Mount Elgon national park is located in Mbale district bordering Uganda with Kenya. To the hikers, mountain Elgon accommodates the Earth’s largest caldera and it’s the final destination to hikers. it is best hiked on the Uganda side. Mountain Elgon hap ened to be larger than Kilimanjaro but it reduced due to internal forces that acted on it.
Location
Mount Elgon National Park lies 235km east of Uganda’s capital city and can be reached via a tarmac road that goes through Jinja to Mbale town. Driving distance of 235km approximately 2-3hours. The mountain has the biggest surface area of all extinct Volcanoes on the planet and it is the 4th highest mountain in East Africa. The journey to Mount Elgon national park is a rewarding destination which takes you to sipi falls.
The 3 water falls in the area create an interesting travel adventure experience with hiking trails. After abseiling to the water stream, you will enjoy rock hike with the locals as you share stories about the creation of waterfalls. You will learn more about the culture of the two tribes in the region.
Flora and fauna
The mountain is an enormous watershed with its slopes supported by a rich diversity of altitudinal vegetation areas that range from the lush Montana, the mixed bamboo-belt forest to the intriguing high open moorland, dotted with the really uncommon worldly plant species such as the large lobelia plus the groundsel plants rare to Africa. The thick shrubs plus luminous wild eternal flowers are another major attraction to enjoy on your Mountain Elgon safari Uganda.
The mountain Elgon sights a variety of unique forest monkeys and small antelopes, huge elephants and buffaloes. The park has over 300 bird species that can be viewed by safari tourists, and many bird species have not been recorded elsewhere in Uganda.
Tribes
The native of the area are Bagishu and the Sabiny are the two ethnic tribes that live around the gorgeous Elgon Mountain with unique culture like dances, food and dressing code.
Adventure
Mount Elgon National Park can only be explored on foot, walking using trails that range from day walk to extended hikes over several days to reach to the final destination. You can also make you hike a trans-boundary adventure thus ascending the Uganda slopes and descending on the Kenyan side or the other way round.
The hike requires prior arrangement to meet with Kenya Wildlife Service rangers at a crossover point at the springs in the caldera.
Mount Elgon hike is favourable in the months of the dry seasons that is June-August and December-March. Hiking doesn’t require any technical climbing equipment skills to reach the main peaks.
The caldera and the peaks are the main destinations all the trails pass via interesting and unique flora and fauna, waterfalls, lakes, caves and gorges. Rain gear and both cool and warm clothing are required as the area is subject to sudden weather changes.
Accommodation
Accommodation facilities available ranging from luxury to budget and these include: Lacam lodge just adjacent to the great Sipi falls with a magnificent view of the scenery, Sipi River resort provides great comfort to the visitors, and Mbale Resort with unmatched services provides a greater alternative for visitors who prefer sleeping like high class.
Budget accommodation
The park provides dormitory accommodation and self-contained wooden cottages at the Forest Exploration Centre at Kapkwai owned by Uganda wildlife authority. This budget type of accommodation provides opportunity to students and budget clients to explorer the park.Hiking is the main tourist attraction with its spectacular scenery.