped hyaena and caracal while eland only occurs in Kidepo and Lake Mburo. Though buffalo are far from rare in Uganda, their huge seasonal congregations in the swamps of Kidepo’s Narus Valley cannot fail to impress.
Elephant, Rothschild’s giraffe, lion, leopard, spotted hyaena and black backed and side-striped jackal are also present. Kidepo boasts over 475 bird species, a number second in Uganda only to Queen Elizabeth National Park’s 604 species. The distinctive birdlist includes over 100 ‘dry country’ residents of northern Uganda and Kenya including a number that are endemic to the Kidepo region e.g. rose ringed parakeets, Clapperton’s francolin and Karamoja apalis.
Other highlights include the ostrich, secretary bird, kori bustard, red-throated bee-eaters, the Abyssinian roller and the Abyssinian ground hornbill. Kidepo is also notable for 56 raptor species including the rare lappetfaced vulture, lesser kestrel and Denham’s bustard.
LOCAL PEOPLE
Most of the people bordering the park are Karamojong who, though traditionally nomadic pastoralists, are slowly adopting a more settled lifestyle. Interested visitors can visit their manyattas (homesteads) at Kawalakol, Lorukul and Karenga to learn about their traditional customs and dances. Karamojong stools, knives, spears and jewellery, are perhaps the most sought after crafts in Uganda. Visitors can also visit the Ik, Uganda’s most isolated tribe, which lives on the lofty, 2570m Mount Morungule on the Kenyan border.
ACTIVITIES & ATTRACTIONS NARUS VALLEY
GAME DRIVE
The Narus Valley south of Apoka is the park’s prime game viewing area as wildlife congregates here for much of the year. Look for buffalo in the swamps along the valley floor, giraffe on the drier slopes above and scan the rock outcrops for lions. In addition to the main game circuits at Kakine, Katurum and Nagusokopire, newly created loops to the north west of Apoka and to the south of the seasonal Crocodile Pool have opened up new parts of the valley to exploration.
VIEWPOINTS
Binocular viewpoints have been installed at Apoka Rest Camp, Nagusokopire Campsite, and Kakine Campsite. The latter enjoys a superb 3600 panorama that includes the Napore-Nyungea range, the Morungule mountains and Mount Lomej in South Sudan.
KIDEPO VALLEY DRIVE
Compared to the Narus, the dry Kidepo Valley is short on big game but massive on scenery and its vast scale more than justifies the 30km drive from Apoka. Pause on the Narus-Kidepo watershed at Lokimorigen to enjoy a spectacular view towards the looming, 2975m-high Jebel Lotuke in South Sudan before descending to the Kidepo River crossing to walk on the dry, sandy riverbed. Mammals are rare in the vast, semi-arid plains beyond the river but ostriches and secretary birds are often seen.
Kanangorok Hot Springs, a modest cluster of small hot pools on the South Sudan border, make a convenient destination, 11km beyond the river. A ranger guide escort is required for this activity.
NATURE WALKS
Short nature walks around Apoka Rest Camp provide the chance to view species such as zebras, hartebeest and reedbucks. Longer walks through the open grasslands of East Kakine should provide sightings of giraffe, buffalo, elephant and perhaps distant lions. Visitors can also explore part or all of the 15km Rionomoe Trail on the southern side of the Narus valley. All walks require a ranger guide.
BIRD WATCHING
Experienced ranger guides are available at Apoka to help locate and identify birdlife in the park’s various habitats.
MOUNTAIN HIKING
The Morungule range, which rises from the plains to the north east of Apoka, can be explored on foot with a ranger guide escort.
OUTSIDE THE PARK COMMUNITY WALKS
Community walks provide the opportunity to learn about life in the local Karamojong manyattas (homesteads) at Kawalakol, Lorukul and Karenga.
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