3 day Semiliki Wildlife Reserve Excursion

This 3 day Semiliki Wildlife Reserve excursion takes you to one of the oldest reserves in Uganda.

The reserve is also a perfect place for birding outstanding scenery and spectacular wildlife such as elephants, buffaloes, giant forest hogs, and hippos. Primates include; chimpanzees, baboons, and monkeys.

Day 1: Pick up and Travel to Semliki Wildlife Reserve

You will have an early morning breakfast and head westwards to the Semliki Wildlife Reserve located in the basin of the Western Rift Valley.

The drive takes 6-7 hours via Fort Portal town down to the eastern part of Lake Albert. You have lunch in Fort Portal and proceed to your lodge for Dinner and overnight stay.

ACCOMMODATION – LODGE/HOTEL

Luxury: Semiliki Safari Lodge
Mid-Luxury: Ntoroko Game Lodge
Standard: Kirimia Guest house

Meal Plan: Lunch and Dinner

Day 2: Chimp trekking, Sempaya hot springs, and bird watching in the Semliki Wildlife Reserve

You will have breakfast and head for the verdant rainforest to start Chimp trekking. Chimps are normally trekked in the early morning or in the evening because they have a tendency to hide during the day.

You will see several birds including the chestnut owlet, spotted-breasted ibis, Congo serpent eagle, black-throated coucal, chestnut-flanked goshawk, black-wattled hornbill, red-thighed sparrow hawk, red-rumped tinker bird, long-tailed hawk, Zenker’s honey guide, Nkulengu rail, Bates’s nightjar and Hartlaub’s duck.

ACCOMMODATION: LODGE/ HOTEL

Luxury: Semiliki Safari Lodge
Mid-Luxury: Ntoroko Game Lodge
Standard: Kirimia Guest House

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Meet the Male and Female Hot Springs

The Bamanga people around Semliki National Park in Uganda worship and offer sacrifices at Nyasimbi and Mumbuga springs.

The Sempaya Hot Springs consist of steamy water jetting out of the ground with a strong pungent smell of hydrogen sulfide, boiling at 103 degrees Celsius.

Traveling along this escarpment from the Toro Kingdom offers fascinating views. The undulating green mountain ranges offer a most beautiful sight. On the slopes, local farmers make good use of fertile agricultural land, but houses “hanging” on the precipice send a chill down one’s spine.

3 day Semiliki Wildlife Reserve excursion:

Farther down the escarpment, the road emerges onto a gentle slope leading us into the Rift Valley. The greenery is behind us now as nature introduces us to cactus, shrubs, and real heat.

It is amazing how, in a space of a few minutes, you can go from one set of climatic conditions to another.

A few meters away, the Semliki River, which rises on the mountains, meanders away to pour its water into Lake Albert.

Sempaya hot springs

Finally, you are at Sempaya Hot Springs. It is located in the Semiliki National Park at the easternmost limit of the great Ituri Forest of the Congo basin. The only game park in Uganda is composed of lowland tropical forests teeming with wildlife. However, the hot springs are a unique feature of the park. Sempaya is the most famous hot spring in Uganda.

There are two hot springs in the park: Sempaya which locals call Nyasimbi is the female spring.

Culturally, the Bamanga people hold the spring sacred. They believe the gods are female and annually hold celebrations to appease them.

Day 3: Travel to Kampala

You will have an early game drive in the morning after which you will head back to the lodge for a late breakfast. You will set off for Kampala and arrive in the late afternoon.

End of your 3 day Semiliki Wildlife Reserve excursion.

ACCOMMODATION: LODGE/ HOTEL

No Accommodation on the last day

Meal Plan: Breakfast and Lunch

INCLUSIONS

• • Vehicle, Safari Van + Fuel
  • Transport in 4X4 Vehicle/Landcruiser with pop roof
  • English speaking Guide/ driver
  • All meals as indicated in the itinerary
  • Accommodation as per the itinerary
  • Park Entrance fee
  • Bottled water while on the safari