Sunday, January 18, 2009
Fort Portal....for the last time
I walked from the bus to Continental hotel. I had breakfast and then crashed. I needed more sleep. I woke at one and casually washed clothes and arranged things in my pack. Today was to be a chill out day, writing, reading and relaxing. I planned on spending today and tomorrow in Ft. Portal to totally catch everyone up on my blog as to what I've been doing. It takes me a lot of time to write the way I do. I always forget things I want to say because it's tough sometimes to remember everything while I sit in an internet cafe but I hope I've been keeping everyone interested who's reading along. For my trip next year, I'm definitely buying a digital voice recorder so I can record more details and my thoughts/insights as I have them. I come up with some good stuff but it doesn't always make it to the blog. It would be nice if I could write at my own pace in the comfort of my hotel room. I must apologize too for not adding any photos or a map. I will try to add a map soon but the photos probably won't come, it can take a painfully long time to upload photos. My second day in Ft. Portal was uneventful, exactly what I wanted. I wrote more and got my things ready for travel tomorrow, Jan 19.
Semliki National Park part III
I woke up naturally at 7.30. I ate my cornflakes with water and a banana. Tadeo made me tea. He's a super nice guy and a great guide. He seems to really care about the park and it's animals. He's always smiling and willing to give any help I need. We set off at 815. No epic hike today though, I just want to stay around the swamp forest area looking for De brazza monkey again. We get to the area and venture off trail. Tadeo sees a De brazza on the ground but I don't see it. We search and search, it' really quiet. We often stop to listen for movement or the call of the e brazza which sounds like air being forcefully blown over the top of an empty glass bottle. When we hear it, we move in that direction. Some of the vegetation we struggle through is extremely thick and mosts small shrubs have thorns. Rattan, a spiky vine used for making furniture, is abundant and it always catches me as I pass by, tearing at my flesh and clothes. It catches on to me at the slightest passing. We keep crisscrossing from the trailless forest to a trail and then back into the forest. Tadeo is putting in a lot of effort and trying is best, the De brazza just seems to be particularly elusive today. We pass one spot of brush and I get covered in my arch enemny - ants! Man, do I hate ants! These ones are very small and seem to get in every corner of my skin and clothes. Not only are their bites painfully for being so small but they are also itchy. Even a while after passing through the area, I keep getting bit by ants who have taken their time to wander on my clothes before they decide to latch for dear life on my tender skin. I have to take off my shirt so Tadeo can kill the unreachable ants on my back. He's getting bit too. Back at camp my body is covered in cuts,red marks and raised bites. We searched for the De brazza monkey for 4 hours straight but with no success. Can't say I didn't try though. I'm glad I saw them yesterday or else I would have stayed another day but I'm happy with my experience in the park and will leave tomorrow.
I would love to stay another night at the park campsite but this means I will have to pay the $20 park entrance fee, so I move to the village of Ntandi, 2.5km away. I eat rice and beans for lunch at camp and then Tadeo accompanies me to Ntandi. He shows me a 'guesthouse' I can stay, run my Anette. It's a concrete cell of a room that someone obviously lives in most of the time, but it will do for one night. I don't like small villages and this one is no exception. There's no privacy, constant noise from goats, chickens, dogs, crying babies and everyone watches every move I make. I try to sit outside my room to write in my journal but this attracts little kids who won't leave me alone. Sure, they don't mean anything by it, I just like my alone time. I don't mind when it whenm they are interested in me and ask my name and country but get annoyed when they start asking for money and gifts. I bucket shower in a stall that also functions as the urinal and it reeks badly. I can't wait to leave this place. There's no electricity but most villages, like Ntandi, have a generator and someone plays terrible music full blast. I miss the campsite. I eat g-nut sauce over rice for dinner and read in my room till bed.
There are many transport options back to Fort Portal but the safest and most comfortable is the daily bus which leaves at 5am. Anette said she would wake me but I woke up with my internal alarm clock at 4.45am. I didn't sleep well, they didn't provide a mosquito net ( I left it, along with some books, in Ft. Portal, damn!) and it felt like things were on me and mossies buzzing around and I was itching periodically enough to disrupt any sound sleep. I was on the main road at 5am and sat on a log in the darkness to wait for the bus. A few other waited as well. At 5.30, the guy from the village mosque starting going off. There is no electricity so he just sang/yelled at the top of his lungs. Why do mosques always have to call people to prayer over a loudspeaker at ridiculous times of the day? Though there isn't many mosques in Uganda, it was quite annoying at times in Malaysia and Indonesia.
The bus finally comes by at 6.30 and I get a seat by the conductor on the left side close to the window and side door of the bus. The bus is almost packed. It's still dark but warm. We beging to climb the narrow road of the Rwenzori mountains. The driver is cautious and slow, I like that. There's one scary bit as we have to make room for a huge truck to pass us. They drive on the left in Uganda, so we were on the outside, close to the cliff edge. The conductor got out to direct the driver while backing up. He backed up slowly and the cliff edge came closer and closer until I couldn't see any road looking straight down out of my window, we were that close. My heart was pounding, as I'm sure others where. We were so close to the edge and then we moved forward a bit and then backed up more! This was intense. Finally there was enough room for the truck to squeeze by and we carried on to Ft. Portal.
I would love to stay another night at the park campsite but this means I will have to pay the $20 park entrance fee, so I move to the village of Ntandi, 2.5km away. I eat rice and beans for lunch at camp and then Tadeo accompanies me to Ntandi. He shows me a 'guesthouse' I can stay, run my Anette. It's a concrete cell of a room that someone obviously lives in most of the time, but it will do for one night. I don't like small villages and this one is no exception. There's no privacy, constant noise from goats, chickens, dogs, crying babies and everyone watches every move I make. I try to sit outside my room to write in my journal but this attracts little kids who won't leave me alone. Sure, they don't mean anything by it, I just like my alone time. I don't mind when it whenm they are interested in me and ask my name and country but get annoyed when they start asking for money and gifts. I bucket shower in a stall that also functions as the urinal and it reeks badly. I can't wait to leave this place. There's no electricity but most villages, like Ntandi, have a generator and someone plays terrible music full blast. I miss the campsite. I eat g-nut sauce over rice for dinner and read in my room till bed.
There are many transport options back to Fort Portal but the safest and most comfortable is the daily bus which leaves at 5am. Anette said she would wake me but I woke up with my internal alarm clock at 4.45am. I didn't sleep well, they didn't provide a mosquito net ( I left it, along with some books, in Ft. Portal, damn!) and it felt like things were on me and mossies buzzing around and I was itching periodically enough to disrupt any sound sleep. I was on the main road at 5am and sat on a log in the darkness to wait for the bus. A few other waited as well. At 5.30, the guy from the village mosque starting going off. There is no electricity so he just sang/yelled at the top of his lungs. Why do mosques always have to call people to prayer over a loudspeaker at ridiculous times of the day? Though there isn't many mosques in Uganda, it was quite annoying at times in Malaysia and Indonesia.
The bus finally comes by at 6.30 and I get a seat by the conductor on the left side close to the window and side door of the bus. The bus is almost packed. It's still dark but warm. We beging to climb the narrow road of the Rwenzori mountains. The driver is cautious and slow, I like that. There's one scary bit as we have to make room for a huge truck to pass us. They drive on the left in Uganda, so we were on the outside, close to the cliff edge. The conductor got out to direct the driver while backing up. He backed up slowly and the cliff edge came closer and closer until I couldn't see any road looking straight down out of my window, we were that close. My heart was pounding, as I'm sure others where. We were so close to the edge and then we moved forward a bit and then backed up more! This was intense. Finally there was enough room for the truck to squeeze by and we carried on to Ft. Portal.
Semliki National Park part II
I woke up at 7am with first light, no alarm needed. Today Tadeo and I would be looking for the De brazza monkey and walking to the Semliki river, where we would see primary forest along the way. I eat my cereal and banana for breakfast and at 7.45 we are on our way. We start in the dry swamp forest, the preferred home of the De brazza monkey. There is a lot of mud on the trail and the forest here is very lush and green. We glimpse a De brazza monkey fleeing from us and follow in hot pursuit off the trail. It's sometimes rough going off the trail but at other times we are following old elephant tracks and it's more open. We see many other monkeys - black and white colobus, red tailed and grey cheeked mangabeys but the De brazza remain hidden. Tadeo says they are a shy monkey. After 1.5 hour searching, I suggest we give up for now because we still have a 12km walk to the Semliki river. As we leave the swamp forest, the forest gets very dry. Everything is wilting and the forest appears lifeless. There are no more monkeys, only a few birds. The forest is eerily silent, not even an insect makes a sound. We pass a few large holes in the ground, home of the aardvark, Tadeo explains. The aardvark is one nocturnal animal, along with the pangolin, that I am dying to see. They are both found here but they don't offer nocturnal walks, so there's no chance of encountering them.
We walk for hours without stopping till we reach the Semliki river. The trail is very flat so the walking isn't strenous and its shaded from the fierce sun. We rest at the Semliki river where I purify some water and eat passionfruits and bananas. Across the wide, light brown and swift flowing river is the DRC. It has been the scene of fighting in less peaceful time and Tadeo has heard gunshots before. Tadeo carries binoculars and an AK-47, the usual companions of a national park ranger. Further down river on the DRC side is a wide sandbank. After a few minutes, 2 men appear. Tadeo and both think they are fisherman but then through the binoculars we can see one of them is carrying an AK-47! I don't think they do much fishing with that! If they were soldiers or park rangers of the Ituri forest, they would have uniforms on but they only have civilian clothes on. They are poachers. They spot us and the guy with the gun waves to us. Tadeo waves back while I zoom in for a picture. Tadeo can't do anything since they are in the Congo but he does report them back to his boss. It's kind of exciting seeing poachers, at a safe distance. The area on the other side of the river is wild and there are no close villages but I hope the poachers are caught. They disappear back into the forest and we start walking back.
The walk back is uneventful for hours, that is until we see a small green mamba snake. Mamba's are some of the most poisonous snakes in Africa. I see it clearly but it retreats too fast for a photo and I'm not going to scramble through the bush to go after it. Later on as we near the lush swamp forest, we are crossing one of numerous log bridges. We passed tons of small streams during our long hike but they were all dried up. I can see when the rains start in April that there must be a lot of water. This log bridge differs from the rest in that there is a snake on it. It's about 1m long and as wide as my thumb but tapers very gradually to it's tail. It's green but black on top and Tadeo isn't sure what it is. The snake moves off its perch further away from us but then decides he wants to investigate us and comes closer. Tadeo is getting scared and retreats to the safety of land. I stand my ground on the bridge with my camera. The snake is on a branch with his head and neck outstretched towards me. I resist the urge to move away. I'll play chicken with him! Tadeo thinks it wants to jump and attack me but this seems unlikely, he can't eat me and I'm not bothering him. The snake backs away ( I win!) and moves under the bridge. It moves quick and I take many photos until he is out of sight.
We passed 2 small patches of 'primary' forest on our hike but they aren't primary forest like I know. Villlagers used to live in the forest and told Tadeo these 2 patches they left untouched but it doesn't look much different than the rest of the secondary forest. I was disappointed because I choose to walk this long trail because I thought I would see primary forest. I didn't like the swamp forest so much because it was very dense with limited visibility but after seeing the rest of the forest here, I began to like the swamp forest because it was lush and everything seemed to live in it.
De brazza monkey associate freely with other monkeys and whenever we heard monkeys crashing we had to scan the troupe to make sure there wasn't a De brazza monkey with them. By this point we had been hiking for 8 hours and I was a little tired and hungry but Tadeo still had the motivation to look for De brazza and this inspired me not wimp out and go back but stay with him and keep searching. Then the moment of truth came....we disturbed a small troupe of De brazza monkey on the ground. They like to be on the ground more than most monkeys. I watched as one climbed up a phoenix palm, their favourite food, to hide in the canopy. There was no mistaking it, it was a De brazza monkey but I wanted a better sighting. We stayed still and I scanned around the treetops for others. In the distance I found a single De brazza monkey in the top of a palm. He must have seen us but was not moving. I was able to watch him for minutes through my binoculars. It was the best sighting of the day. My reason ( or partial obsession) with seeing the De brazza was because it was rare and it's appearance. It's body is mostly a grey/green with black legs and a white stripe down its back legs but it's the face that is most striking. It has a long white beard ( we are beard bothers!) and a orange band on the top of its head followed by a thin white band and then a black band. My description doesn't do it justice though and I urge everyone to take a minute and go to google images to get a better look at this fascinating primate. Go ahead, it's OK, I'll wait, I'll even make a break in the story so you know where you left off.
We arrived back in camp tired, hungry and dirty after our 9 hour hike but I was really happy I got to see the De brazza. Now that I knew De brazza are in the forest and possible to see, I decided to stay one more day just to look for them again. I showered and waited for Tadeo to cook our dinner of rice and beans. All my food for dinner is gone. Tadeo's wife is here now.
The locals burn the dry grass on the slopes of the mountain and at night it appears the whole side is on fire. There is a strong breeze and ash is falling on everything. The wind is blowing in our direction and we are even feeling the heat from the fire. It's still 30 C long after the sun has set. It's too hot for a shirt. I again go to sleep with the fly off my tent but wake up in the middle of the night by the sound of rain drops. I get out and quickly and put on the fly.
I wake up in the morning to see tons of tiny ants in my tent. They have chewed a hole in the screen to get inside. I had some food in there with me but they don't seem to be after that. I don't know what they want but I kill them as I see them. My tent becomes a mass grave of ants. Basically anthing that gets in my tent is sentenced to death unless it's something really cool like a moth, which I will catch and let out. Years ago, camping at Lake Volta in Ghana, some insect chewed about 30 small holes in my tent, but I don't know why. Was it eating it? Is my tent screen that tasty?
We walk for hours without stopping till we reach the Semliki river. The trail is very flat so the walking isn't strenous and its shaded from the fierce sun. We rest at the Semliki river where I purify some water and eat passionfruits and bananas. Across the wide, light brown and swift flowing river is the DRC. It has been the scene of fighting in less peaceful time and Tadeo has heard gunshots before. Tadeo carries binoculars and an AK-47, the usual companions of a national park ranger. Further down river on the DRC side is a wide sandbank. After a few minutes, 2 men appear. Tadeo and both think they are fisherman but then through the binoculars we can see one of them is carrying an AK-47! I don't think they do much fishing with that! If they were soldiers or park rangers of the Ituri forest, they would have uniforms on but they only have civilian clothes on. They are poachers. They spot us and the guy with the gun waves to us. Tadeo waves back while I zoom in for a picture. Tadeo can't do anything since they are in the Congo but he does report them back to his boss. It's kind of exciting seeing poachers, at a safe distance. The area on the other side of the river is wild and there are no close villages but I hope the poachers are caught. They disappear back into the forest and we start walking back.
The walk back is uneventful for hours, that is until we see a small green mamba snake. Mamba's are some of the most poisonous snakes in Africa. I see it clearly but it retreats too fast for a photo and I'm not going to scramble through the bush to go after it. Later on as we near the lush swamp forest, we are crossing one of numerous log bridges. We passed tons of small streams during our long hike but they were all dried up. I can see when the rains start in April that there must be a lot of water. This log bridge differs from the rest in that there is a snake on it. It's about 1m long and as wide as my thumb but tapers very gradually to it's tail. It's green but black on top and Tadeo isn't sure what it is. The snake moves off its perch further away from us but then decides he wants to investigate us and comes closer. Tadeo is getting scared and retreats to the safety of land. I stand my ground on the bridge with my camera. The snake is on a branch with his head and neck outstretched towards me. I resist the urge to move away. I'll play chicken with him! Tadeo thinks it wants to jump and attack me but this seems unlikely, he can't eat me and I'm not bothering him. The snake backs away ( I win!) and moves under the bridge. It moves quick and I take many photos until he is out of sight.
We passed 2 small patches of 'primary' forest on our hike but they aren't primary forest like I know. Villlagers used to live in the forest and told Tadeo these 2 patches they left untouched but it doesn't look much different than the rest of the secondary forest. I was disappointed because I choose to walk this long trail because I thought I would see primary forest. I didn't like the swamp forest so much because it was very dense with limited visibility but after seeing the rest of the forest here, I began to like the swamp forest because it was lush and everything seemed to live in it.
De brazza monkey associate freely with other monkeys and whenever we heard monkeys crashing we had to scan the troupe to make sure there wasn't a De brazza monkey with them. By this point we had been hiking for 8 hours and I was a little tired and hungry but Tadeo still had the motivation to look for De brazza and this inspired me not wimp out and go back but stay with him and keep searching. Then the moment of truth came....we disturbed a small troupe of De brazza monkey on the ground. They like to be on the ground more than most monkeys. I watched as one climbed up a phoenix palm, their favourite food, to hide in the canopy. There was no mistaking it, it was a De brazza monkey but I wanted a better sighting. We stayed still and I scanned around the treetops for others. In the distance I found a single De brazza monkey in the top of a palm. He must have seen us but was not moving. I was able to watch him for minutes through my binoculars. It was the best sighting of the day. My reason ( or partial obsession) with seeing the De brazza was because it was rare and it's appearance. It's body is mostly a grey/green with black legs and a white stripe down its back legs but it's the face that is most striking. It has a long white beard ( we are beard bothers!) and a orange band on the top of its head followed by a thin white band and then a black band. My description doesn't do it justice though and I urge everyone to take a minute and go to google images to get a better look at this fascinating primate. Go ahead, it's OK, I'll wait, I'll even make a break in the story so you know where you left off.
We arrived back in camp tired, hungry and dirty after our 9 hour hike but I was really happy I got to see the De brazza. Now that I knew De brazza are in the forest and possible to see, I decided to stay one more day just to look for them again. I showered and waited for Tadeo to cook our dinner of rice and beans. All my food for dinner is gone. Tadeo's wife is here now.
The locals burn the dry grass on the slopes of the mountain and at night it appears the whole side is on fire. There is a strong breeze and ash is falling on everything. The wind is blowing in our direction and we are even feeling the heat from the fire. It's still 30 C long after the sun has set. It's too hot for a shirt. I again go to sleep with the fly off my tent but wake up in the middle of the night by the sound of rain drops. I get out and quickly and put on the fly.
I wake up in the morning to see tons of tiny ants in my tent. They have chewed a hole in the screen to get inside. I had some food in there with me but they don't seem to be after that. I don't know what they want but I kill them as I see them. My tent becomes a mass grave of ants. Basically anthing that gets in my tent is sentenced to death unless it's something really cool like a moth, which I will catch and let out. Years ago, camping at Lake Volta in Ghana, some insect chewed about 30 small holes in my tent, but I don't know why. Was it eating it? Is my tent screen that tasty?
Semliki National Park
The road to Semliki is only 52km but it's all unsurfaced. Minutes after leaving our hotel, the road turns into a bumpy mess. After an hour we reach the northern end of the Rwenzori mountains and cling to their steep sides for another hour. The park is on the other side of the mountains, close to the border with Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The road offers superb views over the Semliki valley and on clear days, to Lake Albert, but it's very hazy today. We stop a few times at strategic lookout points. We finally reach the park reception at noon. We pay our entrance fees and get a guide, Bosco is his name.
Semliki national park is a continuation of the huge Ituri forest in DRC. It has many plants and animals normally found in central Africa which are at the eastern most limit of their range here. Forest elephants,forest buffalo, certain species of duiker and monkey are only found in this part of Uganda. The forest rests at one of the lowest elevations in Uganda at 600m. It's certainly the lowest point that I will visit in Uganda. I came here to see the hotsprings, the lowland forest and De brazza's monkey. I knew the hotsprings would be easy to see but I wasn't sure about the others. The 40 minute trail to the hotsprings led through a swamp forest with many phoenix palms, though the forest was dry now. Black and white colobus and red tailed monkeys fled upon our approach.
There are 2 hotsprings, for some reason named the male and female. We visited the female first. They are a primevil site, sulphur water bubbles out of geysers and small pools everywhere at a scalding temperature of 106 C! There are numerous shallow small streams with steam blowing off them. When the wind blows the steam in my direction, it really is super hot. The air temperature is already about 32 C, seems a bit funny to be visiting hot springs in the heat. We need a cold spring! Simone bought eggs and plantains in a village on the way and our driver, Richard, sets out to cook these in one of the small pools for lunch. The springs are truly impressive and aren't like other hotsprings I've seen. We eat our hard boiled eggs and plantains for lunch and then walk for 30 minutes to the male springs. The male springs are smaller than the female and consist mostly of a small bubbling pool, depth unknown. The springs are reached via a raised wooden board walk which is in a state of repair as we speak. We left the forest to see a very unimpressive waterfall outside of the park, across a road which forms the park boundary. The forest is very thin before the steep Rwenzori mountains begin, or should I say what's left of the forest. It's been recently cut down to make room for a powerline. Ah, the benefits of modernization! It seems a bit extreme to me as they cut down trees far from the road and even trees on the park side of the road. They burn the trees to sell as charcoal.
Ntandi village is located about 5km from the park and is the home of some displaced Pygmies. The pygmies have had it rough here after being forced out of their forest home into a small village. They have been reduced to commercializing their identity and culture to make money. Our guide said the village, which you must pay to see, isn't much different than any other African village and I decide to give it a miss. Only Simone still wants to see it. While waiting to be picked up after the waterfall, a group of 4 pygmies, in tattered clothes, are walking down the street. They are obviously different than other locals, their faces, body and hair structure and their short stature. I'm not tall by any means ( 5'8", Ok, 5' 7.5"!) but none of them come close to my height. They all appear to be at least in their 30's and the shortest guy maybe comes up to my shoulders. I thought of asking for a photo but they would surely charge and I'm not in the habit of paying people for their photo.
Richie, Ed and Simone head towards the pygmie village but I get dropped off at the Bumaga campsite, 2km from reception. I will be staying here for a few days. I say bye to everyone and walk to the camp. I like the location of the campground. No one is around while I set up my tent as close to the forest as I can. Red tailed monkeys and baboons are in the trees. For me it's weird to see baboons in the trees. They are large monkeys and are usually on the ground. They are heavy and really take a toll on the trees while jumping around. A large male watches me curiously while I wash clothes.
A ranger/guide arrives. His name is Tadeo, he's 49, very short and skinny but no relation to any pygmies. He was away buying tomatoes, he explains. After an overhead shower, I ask Tadeo if I can use the fire to boil some water for noodles. I brought some food with me from Fort Portal. It's no problem and I'm eating my dinner in no time. Due to the low elevation, it's still very warm even after the sun has set. I ask Tadeo if he's ever seen any noctural animals around. He says he hasn't seen much. I ask him about bushbabies, if he's ever seen them. He says no and I ask him why. He says he has never taken a torch out to look for them! Oh well, that makes obvious sense, can't see what you're not looking for. I walk around for half an hour but see nothing. I crash in my tent but since it's so warm, I take the fly off my tent for circulation and a view. It's almost like sleeping outside in a mosquito net. It's usually been to chilly or wet to leave my fly off for the night so I'm happy I finally got the chance to do it.
Semliki national park is a continuation of the huge Ituri forest in DRC. It has many plants and animals normally found in central Africa which are at the eastern most limit of their range here. Forest elephants,forest buffalo, certain species of duiker and monkey are only found in this part of Uganda. The forest rests at one of the lowest elevations in Uganda at 600m. It's certainly the lowest point that I will visit in Uganda. I came here to see the hotsprings, the lowland forest and De brazza's monkey. I knew the hotsprings would be easy to see but I wasn't sure about the others. The 40 minute trail to the hotsprings led through a swamp forest with many phoenix palms, though the forest was dry now. Black and white colobus and red tailed monkeys fled upon our approach.
There are 2 hotsprings, for some reason named the male and female. We visited the female first. They are a primevil site, sulphur water bubbles out of geysers and small pools everywhere at a scalding temperature of 106 C! There are numerous shallow small streams with steam blowing off them. When the wind blows the steam in my direction, it really is super hot. The air temperature is already about 32 C, seems a bit funny to be visiting hot springs in the heat. We need a cold spring! Simone bought eggs and plantains in a village on the way and our driver, Richard, sets out to cook these in one of the small pools for lunch. The springs are truly impressive and aren't like other hotsprings I've seen. We eat our hard boiled eggs and plantains for lunch and then walk for 30 minutes to the male springs. The male springs are smaller than the female and consist mostly of a small bubbling pool, depth unknown. The springs are reached via a raised wooden board walk which is in a state of repair as we speak. We left the forest to see a very unimpressive waterfall outside of the park, across a road which forms the park boundary. The forest is very thin before the steep Rwenzori mountains begin, or should I say what's left of the forest. It's been recently cut down to make room for a powerline. Ah, the benefits of modernization! It seems a bit extreme to me as they cut down trees far from the road and even trees on the park side of the road. They burn the trees to sell as charcoal.
Ntandi village is located about 5km from the park and is the home of some displaced Pygmies. The pygmies have had it rough here after being forced out of their forest home into a small village. They have been reduced to commercializing their identity and culture to make money. Our guide said the village, which you must pay to see, isn't much different than any other African village and I decide to give it a miss. Only Simone still wants to see it. While waiting to be picked up after the waterfall, a group of 4 pygmies, in tattered clothes, are walking down the street. They are obviously different than other locals, their faces, body and hair structure and their short stature. I'm not tall by any means ( 5'8", Ok, 5' 7.5"!) but none of them come close to my height. They all appear to be at least in their 30's and the shortest guy maybe comes up to my shoulders. I thought of asking for a photo but they would surely charge and I'm not in the habit of paying people for their photo.
Richie, Ed and Simone head towards the pygmie village but I get dropped off at the Bumaga campsite, 2km from reception. I will be staying here for a few days. I say bye to everyone and walk to the camp. I like the location of the campground. No one is around while I set up my tent as close to the forest as I can. Red tailed monkeys and baboons are in the trees. For me it's weird to see baboons in the trees. They are large monkeys and are usually on the ground. They are heavy and really take a toll on the trees while jumping around. A large male watches me curiously while I wash clothes.
A ranger/guide arrives. His name is Tadeo, he's 49, very short and skinny but no relation to any pygmies. He was away buying tomatoes, he explains. After an overhead shower, I ask Tadeo if I can use the fire to boil some water for noodles. I brought some food with me from Fort Portal. It's no problem and I'm eating my dinner in no time. Due to the low elevation, it's still very warm even after the sun has set. I ask Tadeo if he's ever seen any noctural animals around. He says he hasn't seen much. I ask him about bushbabies, if he's ever seen them. He says no and I ask him why. He says he has never taken a torch out to look for them! Oh well, that makes obvious sense, can't see what you're not looking for. I walk around for half an hour but see nothing. I crash in my tent but since it's so warm, I take the fly off my tent for circulation and a view. It's almost like sleeping outside in a mosquito net. It's usually been to chilly or wet to leave my fly off for the night so I'm happy I finally got the chance to do it.
Fort Portal....again...
First thing I wanted to do in Fort Portal was go to an internet cafe, but the connection can be unreliable during the day. Richie bought some DVD's and we watched Hotel Rwanda in our room. I've already seen it and it's a great movie but Richie had not yet seen it. I go out and write for an hour before dinner. At the internet cafe I run into Simone, a German girl who I met during the Murchison Falls tour a few weeks ago. She is going to visit Semliki national park in 2 days and that's where I am going too. She is hiring a car because she will come back the same day. We discuss about sharing the price of the car for the journey there. It sounds like a good idea. It's more expensive than local transport but infinitely more comfortable. We will meet later this evening to sort out the details.
We eat at Rwenzoris Travellers Inn. I have veggie curry and it's the best curry I've had in Uganda, it actually tastes like curry. I have a few beers. Richie already had a few before we met up and is ready to go out late. I'm not up for that. I drink anymore and I'll be sick. I'm not as social as he is and I go back to the room and he stays out. He comes in late. He sleeps till 1.30pm the next day. I got up at 9, washed clothes, read and went to the bank to change travellers cheques. I finished this at 1.30 and was heading back to the room to check on Richie's status when at the same time he was walking down the street. Perfect timing. We went to our usually cheap place for lunch, rice and beans. Except this time I had g-nut sauce on my rice. G-nut is short for groundnut and it's like a thai non-spicy sauce, pinkish in color. I really like it. Richie got his haircut and a shave while I went to the Forestry office. I didn't get much info there but a pamphlet on the areas they manage. Back in the room we watched a Mr. Bean movie, it was quite funny. I visit an internet cafe and then we go to the Gardens to eat. We run into Ed here, a Brit who we've been seeing around town. We join him. It turns out Ed is also interested in visiting Semlike N.P. and I tell him about my ride there with Simone. I talk with Simone later and we all agree to meet at my hotel the following morning at 8.30.
Before crashing Richie and I watch Kickin It Old School, about a 12 year kid in 1986, who goes into a coma for 20 years after a botched breakdancing move. He wakes up when he's 30 but is still a breakdancing 12 year old from the 80's, cue funny senarios! It was funnier that I thought with a lot of 80's jokes and slang. I think you have to be at least 30 years to fully enjoy this movie.
We were woken up the next morning by blasting pop music outside our window at 7.30. Ugandans aren't always that considerate. If their awake, that's all that matters and they blast their music. Doesn't matter that there is a hotel beside them. We go downstairs at 8.30 to the courtyard for the included breakfast at 8. I think this should be enough time to eat and be ready for Simone at 8.30, but it takes them almost 40 minutes to boil water and cook a few omelettes. Simone shows up on time, as does Ed, but they have to wait for me. Richie was going to go back to Kampala but decides last minute to join us to the park and come back with Simone later. He has never seen hotsprings before. That makes the cost of the ride there very affordable split 4 ways. We finally get on the road just after 9.
We eat at Rwenzoris Travellers Inn. I have veggie curry and it's the best curry I've had in Uganda, it actually tastes like curry. I have a few beers. Richie already had a few before we met up and is ready to go out late. I'm not up for that. I drink anymore and I'll be sick. I'm not as social as he is and I go back to the room and he stays out. He comes in late. He sleeps till 1.30pm the next day. I got up at 9, washed clothes, read and went to the bank to change travellers cheques. I finished this at 1.30 and was heading back to the room to check on Richie's status when at the same time he was walking down the street. Perfect timing. We went to our usually cheap place for lunch, rice and beans. Except this time I had g-nut sauce on my rice. G-nut is short for groundnut and it's like a thai non-spicy sauce, pinkish in color. I really like it. Richie got his haircut and a shave while I went to the Forestry office. I didn't get much info there but a pamphlet on the areas they manage. Back in the room we watched a Mr. Bean movie, it was quite funny. I visit an internet cafe and then we go to the Gardens to eat. We run into Ed here, a Brit who we've been seeing around town. We join him. It turns out Ed is also interested in visiting Semlike N.P. and I tell him about my ride there with Simone. I talk with Simone later and we all agree to meet at my hotel the following morning at 8.30.
Before crashing Richie and I watch Kickin It Old School, about a 12 year kid in 1986, who goes into a coma for 20 years after a botched breakdancing move. He wakes up when he's 30 but is still a breakdancing 12 year old from the 80's, cue funny senarios! It was funnier that I thought with a lot of 80's jokes and slang. I think you have to be at least 30 years to fully enjoy this movie.
We were woken up the next morning by blasting pop music outside our window at 7.30. Ugandans aren't always that considerate. If their awake, that's all that matters and they blast their music. Doesn't matter that there is a hotel beside them. We go downstairs at 8.30 to the courtyard for the included breakfast at 8. I think this should be enough time to eat and be ready for Simone at 8.30, but it takes them almost 40 minutes to boil water and cook a few omelettes. Simone shows up on time, as does Ed, but they have to wait for me. Richie was going to go back to Kampala but decides last minute to join us to the park and come back with Simone later. He has never seen hotsprings before. That makes the cost of the ride there very affordable split 4 ways. We finally get on the road just after 9.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Crater Lakes part III
Nothing strange wakes me up today and I sleep in till 9. While eating breakfast, Olga, a solo Israeli traveller arrives. Richie and I both think it's strange. We hardly ever meet solo female travellers and now we meet 2 here. We invite her to join us mountain biking but she decides just to hangout instead. I ask Richie if he wants to rent bikes today and tell him the area I want to visit. Like my walk yesterday, he asks ' What's there?' I'm like, ' Uhhhh, crater lakes.....? Visiting the lakes is the main reason I came to this area but it doesn't excite Richie much, but what else is there to do? He hung around all day yesterday and is looking to get out and do something. We both rent ' sport' bikes, really just shitty mountain bikes. Once on the road, Richie is having problems with his. Gears are changing by themselves and his chain keeps falling off. He's understandably frustrated and takes the bike back to camp. Looks like I'll be biking alone. I again leave at noon and it's hot and sunny.
I'm visiting the Kasenda region of crater lakes, the furthest area south on my map. The road is mostly downhill and bumpy as hell. I have to sit tight to the bike because the bumps bounce my feet right off the pedals. There's no suspension on this bike, unlike my mountain bike at home which I can take down mountains in comfort. I reach Kasenda in 45 minutes. It'a a beautiful but very small crater lake. I down a somewhat cold soda and relax for half an hour. The way back is mostly uphill but doable and sweaty. There are a lot of locals about it gets tiring the constant brigade of 'How are you?' children. Even when I answer, they keep asking or switch to ' Give me money.' Some kids can be great and others damn annoying. As I fly downhill, brakes slightly on (I don't trust this bike to go too fast), I hit a rock and the back tire hisses flat. Shit, this sucks, I'm still about 5km from camp. Amazingly, just down the road is a makeshift bike repair house. The guy is fixing a bike when I pull up but begins working on mine right away. A crowd gathers of mostly little kids. I'm getting annoyed and I feel like I'm in a zoo so I give them a short chase ( a few steps is all it takes), a false charge and this sends most of them running for their lives. White man is chasing me, run! It's all in good fun and they are laughing as they run. They learn to keep their distance after this and I know what to do if I get annoyed again. After some tedious but thorough roughing of the puncture, the guy cuts a rubber patch and glues it on. I'm back in business! I quickly ride away, happy to be on the move again.
The sky has become darkly overcast and a few drops of rain fall. I don't think it's going to materialize into anything but starting pedalling faster just in case. As soon as I reach the market village of Rwaihambo, 2km from camp and get under shelter, the sky opens up. Rain pounds the dust and creates small streams everywhere. People run for cover and the streets are empty. I duck into a super small shack with a few other guys. I eat a huge intact piece of sweet potatoe for 20 cents. A man comes in ( drunk, as a few others were who approached me early), he starts telling me I'm rude because I didn't offer him any of my sweet root. I almost finished and tell him there is a huge basket of them on the counter. He says he has no money. Oh well, I don't feel sorry for him. I tell him that he has no money for food but like many rural Ugandans has enough money to get drunk. Everyone laughs and he tries to tell me something but he generally just keeps repeating himself, telling me I'm welcome and not to be worried. I'm not worried and I thank him for the welcome. He leaves and the rain stops and has really cooled down the air. I arrive back at camp after 4 hours. I take a bucket shower and read till dinner. I actually wear a longsleeve shirt and my boots at dinner to ward of the chill, even though in reality it's only 15 C. However anything below 22 C, feels cold to me. I've really become a huge wimp for the cold and don't deny it. My blood has significantly thinned.
I pull out my other sleeping bag liner to keep me toasty for the night. I planned on spending about 6 days here and I did and really enjoyed it. Now it's time to move on. Richie and I call our driver, Gideon to come pick us up. He's there fast and in no time we are back in our same double room in Fort Portal.
I'm visiting the Kasenda region of crater lakes, the furthest area south on my map. The road is mostly downhill and bumpy as hell. I have to sit tight to the bike because the bumps bounce my feet right off the pedals. There's no suspension on this bike, unlike my mountain bike at home which I can take down mountains in comfort. I reach Kasenda in 45 minutes. It'a a beautiful but very small crater lake. I down a somewhat cold soda and relax for half an hour. The way back is mostly uphill but doable and sweaty. There are a lot of locals about it gets tiring the constant brigade of 'How are you?' children. Even when I answer, they keep asking or switch to ' Give me money.' Some kids can be great and others damn annoying. As I fly downhill, brakes slightly on (I don't trust this bike to go too fast), I hit a rock and the back tire hisses flat. Shit, this sucks, I'm still about 5km from camp. Amazingly, just down the road is a makeshift bike repair house. The guy is fixing a bike when I pull up but begins working on mine right away. A crowd gathers of mostly little kids. I'm getting annoyed and I feel like I'm in a zoo so I give them a short chase ( a few steps is all it takes), a false charge and this sends most of them running for their lives. White man is chasing me, run! It's all in good fun and they are laughing as they run. They learn to keep their distance after this and I know what to do if I get annoyed again. After some tedious but thorough roughing of the puncture, the guy cuts a rubber patch and glues it on. I'm back in business! I quickly ride away, happy to be on the move again.
The sky has become darkly overcast and a few drops of rain fall. I don't think it's going to materialize into anything but starting pedalling faster just in case. As soon as I reach the market village of Rwaihambo, 2km from camp and get under shelter, the sky opens up. Rain pounds the dust and creates small streams everywhere. People run for cover and the streets are empty. I duck into a super small shack with a few other guys. I eat a huge intact piece of sweet potatoe for 20 cents. A man comes in ( drunk, as a few others were who approached me early), he starts telling me I'm rude because I didn't offer him any of my sweet root. I almost finished and tell him there is a huge basket of them on the counter. He says he has no money. Oh well, I don't feel sorry for him. I tell him that he has no money for food but like many rural Ugandans has enough money to get drunk. Everyone laughs and he tries to tell me something but he generally just keeps repeating himself, telling me I'm welcome and not to be worried. I'm not worried and I thank him for the welcome. He leaves and the rain stops and has really cooled down the air. I arrive back at camp after 4 hours. I take a bucket shower and read till dinner. I actually wear a longsleeve shirt and my boots at dinner to ward of the chill, even though in reality it's only 15 C. However anything below 22 C, feels cold to me. I've really become a huge wimp for the cold and don't deny it. My blood has significantly thinned.
I pull out my other sleeping bag liner to keep me toasty for the night. I planned on spending about 6 days here and I did and really enjoyed it. Now it's time to move on. Richie and I call our driver, Gideon to come pick us up. He's there fast and in no time we are back in our same double room in Fort Portal.
Crater Lakes part II
Jan 10/09
I'm woken up in the dark hours of early morning by a terrifying sound. It's very loud and sounds like it's coming from the low cliff above Richie's tent. It sounds like the ghost from The Grudge, if that helps anyone. I've never heard it before and thankfully it only lasts a few minutes. My heart starting racing instantly and I just kept thinking ' It's OK, I'm safe in my tent! Nothing will attack me in here with the super thin screen/nylon walls protecting me! Besides, it sounds closer to Richie and will get him first!' I talked about it with Richie later and he was equally shitting himself. He said he was holding tight to his knife, ready for action. His knife is a formidable weapon too, it's about as long as my forearm! He thought it was a pissed off hippo. We told the staff and they didn't know what it was but a guy later told us it was a hyena. He says they pass through here. I guess that makes sense but I've had a new idea about what it was. I just heard it again this morning in the predawn hours of 5am as I waited for a bus near Semliki national park. I don't think there are many hyenas here but there are many baboons and that's what I think it was. They are big enough to make that kind of call. I can rest now if I hear it again.
I fall back asleep and awoken again at 8 but this time by a more familiar sound. Branches and debris fall on my tent and I hear monkeys crashing through the trees all around - African alarm clock! I get up to see it's a large troupe of red colobus. I get out my tripod and start photographying. I eat the rest of my cereal for breakfast and I'm still hungry so I order an omelette and coffee. The coffee is in the form of instant powder which is kind of funny since Uganda produces some of the highest quality coffee around but most of this is for export. I get powdered milk and sugar to sweeten to my taste and a 1.5L thermos of boiling water. I'm not a huge coffee junkie and 1 or 2 cups is enough for me. I'm not one of those guys who sits around a coffee pot drinking it all day, so the 1.5 litres is a but much for me. In my hotel in Fort Portal, The Continental, when I order coffee with milk I get a small thermos full of boiled milk to which I add sugar and instant coffee. Coffee with milk is called African coffee here.
I'm walking to some nearby crater lakes today. Richie's guts are bothering him so I'll be walking solo but I don't mind. It's a beautifully sunny day and I leave at noon, the hottest time of the day. I walk a rarely used single lane road to the small roadside village of Rwaitera. I eat beans and matooke ( mashed plantains) for lunch and then continue on to try and find a loop back to lake Nkuruba. I pass a lushly green tea plantaition that reminds me of the so many I saw in India. I'm walking down the dusty red road now ringed with crops like maize and cassava on both sides when a large grey mongoose drops down the one side, runs right in front of me and jumps up the other side back into the crops. How cool and unexpected!
I stop at a wooden shack overlooking Lake Nyamirima, a small but picturesque crater lake. No one is around but after a few minutes a guy appears and I buy a warm coke from him. He gets his mother who is the manager of the campsite here and speaks better English. She points me in the right direction to get back to Mkuruba. I'm walking through people's yards now. No one is in sight but 2 dogs are on guard. I get out my tripod for a weapon, though it's more for show. Most dogs here are scardy cats and are all bark and no bite. As soon as I raise the tripod over my head, they back off to a safe distance. This is real rural Uganda, I see a fat black women topless and she makes no effort to cover up when she sees me. Uganda is fairly conservative, topless women aren't something you see everyday. Her whole household watches me as I go by. I ask constantly to make sure I'm going in the right direction and everyone is nice and no one asks me for money here. Before I realized it, I was on the road I had started on. I arrived back at camp 4 hours after leaving. I immediately hit the lake for a swim. It was almost like I never left. The monkeys were still around and Richie was still there photographing them. I left a jerrycan full of water in the sun and it was warm for my bucket shower. I read till dinner. Richie and I both eat cassava with beef. Surprisingly the beef is cut in small tasty chunks and has no fat on it. The cassava is heavy and super filling. I sit in the moonlight for a while before retiring to my tent. I'm listening to the book Devil May Care (a new James Bond adventure) on CD, bought for me for Christmas by my brother, Jeff. It's just starting to get excting. I close my eyes and imagine I'm watching a movie (Thanks Jeff).
I'm woken up in the dark hours of early morning by a terrifying sound. It's very loud and sounds like it's coming from the low cliff above Richie's tent. It sounds like the ghost from The Grudge, if that helps anyone. I've never heard it before and thankfully it only lasts a few minutes. My heart starting racing instantly and I just kept thinking ' It's OK, I'm safe in my tent! Nothing will attack me in here with the super thin screen/nylon walls protecting me! Besides, it sounds closer to Richie and will get him first!' I talked about it with Richie later and he was equally shitting himself. He said he was holding tight to his knife, ready for action. His knife is a formidable weapon too, it's about as long as my forearm! He thought it was a pissed off hippo. We told the staff and they didn't know what it was but a guy later told us it was a hyena. He says they pass through here. I guess that makes sense but I've had a new idea about what it was. I just heard it again this morning in the predawn hours of 5am as I waited for a bus near Semliki national park. I don't think there are many hyenas here but there are many baboons and that's what I think it was. They are big enough to make that kind of call. I can rest now if I hear it again.
I fall back asleep and awoken again at 8 but this time by a more familiar sound. Branches and debris fall on my tent and I hear monkeys crashing through the trees all around - African alarm clock! I get up to see it's a large troupe of red colobus. I get out my tripod and start photographying. I eat the rest of my cereal for breakfast and I'm still hungry so I order an omelette and coffee. The coffee is in the form of instant powder which is kind of funny since Uganda produces some of the highest quality coffee around but most of this is for export. I get powdered milk and sugar to sweeten to my taste and a 1.5L thermos of boiling water. I'm not a huge coffee junkie and 1 or 2 cups is enough for me. I'm not one of those guys who sits around a coffee pot drinking it all day, so the 1.5 litres is a but much for me. In my hotel in Fort Portal, The Continental, when I order coffee with milk I get a small thermos full of boiled milk to which I add sugar and instant coffee. Coffee with milk is called African coffee here.
I'm walking to some nearby crater lakes today. Richie's guts are bothering him so I'll be walking solo but I don't mind. It's a beautifully sunny day and I leave at noon, the hottest time of the day. I walk a rarely used single lane road to the small roadside village of Rwaitera. I eat beans and matooke ( mashed plantains) for lunch and then continue on to try and find a loop back to lake Nkuruba. I pass a lushly green tea plantaition that reminds me of the so many I saw in India. I'm walking down the dusty red road now ringed with crops like maize and cassava on both sides when a large grey mongoose drops down the one side, runs right in front of me and jumps up the other side back into the crops. How cool and unexpected!
I stop at a wooden shack overlooking Lake Nyamirima, a small but picturesque crater lake. No one is around but after a few minutes a guy appears and I buy a warm coke from him. He gets his mother who is the manager of the campsite here and speaks better English. She points me in the right direction to get back to Mkuruba. I'm walking through people's yards now. No one is in sight but 2 dogs are on guard. I get out my tripod for a weapon, though it's more for show. Most dogs here are scardy cats and are all bark and no bite. As soon as I raise the tripod over my head, they back off to a safe distance. This is real rural Uganda, I see a fat black women topless and she makes no effort to cover up when she sees me. Uganda is fairly conservative, topless women aren't something you see everyday. Her whole household watches me as I go by. I ask constantly to make sure I'm going in the right direction and everyone is nice and no one asks me for money here. Before I realized it, I was on the road I had started on. I arrived back at camp 4 hours after leaving. I immediately hit the lake for a swim. It was almost like I never left. The monkeys were still around and Richie was still there photographing them. I left a jerrycan full of water in the sun and it was warm for my bucket shower. I read till dinner. Richie and I both eat cassava with beef. Surprisingly the beef is cut in small tasty chunks and has no fat on it. The cassava is heavy and super filling. I sit in the moonlight for a while before retiring to my tent. I'm listening to the book Devil May Care (a new James Bond adventure) on CD, bought for me for Christmas by my brother, Jeff. It's just starting to get excting. I close my eyes and imagine I'm watching a movie (Thanks Jeff).
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Crater Lakes
South of Fort Portal is an area with a violent past. This can be seen in the 70 or so crater lakes that dot the region. The crater lakes are all that's left of multiple volcanoes and eruptions ages ago. Most are not that big and almost circular in shape with high cliffs or surrounded by forest. Some are irregular shaped which suggests they filled multiple collapsed calderas. I wanted to check out this area to see the crater lakes, do some hiking and just relax in a cheap place. I'm trying to balance the expensive places, like the national parks, with cheap places in between. Richard didn't have much of a plan and he liked what he read about the crater lakes so he decided to join me.
We left Fort Portal at noon. We decided to travel in a bit of comfort and called Gideon to take us there. Gideon was the guy who gave me a ride back from Kibale national park and gave me a good price on a ride to Lake Nkuruba in the crater lakes. It was only 25 minutes away on a dusty road. I choose Lake Nkuruba as a base because it had a good central location, cheap food and accomodation and most importantly was one of the only lakes completely surrounded by forest. Monkeys, butterflies and birds lived in the forest there. When we arrived a troupe of black and white colobus monkeys were eating the bark from a papaya tree right beside the restaurant. There were people about and they didn't care. It was the least skitish I've ever seen them behave. I wanted to set up my tent and do some washing though and thought the monkeys would be around again for photos.
Richie and I choose the best spot for camping. A few minutes walk down a gradually sloping trail to the edge of the lake, far away from what little noise there was. It was a very peaceful spot. I wanted to start washing my sleeping bag and sleeping bag liner so they would be dry to sleep in later. I had been camping so much and haven't had the time or right place to wash them yet. It felt and smelt so good sleeping in them later. They both dried within hours. No electricity was available which ensured quiet. We just hung out our first day. Later in the afternoon, Alexandria, a solo female backpacker from Poland arrived. She was on an ambitiour Cairo to Capetown trip and then up to West Africa.
There was a short trail through the forest and after dinner, Richie and I decided to walk it to search for bushbabies. Within minutes I found about half a dozen sets of eyes. Most were to far away to see clearly but it was nice to know the forest was full of them. My mammals book states that in a proper habitat, bushbabies can reach densities of 400 per sq. km.! No wonder there is so many! It seems to me that any forest that is rich in duirnal primates is also rich in nocturnal primates.
Day 2
We get up early at 7am , just as dawn breaks. Richie wants to get up early to beat the heat and get some good photos before the haze sets in. Alexandria joins us and after a bowl of cornflakes that I brought along, we leave at 7.30. We get picked up by a large truck and catch a free lift to the market village of Rwaihamba. From there we walk to Kabata and branch left towards Muhoma falls, our destination. We stop at a local stall for tea, called chai here, but it's not chai like chai in India. It is super cheap though. We get another lift in a truck up to a church on a hill were we have to leave the road and walk paths through huts and cultivated land to the waterfalls. 2 young local boys have been following us and now are acting as our unofficial guides. They help us find the way to the waterfall which we couldn't have done without them. The Muhoma falls are nothing too amazing but a nice place to chill. We eat peanut butter sandwiches and pass the time. The boys just sit on a log and wait for us. We make our way back to the main road and the boys reach their village. They ask for money and none of us mind paying them a little, they did help us a lot and earned their money. A few minutes later, the truck that dropped us off hours ago is coming back in our direction. It's now full of plantains and bananas and we dubbed it the banana bus. We hopped on the bundles in the back with half dozen Ugandans. We diverted from the main road to pick up some more bananas. Our driver stopped for a drink of the local tipple, waragai. It's true that most of the big truck operators are drunk and that's the reason for the high number of crashes on the road. He seemed to still be coherent to me ( maybe he drove better buzzing!) and since the road was rutted and hilly, there weren't any opportunities to really go fast and lose control. He offered me some of his drink but after wincing after just smelling it, I politely declined. It's funny, he seemed to be the only one drinking!
We get off the banana bus at the market and buy green peppers, tomatoes, garlic and onions for our dinner. My guidebook said self catering was possible so we brought a bit of food to help cut costs. We cooked up a huge pasta dinner with all our veggies and was more than enough for Richie, Alexandria and me. It was a tasty, filling and most importantly, very healthy meal. I was feeling tired from the early start and some walking and crashed hard.
Day 3
It takes a long time for 8.30am to roll around and I wake up feeling rested. I head up to the restaurant for a coffee and passionfruit juice and finish the rest of my cereal. Today is going to be a do-nothing-don't- leave-the lake kinda day. I take this opportunity to wash my small pack which has become filthily embedded with dust and dirt. Richie thinks I'm a bit obsessed because I'm always washing something. I just like being clean and it feels good to me knowing I have clean clothes to put on. Also self washing is super cheap, kills time and is rewarding. I wished I liked washing clothes this much at home! I finally left the campsite late afternoon for the restaurant. A troupe of about 20 black and white colobus were everywhere, in the trees and playing on the ground. This was the closest I had ever gotten to them and it was amazing. One thing that really surprised me though was watching them stick their face close to the mud/cement base of the building and eat it. They must be after the minerals in the mud. Didn't look too tasty! In the morning, red colobus were in the same trees but are bit more frightful than these black and white colobus but still provided good photo ops.
On the way to the campsite after dinner, I find 3 sets of bushbaby eyes, they really are everywhere, I love it!
We left Fort Portal at noon. We decided to travel in a bit of comfort and called Gideon to take us there. Gideon was the guy who gave me a ride back from Kibale national park and gave me a good price on a ride to Lake Nkuruba in the crater lakes. It was only 25 minutes away on a dusty road. I choose Lake Nkuruba as a base because it had a good central location, cheap food and accomodation and most importantly was one of the only lakes completely surrounded by forest. Monkeys, butterflies and birds lived in the forest there. When we arrived a troupe of black and white colobus monkeys were eating the bark from a papaya tree right beside the restaurant. There were people about and they didn't care. It was the least skitish I've ever seen them behave. I wanted to set up my tent and do some washing though and thought the monkeys would be around again for photos.
Richie and I choose the best spot for camping. A few minutes walk down a gradually sloping trail to the edge of the lake, far away from what little noise there was. It was a very peaceful spot. I wanted to start washing my sleeping bag and sleeping bag liner so they would be dry to sleep in later. I had been camping so much and haven't had the time or right place to wash them yet. It felt and smelt so good sleeping in them later. They both dried within hours. No electricity was available which ensured quiet. We just hung out our first day. Later in the afternoon, Alexandria, a solo female backpacker from Poland arrived. She was on an ambitiour Cairo to Capetown trip and then up to West Africa.
There was a short trail through the forest and after dinner, Richie and I decided to walk it to search for bushbabies. Within minutes I found about half a dozen sets of eyes. Most were to far away to see clearly but it was nice to know the forest was full of them. My mammals book states that in a proper habitat, bushbabies can reach densities of 400 per sq. km.! No wonder there is so many! It seems to me that any forest that is rich in duirnal primates is also rich in nocturnal primates.
Day 2
We get up early at 7am , just as dawn breaks. Richie wants to get up early to beat the heat and get some good photos before the haze sets in. Alexandria joins us and after a bowl of cornflakes that I brought along, we leave at 7.30. We get picked up by a large truck and catch a free lift to the market village of Rwaihamba. From there we walk to Kabata and branch left towards Muhoma falls, our destination. We stop at a local stall for tea, called chai here, but it's not chai like chai in India. It is super cheap though. We get another lift in a truck up to a church on a hill were we have to leave the road and walk paths through huts and cultivated land to the waterfalls. 2 young local boys have been following us and now are acting as our unofficial guides. They help us find the way to the waterfall which we couldn't have done without them. The Muhoma falls are nothing too amazing but a nice place to chill. We eat peanut butter sandwiches and pass the time. The boys just sit on a log and wait for us. We make our way back to the main road and the boys reach their village. They ask for money and none of us mind paying them a little, they did help us a lot and earned their money. A few minutes later, the truck that dropped us off hours ago is coming back in our direction. It's now full of plantains and bananas and we dubbed it the banana bus. We hopped on the bundles in the back with half dozen Ugandans. We diverted from the main road to pick up some more bananas. Our driver stopped for a drink of the local tipple, waragai. It's true that most of the big truck operators are drunk and that's the reason for the high number of crashes on the road. He seemed to still be coherent to me ( maybe he drove better buzzing!) and since the road was rutted and hilly, there weren't any opportunities to really go fast and lose control. He offered me some of his drink but after wincing after just smelling it, I politely declined. It's funny, he seemed to be the only one drinking!
We get off the banana bus at the market and buy green peppers, tomatoes, garlic and onions for our dinner. My guidebook said self catering was possible so we brought a bit of food to help cut costs. We cooked up a huge pasta dinner with all our veggies and was more than enough for Richie, Alexandria and me. It was a tasty, filling and most importantly, very healthy meal. I was feeling tired from the early start and some walking and crashed hard.
Day 3
It takes a long time for 8.30am to roll around and I wake up feeling rested. I head up to the restaurant for a coffee and passionfruit juice and finish the rest of my cereal. Today is going to be a do-nothing-don't- leave-the lake kinda day. I take this opportunity to wash my small pack which has become filthily embedded with dust and dirt. Richie thinks I'm a bit obsessed because I'm always washing something. I just like being clean and it feels good to me knowing I have clean clothes to put on. Also self washing is super cheap, kills time and is rewarding. I wished I liked washing clothes this much at home! I finally left the campsite late afternoon for the restaurant. A troupe of about 20 black and white colobus were everywhere, in the trees and playing on the ground. This was the closest I had ever gotten to them and it was amazing. One thing that really surprised me though was watching them stick their face close to the mud/cement base of the building and eat it. They must be after the minerals in the mud. Didn't look too tasty! In the morning, red colobus were in the same trees but are bit more frightful than these black and white colobus but still provided good photo ops.
On the way to the campsite after dinner, I find 3 sets of bushbaby eyes, they really are everywhere, I love it!
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Kibale National Park Day 5,6,7 and Fort Portal
I decided to skip doing a nature walk today and just walk the road. While I ate breakfast I met Nelson, an Aussie who was waiting for his sister and nephew to come back from chimp tracking. They were staying at the Chimps nest. Nelson said (mistakenly) that Gerran, the Dutch owner of Chimp's Nest, who I met yesterday, was coming to pick them up after they finished their chimp tracking. Gerran, overheard me yesterday complain that there was no water left in the shower at the campsite and said I should come stay at his place. They always had water and accomodation and food was half the price it was here at the park. I had stayed the 4 nights of camping I paid for upfront and thought I would move to Chimps nest today. I waited for Richard to come back from chimp tracking and we packed up to move to Chimps Nest. Richard paid $90 for the chimp tracking and only saw a chimps ass from a distance and was understandable pissed. I'm glad I had seen chimps before I came to Kibale. Nelson's sister told us they were not getting picked up by Gerran so we had to find a way to get there. The Chimps Nest was about 3km from the park and then another 40 minute walk on a back road to the middle of nowhere. I was ready to walk but Richard suggested we wait for a vehicle. We didn't wait long before a huge truck with a crane and large square cargo came along. We hopped on the back and got dropped off at Bigodi hotel for some lunch. I offered the driver money but he refused. We ate a huge lunch of beans, rice and beef and started to walk to Chimps Nest. Richard didn't want to walk because he was carrying all his stuff. I was too but I was feeling energetic and really like walking. I thought it would only take an hour or so. Richard suggested hiring a boda boda and I told him to do what he wanted but I was going to walk. He caved, and started walking with me. He kept calling me 'Rambo'. It was really hot and sunny and we took a few breaks before arriving at the Chimps Nest. Our first break was under a tree at the bottom of a hill. As we were getting ready to leave, a bike barreling down the hill with a passenger and almost out of control. Maybe we were a bit in the way but we moved quick and the bike rocked violently from side to side but the driver kept it on the road. The passenger sitting over the back wheel wasn't as lucky and fell off the bike and rolled into some weeds on the side of the dirt road. I thought he was a kid wearing really ratty and dirty clothes. At first the guy didn't move and we thought the worst, but I mountain bike and have taken some bad spills and thought this wipeout wasn't that bad. Richard tried to move the guy and as he rolled over a bit I could see that it wasn't a kid but an older guy and he was piss drunk. After a minute he had not moved but began to snore! He was already sleeping! I figured they were both drunk and probably bound to crash if we were there are not. The driver came back and we left the guy passed out on the grass.
The Chimps Nest has only been open for 10 months. It's situated on a grassy scruby hill with the forest in front of it and a view of the Rwenzori mountains in the distance. The site consisted of the main reception/restaurant/lounge, some spaced out bandas, a self contained treehouse in the forest and a terraced camp site. I would have loved to stay in the treehouse but at $100 a night was a bit too expensive. Even though the dorm rooms were the same price as camping, I choose to camp. I found an excellent spot close to the forest and under a big acacia tree. It was the furthest away I could get from everything. I really liked how everything was so spread out. I set up my tent and just relaxed. I ate a delicious homecooked meal of grilled fish, mixed veggies and boiled potatoes. It was a fun night with Richard and the Aussies. We stayed up drinking and talking.
Day 6
I slept in the next morning till 9 and went for breakfast. The Chimps Nest puts on a good spread of eggs, bread, toast, fruit, juice and coffee for $2.50. I hung around the restaurant for the morning and then walked to Bigodi hotel for lunch. The road passes through some swampy areas that are good for monkeys and I was hoping to have some luck with l'hoest. I didn't but I did have great luck with red colobus and got some close up face photos. I arrived back at Chimps Nest for 3 and Richard and I took a mandatory guide to explore some of the Chimps Nest private forest bordering the park. I don't know if Richard is bad luck or what ( remember he didn't see any chimps were almost everyone does), because we didn't see anything. I almost always at least see a few monkeys on any walk I go on. The walk was cheap though and I know it was just bad timing because half hour after we got back I was reading in my tent and a troupe of red tailed monkeys appeared in the trees in front of me.
It was a quiet night in the restaurant. Only Richard and I were staying at Chimps Nest now. I ate the same dinner and went to bed early. There is no electricity at Chimps Nest. They have solar power but its not enough to keep drinks really cold. Maybe I'm a bit of a wimp but I can't drink beer unless its really cold. I mostly just drank water for the whole week I was at Kibale except for the coffee and juice in the morning. An ice cold beer always goes down nice in a warm climate but I would have to wait until I got back to Fort Portal for that. Before retiring to my tent I noticed my towel on the clothesline was covered in moths. They loved it and I was feeding about 2 dozen species.
Day 7
My last full day at Chimps Nest began like all the rest, sleeping in a filling up on a huge breakfast. I was going to concentrate on the road around the swamp looking for monkeys. I set up my tripod and got comfortable. Black and white colobus monkeys were feeding low in the trees and provided some of the best photos I've had of them so far. Richard joined me for a while after he did a tour through the swamp but then went back to Chimps Nest. I hung out on the road for a few hours and then had my last meal at Bigodi hotel. I read and relaxed back at Chimps Nest till dinner. No new guests had arrived, it was still just Richard and I. It was another quiet night with a tasty dinner.
Richard has been on the road for a while arriving from Rwanda and before that Tanzania, Malawi, Madagascar and India. He had no guidebook for Uganda and wasn't sure where to go next. I told him I was going to an area of crater lakes near Fort Portal and he thought that sounded good and is going to join me.
Day 8
I packed up my tent and was in the restaurant for breakfast at 8.30. Richard didn't feel like walking the 40 minutes to the main road so he hired a boda boda. I was again in the walking mood and left 10 minutes after him. I waited on the main road for 30 minutes before getting a free ride in a tour company landrover to the headquarters of the park, where I was camping before. I would have a better chance to get a ride from here. A guy pulled in driving a small Toyota, the typica share taxi car. He said he would give me a ride back to Fort Portal for the same price as the share taxi. He just had to pick up someone and would be right back. He picked up what I thought was his wife who worked at Kibale Primate Lodge. It was just the 3 of us in and I had the whole back seat to myself. It was a rare luxury. About halfway back to Fort Portal, we stopped and the woman turns around to me and says' I have forgotten something. Can we go back?' Well, what was I to do, they were my ride. So, we drove back to the park. What was it that she forgot? Her celllphone.
I finally arrived in Fort Portal after having left Chimps Nest over 3 hours before. I met Richard at the Continental hotel, where he had been already for 2 hours. I went out to find internet, I had a lot of writing to catch up on but was frustrated to find the 3 internet cafes in town were all having connnection problems. So, Richard and I watched Death Race ( awesome movie!) on his laptop in our twin room. The internet was working better in the evening and I was able to write for a while. We watched Bangkok Dangerous ( not so awesome) before crashing. I am a bit of a movie junky and was happy to be able to watch a few movies again.
The driver I had that took me out of the park gave us a good price for the crater lakes and I told him to meet us at our hotel at noon, Jan 7. I will be staying at the crater lakes for about 5 days or so, more about them when I return.
The Chimps Nest has only been open for 10 months. It's situated on a grassy scruby hill with the forest in front of it and a view of the Rwenzori mountains in the distance. The site consisted of the main reception/restaurant/lounge, some spaced out bandas, a self contained treehouse in the forest and a terraced camp site. I would have loved to stay in the treehouse but at $100 a night was a bit too expensive. Even though the dorm rooms were the same price as camping, I choose to camp. I found an excellent spot close to the forest and under a big acacia tree. It was the furthest away I could get from everything. I really liked how everything was so spread out. I set up my tent and just relaxed. I ate a delicious homecooked meal of grilled fish, mixed veggies and boiled potatoes. It was a fun night with Richard and the Aussies. We stayed up drinking and talking.
Day 6
I slept in the next morning till 9 and went for breakfast. The Chimps Nest puts on a good spread of eggs, bread, toast, fruit, juice and coffee for $2.50. I hung around the restaurant for the morning and then walked to Bigodi hotel for lunch. The road passes through some swampy areas that are good for monkeys and I was hoping to have some luck with l'hoest. I didn't but I did have great luck with red colobus and got some close up face photos. I arrived back at Chimps Nest for 3 and Richard and I took a mandatory guide to explore some of the Chimps Nest private forest bordering the park. I don't know if Richard is bad luck or what ( remember he didn't see any chimps were almost everyone does), because we didn't see anything. I almost always at least see a few monkeys on any walk I go on. The walk was cheap though and I know it was just bad timing because half hour after we got back I was reading in my tent and a troupe of red tailed monkeys appeared in the trees in front of me.
It was a quiet night in the restaurant. Only Richard and I were staying at Chimps Nest now. I ate the same dinner and went to bed early. There is no electricity at Chimps Nest. They have solar power but its not enough to keep drinks really cold. Maybe I'm a bit of a wimp but I can't drink beer unless its really cold. I mostly just drank water for the whole week I was at Kibale except for the coffee and juice in the morning. An ice cold beer always goes down nice in a warm climate but I would have to wait until I got back to Fort Portal for that. Before retiring to my tent I noticed my towel on the clothesline was covered in moths. They loved it and I was feeding about 2 dozen species.
Day 7
My last full day at Chimps Nest began like all the rest, sleeping in a filling up on a huge breakfast. I was going to concentrate on the road around the swamp looking for monkeys. I set up my tripod and got comfortable. Black and white colobus monkeys were feeding low in the trees and provided some of the best photos I've had of them so far. Richard joined me for a while after he did a tour through the swamp but then went back to Chimps Nest. I hung out on the road for a few hours and then had my last meal at Bigodi hotel. I read and relaxed back at Chimps Nest till dinner. No new guests had arrived, it was still just Richard and I. It was another quiet night with a tasty dinner.
Richard has been on the road for a while arriving from Rwanda and before that Tanzania, Malawi, Madagascar and India. He had no guidebook for Uganda and wasn't sure where to go next. I told him I was going to an area of crater lakes near Fort Portal and he thought that sounded good and is going to join me.
Day 8
I packed up my tent and was in the restaurant for breakfast at 8.30. Richard didn't feel like walking the 40 minutes to the main road so he hired a boda boda. I was again in the walking mood and left 10 minutes after him. I waited on the main road for 30 minutes before getting a free ride in a tour company landrover to the headquarters of the park, where I was camping before. I would have a better chance to get a ride from here. A guy pulled in driving a small Toyota, the typica share taxi car. He said he would give me a ride back to Fort Portal for the same price as the share taxi. He just had to pick up someone and would be right back. He picked up what I thought was his wife who worked at Kibale Primate Lodge. It was just the 3 of us in and I had the whole back seat to myself. It was a rare luxury. About halfway back to Fort Portal, we stopped and the woman turns around to me and says' I have forgotten something. Can we go back?' Well, what was I to do, they were my ride. So, we drove back to the park. What was it that she forgot? Her celllphone.
I finally arrived in Fort Portal after having left Chimps Nest over 3 hours before. I met Richard at the Continental hotel, where he had been already for 2 hours. I went out to find internet, I had a lot of writing to catch up on but was frustrated to find the 3 internet cafes in town were all having connnection problems. So, Richard and I watched Death Race ( awesome movie!) on his laptop in our twin room. The internet was working better in the evening and I was able to write for a while. We watched Bangkok Dangerous ( not so awesome) before crashing. I am a bit of a movie junky and was happy to be able to watch a few movies again.
The driver I had that took me out of the park gave us a good price for the crater lakes and I told him to meet us at our hotel at noon, Jan 7. I will be staying at the crater lakes for about 5 days or so, more about them when I return.
Kibale National Park Day 3 and 4
I woke up early today to eat a few buns and peanut butter before my morning nature walk. Richard is my guide today and I tell him I 'm looking for l'hoest monkey but don't want to walk the same trails as yesterday. He takes me on the same trail for a while but then we divert, cross the road and go deep into the forest. Its more nice primary forest which I always enjoy walking through and I see some monkeys but l'hoest again evades me. I am determined to see this monkey. I am staying a few more days and know I will have more opportunities. I eat lunch and wash clothes and get ready for the 12km roundtrip walk to Bigodi for dinner. I leave the camp around 4 and spook a monkey low in a tree close to the road. He hides behind some bush but I am able to see the white neck and bent tail tip as he flees to correctly identify him as a l'hoest monkey! As this trail walking and here I see it on the road, one minute from camp. I would still like to see more l'hoest and get some photos though. L'hoest is a monkey known as a guenon with a body mostly dark, white neck and bent tail tip.
I eat groundnut sauce over rice with 2 boneless, fatless super tender pieces of stewed beef. I arrive back at camp at 6.45 for a shower and read until 7.30. If you haven't noticed, this is becoming my routine here! When ever I'm in a place for a while I usually develop a bit of a pattern. A tickling in my throat was bothering me as I tried to sleep last night. It was ok all day today but I was concerned it would keep me up again tonight so before I went for my nightwalk, I went to the restaurant to order ginger tea. If I ever feel a tickle, a bit sick or have stomach troubles, I start pounding back ginger tea and I like it really strong. They made me a thermosful, I finished that and they made another which I could take back to my tent. I finished it all during the night and slept better.
The nightwalk turned out to be just a nice stroll along the main road, no animals tonight. Thats ok though, I can't always expect to see something, that's just how rainforests are, they can take a while to reveal themselves.
Day 4
I decide not to do a morning hike and sleep in instead. I get up at 9 for breakfast and hang around the restarant. It rained again and I walk the main road after it stops but no l'hoest monkey. Back at camp, Richard, a backpacker from England has arrived. He sets up his tent and we go for another walk along the main road. I feel like an unofficial guide as I spot black and white colobus and red tailed monkey high in the trees. Since I didn't go on a nature walk today, I don't go to Bigodi for dinner and spend the money on dinner at the restuarant. It was ok but not huge portions and not worth the price. I told the girl at Bigodi hotel I would not be around today because they had got to know me there. I'm the mzungo who walks for 3 hours just to eat rice and beans. They thought I was a little crazy but I explained my reasons to them and I think they understood. They just thought it was far to walk. It was surely keeping me in shape! Work up an appetite as I walked there and then work it off as I walked back. It rained heavy in the evening and Richard and I decided against going on a night walk. I was feeling a slight fever now. It seems I had one of those mobile colds, it moved from my throat to a fever then to my sinuses for a few days. I took an ibuprofen from Richard and my fever was gone but the cold lingered for days.
.
I eat groundnut sauce over rice with 2 boneless, fatless super tender pieces of stewed beef. I arrive back at camp at 6.45 for a shower and read until 7.30. If you haven't noticed, this is becoming my routine here! When ever I'm in a place for a while I usually develop a bit of a pattern. A tickling in my throat was bothering me as I tried to sleep last night. It was ok all day today but I was concerned it would keep me up again tonight so before I went for my nightwalk, I went to the restaurant to order ginger tea. If I ever feel a tickle, a bit sick or have stomach troubles, I start pounding back ginger tea and I like it really strong. They made me a thermosful, I finished that and they made another which I could take back to my tent. I finished it all during the night and slept better.
The nightwalk turned out to be just a nice stroll along the main road, no animals tonight. Thats ok though, I can't always expect to see something, that's just how rainforests are, they can take a while to reveal themselves.
Day 4
I decide not to do a morning hike and sleep in instead. I get up at 9 for breakfast and hang around the restarant. It rained again and I walk the main road after it stops but no l'hoest monkey. Back at camp, Richard, a backpacker from England has arrived. He sets up his tent and we go for another walk along the main road. I feel like an unofficial guide as I spot black and white colobus and red tailed monkey high in the trees. Since I didn't go on a nature walk today, I don't go to Bigodi for dinner and spend the money on dinner at the restuarant. It was ok but not huge portions and not worth the price. I told the girl at Bigodi hotel I would not be around today because they had got to know me there. I'm the mzungo who walks for 3 hours just to eat rice and beans. They thought I was a little crazy but I explained my reasons to them and I think they understood. They just thought it was far to walk. It was surely keeping me in shape! Work up an appetite as I walked there and then work it off as I walked back. It rained heavy in the evening and Richard and I decided against going on a night walk. I was feeling a slight fever now. It seems I had one of those mobile colds, it moved from my throat to a fever then to my sinuses for a few days. I took an ibuprofen from Richard and my fever was gone but the cold lingered for days.
.
Kibale National Park Day 2
New Years Eve
I woke up at 8am after a restful sleep with the sounds of the forest. I didn't know then that they nature walks began at 8. I walked up to reception and promptly got a guide and was on my way. No time for breakfast. Harriet was my guide. She had medium length mini braided hair and had worked at the park for 10 years. She really liked it but like many Africans, the rest of her family was afraid of the forest.
Kibale forest is at an elevation of 1200m and thought to have the highest density of primates in Africa. In the 560sq km park, there were red colobus, black and white colobus, blue monkey, red tailed monkey, grey cheeked mangabey, l'hoest monkey, chimpanzee and at night, pottos and bushbabies. Primates are my favourite type of animal and I'm always looking for some I haven't seen yet. At Kibale there was l'hoest monkey and red colobus that I was after. I told Harriet this and 10 minutes after entering the forest we found a troupe of red colobus high in the trees. I could photograph them ok and I could see them through my binoculars clearly. Curiously, the red colobus is mostly greyish light brown on the stomach and a little darker on its backside with only the top of its head red. Colobus monkeys are unique among primates in that they have no thumbs. Not sure why, my mammals book doesn't elaborate any more details.
We also saw red tailed monkeys, grey cheeked mangabeys and black and white colobus but I even already saw these just around camp! The l'hoest monkey eluded me for our whole 4 hour walk. Harriet said that they like to forage on the ground and are often seen on the road. She told me to keep keep checking the road. I appreciate her honest advice. I really liked the forest here, deeper in away from the road the undergrowth thinned and it was proper primary forest, really nice with good visibility.
I was starving and ate chips and an omelette. It rained heavy again after lunch but stopped about 3pm. I waked again to Bigodi for lunch. Even though it was almost a 3 hour roundtrip, it was saving me a ton of money and I usually saw monkeys along the way. I walked through a few very small and poor villages where kids would say 'Hi, how are you?' Unfortunately this was usually followed with 'Give me money!' or "Give me pen!' I don't like this and ignore any requests. I arrived back in camp just before dark and was horrified to see an overland truck and 10 tents taken over the peaceful camp. I said hi to a few but kept my mostly to myself. I just didn't feel like meeting 20 new people at the time. After my shower, I read till 8 and then went out on a night hike. I took the road to my right this time, leading north. I walked for almost an hour altogether. I saw 2 sets of eyeshine high up in the trees and judging by their fluent movements through the canopy, I assumed the eyes belonged to bushbabies. I went to my tent to read more before crashing. It being New Years eve, the people from the overland truck had to stay up until midnight and that meant I stayed up till midnight. Some of them apologized the next day for keeping me up. I kind of understood because it was New Years, for me just another night in the forest, but for them a reason to stay up and party. They said I could have joined them but I didn't feel like it.
I woke up at 8am after a restful sleep with the sounds of the forest. I didn't know then that they nature walks began at 8. I walked up to reception and promptly got a guide and was on my way. No time for breakfast. Harriet was my guide. She had medium length mini braided hair and had worked at the park for 10 years. She really liked it but like many Africans, the rest of her family was afraid of the forest.
Kibale forest is at an elevation of 1200m and thought to have the highest density of primates in Africa. In the 560sq km park, there were red colobus, black and white colobus, blue monkey, red tailed monkey, grey cheeked mangabey, l'hoest monkey, chimpanzee and at night, pottos and bushbabies. Primates are my favourite type of animal and I'm always looking for some I haven't seen yet. At Kibale there was l'hoest monkey and red colobus that I was after. I told Harriet this and 10 minutes after entering the forest we found a troupe of red colobus high in the trees. I could photograph them ok and I could see them through my binoculars clearly. Curiously, the red colobus is mostly greyish light brown on the stomach and a little darker on its backside with only the top of its head red. Colobus monkeys are unique among primates in that they have no thumbs. Not sure why, my mammals book doesn't elaborate any more details.
We also saw red tailed monkeys, grey cheeked mangabeys and black and white colobus but I even already saw these just around camp! The l'hoest monkey eluded me for our whole 4 hour walk. Harriet said that they like to forage on the ground and are often seen on the road. She told me to keep keep checking the road. I appreciate her honest advice. I really liked the forest here, deeper in away from the road the undergrowth thinned and it was proper primary forest, really nice with good visibility.
I was starving and ate chips and an omelette. It rained heavy again after lunch but stopped about 3pm. I waked again to Bigodi for lunch. Even though it was almost a 3 hour roundtrip, it was saving me a ton of money and I usually saw monkeys along the way. I walked through a few very small and poor villages where kids would say 'Hi, how are you?' Unfortunately this was usually followed with 'Give me money!' or "Give me pen!' I don't like this and ignore any requests. I arrived back in camp just before dark and was horrified to see an overland truck and 10 tents taken over the peaceful camp. I said hi to a few but kept my mostly to myself. I just didn't feel like meeting 20 new people at the time. After my shower, I read till 8 and then went out on a night hike. I took the road to my right this time, leading north. I walked for almost an hour altogether. I saw 2 sets of eyeshine high up in the trees and judging by their fluent movements through the canopy, I assumed the eyes belonged to bushbabies. I went to my tent to read more before crashing. It being New Years eve, the people from the overland truck had to stay up until midnight and that meant I stayed up till midnight. Some of them apologized the next day for keeping me up. I kind of understood because it was New Years, for me just another night in the forest, but for them a reason to stay up and party. They said I could have joined them but I didn't feel like it.
Kibale National Park
I was in no rush to get to Kibale N.P. early. I ate the breakfast that came with my room price, tea, banana, eggs and toast. I watched the news last night in the courtyard of the hotel on Aljareeza TV. The same network that shows the Al Queda/Taliban videos, that we sometimes get a glimpse of when they film something really nasty that the west considers newsworthy. I just thought it was interesting I was actually watching it, but it just seemed like any other channel, I left after the sports news came on. I walked 5 minutes from my hotel to the share taxi stand. There was a car leaving but after seeing them put 9 people into a sedan built for 4, I decided to take a boda boda. I just didn't feel like being all cramped in today, even though it was only for 35km. The boda boda was only twice the price and much more comfortable. After 25km, the dirt road entered the forest and I already felt at home.
Unfortunately the restaurant and accomodation have been privatized and are now operated by Kibale Primate Lodge, an upmarket posh resort. For me this meant camping was 15,000Ush ($7.50), the most I've ever paid and food was twice the price it should be. There wasn't much I could do to cut costs except eat the least expensive items on the menu. I ate a lot of omelettes and french fries. I should have brought some food from Fort Portal with me. I asked one of the rangers, Paul, about getting some bread from Fort Portal. I brought some local peanut butter with me and bread would be perfect. The bread never materialized but Paul did give me about 10 small buns for free, so they helped me skip buying some food. I set up my tent in the treeless camp ground and got ready for a 'nature walk' at 2pm. The camping ground is surrounded by trees but they didn't leave any in the site itself. The mandatory guided walks leave at 8am and 2pm. Kibale is famous for its chimp tracking but since I just saw them for less than half the price here, I was only here to do 'nature walks'. About 1.30 it started to rain and it rained heavy. 2pm came and went and it was still raining. Some people left on their walks but I was staying for a while and didn't feel the need to pay $10 to walk in the rain for a few hours. It finally stopped raining at 3.30. I had heard there was a small village called Bigodi about 6km south of the park. I thought they would have cheap local food because I didn't want to spend $10 for a skimpy main meal at the park. It took me an hour to reach Bigodi but I'm glad I went. I found rice and beans at the Bigodi hotel for $1 including a soda. I walked back to the park and arrived with enough time to shower before it got dark. I was the only one camping until some people in a landcrusier pulled up as it was getting dark.
Guided night walks were available but I thought I would try the main road before I spent the money on a walk through the forest. There is very little traffic on the road and it goes right through the park. A road with little traffic in a rainforest is basically just a wide trail that vehicles can drive on and has plenty of potential for animals. I've discovered this many times and don't think of a road as something animals avoid. I walked out of the campsite and took a left. The night was misty and I could see my breath. I was scanning the road, the low brush and the treetops for anything I could. After 15 minutes, eyeshine low on the ground caught my eye. The eyes were behind some very dense bush but appeared to be something quite large and not moving much. I thought I would stick with this until I knew for sure what I was looking at. As I was trying to get a better view, I looked down the road in the direction I was heading and was surprised to see eyes coming right towards me! They were very low on the ground and kind of moving at a brisk pace. I stood still and got my camera ready. Even though I knew there was no danger from whatevery was coming my way, my heart starting racing as I realized this animal isn't changing course. In a minute the animal was right in front of me about 2m away. I could see then that it was a South African large genet. I took a photo of it and this caused it to stop its movement. It stood still and looked around, not really knowing or caring I was right there. I took a bunch more photos and a few of them are really good. I saw a large spotted genet twice before on the same nightdrive in Kruger national park in South Africa. Except then I was holding the spotlight because I found them and couldn't take a photo.
The large spotted genet is a small and sleek animal distantly related to mongooses and civets. Its coat was spotted like a cheetah and its tail was ringed black and brown, very attractive. It finally left me and continued down the road. Super happy with my experience, I shifted my attention back to the unknown eyes in the bush. They had moved little but I was able to find them again. The animal finally revealed a little more of himself and I could tell from his white snout and stripy body that it was an African civet. I stayed with him for an hour hoping he would come out of the bushes but he never did but I was happy enough to identify him 100%. African civets wiegh about 15Kg and are the size of medium dog with a long white pointed snout, stripy gray and black body and pattered tail. This was the first African civet I had seen. They are well distributed throughout the tropics and I have seen other civets in India and Borneo. It was almost 9.30pm when I got back to my tent and I went to bed. I planned on doing a morning nature walk.
Unfortunately the restaurant and accomodation have been privatized and are now operated by Kibale Primate Lodge, an upmarket posh resort. For me this meant camping was 15,000Ush ($7.50), the most I've ever paid and food was twice the price it should be. There wasn't much I could do to cut costs except eat the least expensive items on the menu. I ate a lot of omelettes and french fries. I should have brought some food from Fort Portal with me. I asked one of the rangers, Paul, about getting some bread from Fort Portal. I brought some local peanut butter with me and bread would be perfect. The bread never materialized but Paul did give me about 10 small buns for free, so they helped me skip buying some food. I set up my tent in the treeless camp ground and got ready for a 'nature walk' at 2pm. The camping ground is surrounded by trees but they didn't leave any in the site itself. The mandatory guided walks leave at 8am and 2pm. Kibale is famous for its chimp tracking but since I just saw them for less than half the price here, I was only here to do 'nature walks'. About 1.30 it started to rain and it rained heavy. 2pm came and went and it was still raining. Some people left on their walks but I was staying for a while and didn't feel the need to pay $10 to walk in the rain for a few hours. It finally stopped raining at 3.30. I had heard there was a small village called Bigodi about 6km south of the park. I thought they would have cheap local food because I didn't want to spend $10 for a skimpy main meal at the park. It took me an hour to reach Bigodi but I'm glad I went. I found rice and beans at the Bigodi hotel for $1 including a soda. I walked back to the park and arrived with enough time to shower before it got dark. I was the only one camping until some people in a landcrusier pulled up as it was getting dark.
Guided night walks were available but I thought I would try the main road before I spent the money on a walk through the forest. There is very little traffic on the road and it goes right through the park. A road with little traffic in a rainforest is basically just a wide trail that vehicles can drive on and has plenty of potential for animals. I've discovered this many times and don't think of a road as something animals avoid. I walked out of the campsite and took a left. The night was misty and I could see my breath. I was scanning the road, the low brush and the treetops for anything I could. After 15 minutes, eyeshine low on the ground caught my eye. The eyes were behind some very dense bush but appeared to be something quite large and not moving much. I thought I would stick with this until I knew for sure what I was looking at. As I was trying to get a better view, I looked down the road in the direction I was heading and was surprised to see eyes coming right towards me! They were very low on the ground and kind of moving at a brisk pace. I stood still and got my camera ready. Even though I knew there was no danger from whatevery was coming my way, my heart starting racing as I realized this animal isn't changing course. In a minute the animal was right in front of me about 2m away. I could see then that it was a South African large genet. I took a photo of it and this caused it to stop its movement. It stood still and looked around, not really knowing or caring I was right there. I took a bunch more photos and a few of them are really good. I saw a large spotted genet twice before on the same nightdrive in Kruger national park in South Africa. Except then I was holding the spotlight because I found them and couldn't take a photo.
The large spotted genet is a small and sleek animal distantly related to mongooses and civets. Its coat was spotted like a cheetah and its tail was ringed black and brown, very attractive. It finally left me and continued down the road. Super happy with my experience, I shifted my attention back to the unknown eyes in the bush. They had moved little but I was able to find them again. The animal finally revealed a little more of himself and I could tell from his white snout and stripy body that it was an African civet. I stayed with him for an hour hoping he would come out of the bushes but he never did but I was happy enough to identify him 100%. African civets wiegh about 15Kg and are the size of medium dog with a long white pointed snout, stripy gray and black body and pattered tail. This was the first African civet I had seen. They are well distributed throughout the tropics and I have seen other civets in India and Borneo. It was almost 9.30pm when I got back to my tent and I went to bed. I planned on doing a morning nature walk.
Masindi to Fort Portal
I was very happy with my Chimpanzee experience and getting sick of Masindi so I decided to leave for Fort Portal. I wanted to avoid backtracking to Kampala by taking a back route to Hoima and then another dirt road to Fort Portal. I told John from the Softie Guesthouse ( even though I checked out of that place 2 days ago, I went there for a beer in the evening) my plan and he advised me against taking the back way. Really shitty vehicles and a terrible road meant it could take me all day to get there. I took his advice and at 5.40am I was up to catch the first bus to Kampala. It was the first real size bus I've taken on this trip. We started taking a road but not towards Kampala. Where were we headed? It turns out we took the dirt road to Hoima, the very one I wanted to avoid, but then we took a paved road to Kampala from there. I did not want to go back to Kampala but as soon as I got off the one bus I got on another going to Fort Portal right away and it wasn't a hassle. The road to Fort Portal was ok and the scenery was fairly lush with some forest along the way. I arrived in Fort Portal about 3pm. It had been a long day travelling with a very early start and I just relaxed upon arrival. I got a room at the Continental hotel and went out to eat at a nice restaurant called The Gardens. A beer and veggie curry really hit the spot.
Fort Portal is a small town but with more happening that Masindi, there is actually some cars on the road here! The town is lush and the imposing Rwenzori mountains loom behind the town. The name of the town is a bit misleading as there is no fort. I was only here for one night before going to Kibale National Park.
Fort Portal is a small town but with more happening that Masindi, there is actually some cars on the road here! The town is lush and the imposing Rwenzori mountains loom behind the town. The name of the town is a bit misleading as there is no fort. I was only here for one night before going to Kibale National Park.
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