Uganda: Queen Elizabeth National Park

Oct 5

Oct 5 Uganda: Queen Elizabeth National Park

Me Our next destination in Uganda was Queen Elizabeth National Park. Renamed for the monarch after she visited in 1954, it encompasses 2 large lakes joined by the Kazinga Channel. Thus, we got to safari by boat for a change.

While there are 95 species of mammals and over 500 species of birds in the park, our primary encounters were with elephants grazing on the shore and hippos basking in the water. And what encounters they were! The elephants seemed completely unfussed by our boat pulling up alongside them.

The hippos were definitely fussed - we were pulling into shallow water to get a closed look at a crocodile when a fleet of them surfaced practically under the bow, snorting and splashing around.

for everyone who wants to know how close we get to the animals...

Crossing “hippo dentist” off my list of possible jobs

This guy looked like he was trying to tiptoe away from us

An epic rainstorm cut our boat ride a bit short, but we saw more hippos and elephants on our way out of the park the next day, as well as my new favorite bird, the Battaleur eagle.

Epic rainstorm - but this hippo doesn’t care

If you go: QENP’s Kazinga Channel boat safari has to be one of the most relaxing ways imaginable to enjoy wildlife. My one regret is that we didn’t get to visit the Ishasha region of the park, which is known for its tree-climbing lions.