Budongo forest is situated near Murchison falls national park in the northwestern part of Uganda, the are is covered with semi deciduousforests part of Murchison falls national park which is the largest in Uganda. Budongo forest.
Budongo forest is renowned for its chimpanzees but it also boast with other animals including animals that can be found at Murchison falls national park, over 300 species of birds, 130 moths species, over 290 moths species, over 400 plant species, differentspecies of butterflies, plant species, 9 species of primates and many more. The beast season for chimpanzees trekking is fro. October to January.
Budongo forest is drained by small rivers that flow to lake Albert this are; river Wake, river Sonso, river Wasaike and river Bubwa supporting the growth of five major forest types,
Budongo forests boasts with the highest concentration of chimpanzees in Uganda and the largest mahogany forest remaining in east Africa. It’s characterized with patched of Savannah vegetation, woodlands and the Great Rift Valley slope.
Budongo forest is dived into three sections this are; Sonso section, Kaniyo pabidi and Busingiro section. The Kaniyo pabidi and Busingiro section chimpanzees have been habituated for tourits activity while the Sonso section has got about 53 groups of chimpanzeesthat have been kept from tourists’ activities but for field research only.
Tourists visiting Budongo forest have higher chances of seeing animals like lions, buffalos and leopards to mention a few this animals often come to the forest from Murchison falls national park.
Budongo forest is a borders Paradise where bird enthusiasts can go for bird watching the forest boast ls with over 300 species of birds some of the birds here are endemic to his area like the Guinea Congo forest Biome, illadopsis puveli, parmoptila woodhousei, pitta reichenowi and the yellow footed fly catcher. Some of the birds in Budongo forest can not be seen elsewhere in East Africa.
Chimpanzee trekking is the main tourist activity at Budongo forest, tourists who would love to trek chimpanzees can do it at Budongo forest other than any other place in the country, and the forest has got various trails where you can spot chimpanzees plus lots of other primate species like different types of monkeys.
Nature guided walks can be take at Budongo forest with armed rangers the walks will take you through the well set up woodlands and Savannah terrain where you will encountered the wilderness on foot.
While at Budongo forest, tourists should endeavor to visit the panoramic Kaniyo pabidi eco tourism site endowed with Iron wood and Mahogany trees covering an area of 115 kilometers, this is where you can have great opportunities of watching wildlife licking salt at the forest glades in the morning hours.
Budongo forest can be accessed from. Kampala which is approximately three hours’ drive from the city main center. It’s in the northwestern part of the country.
Where to sleep while visiting Budongo forest will depend on the tourist’s budget some of the loaves at the forest are; Budongo forest Eco lodge, Masindi hotel and many others including hotels and Murchison falls camping can also be done at Budongo forest.
The best time for visiting Budongo forest is from October to January, during this time the chimpanzees tend to move a lot in the forest hence easy spotting this is due to the trees being shorter and scarcity of fruits which makes them to move a lot in search of fruits.
For a more wilderness thrilling experience, tourists can combine their chimpanzees trekking safari with a big five experience at Murchison falls national park which is the largest national park in Uganda boasting with a lot of wild animals it’s also crossed with the longest river in the world plus great views of the might giant Nile crocodiles.
