Uganda Walking Tours: What you Need to Know About Uganda Walking Safaris

The origin of Uganda walking safaris can be traced back to the walking tours which the Ugandan forefathers used to go on in time of hunting and more especially salt trekking from Lake Katwe to the rest of the country.

These people could carry their salt from Katwe to the rest of Uganda on foot. While these pioneers of walking safaris had a whole life devoted to traversing this big land on foot, you can enjoy a quality walking tour in Uganda even with limited number of days. A guided walking tour to Uganda’s nature is a thrill that lets you get in the Ugandan wildlife well away from the mass tourism.

The type of game you are likely to see will obviously depend on the location of your walking safari. A well thought-out walk like in Lake Mburo national Park in Uganda should give you sightings of, zebras and various antelopes and many birds. There are places where you may walk without an armed ranger but where there is dangerous game an armed ranger is essential for safety. Overall safety should be the determining factor and ideally you should not get in close proximity with dangerous game such as lions, buffaloes, elephants, rhinos or hippos.

Is a Ugandan walking tour all about wildlife viewing? Certainly not. There is wide variety of colorful birds, different kinds of plants and scenery is ever changing and captivating. Are there places which can be ranked as the best for walking safaris? There is no right answer for this, as best is a very relative term.

The western Ugandan districts had an earlier start in walking safaris but the Northern Ugandan districts are quickly catching up. Private game conservancies and small national parks give more value to your guided walking tour as they are not visited by mass tourism. There are many Ugandan walking safari guides giving you a wide range of tours and prices to suit. But this can severely compromise on the quality tours especially on guiding and logistics.

There is a clear difference between a trail guide whom you follow blindly and a naturalist safari guide, who brings life into your tour by explaining and interpreting animal’s behavior, shows you plants with medicinal values and teaches you about bush survival skills. Note that a walking holiday requires better preparation than a lodge-to-lodge package safari. It is therefore important to do a thorough background check on the experience of the walking holiday's outfitter and his guides before booking the tour.

To enjoy your Ugandan walking safari, it helps that your tour is fully supported with back-up vehicles for carrying luggage. In many walking places the vehicles come in handy in that you can hop in and do a game drive instead of walking. Find out if there is flexibility of activities in your walking holiday. Like in Kibale forest National Park a vehicle is necessary because some places are impenetrable Your accommodation during the walking safari in Uganda should be close to the walking sites to reduce the amount of time taken for transfers.

Guided walking tours in Uganda can be done all year round. Even in the rainy season as long as one is not camping out in the bush, it is possible to go out for walks. Yes, life never stops in Uganda! It is more likely to rain in the afternoon because a big part of Uganda lies in the equatorial rain forest and that’s where you will have to see chimpanzees and gorillas, so you can still enjoy your early morning walks.

Remember that the distances walked vary, but look at 10-20 km with frequent stops for game viewing. Ideally it should be possible for the walking group to split up to accommodate not only different abilities but also different interests such as bird watching and nature photography.