M&M (monkeys and mountains)

Nearly leaving the Queen Elizabeth Park behind us we visited the Kyamburo Gorge, which lays on the eastern outskirts of the park.

We did a chimpanzee tracking even though the chance of encountering them there is only 30% compared to 90% in Kibale NP. But our guide was relentless. We stumbled through the beautiful gorge, which seems unlikely in the middle of a savanna, for 2 hours without encountering any.
When tracking them you will only find them if they make sounds and that day they decided they have talked enough. We were already on our way back when we met another group and they pointed us in the right direction. It was magnificent to see them running around the floor and jumping across the trees overhead. Honestly, for me this was a better experience than the gorillas if for nothing else only because I didn’t expect anything.

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But of course we had another permit organized for the best place to do chimpanzee tracking…the Kibale NP. Also here we hiked for several hours back and forth but I let the pictures and sounds speak for themselves

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Close-by we did a community walk. First we walked through a swamp to see some monkeys and birds but since it was in the afternoon for me it was already quite hot and uncomfortable.
Next item on the itinerary was visiting a coffee plantation and witnessing the whole process. And for the first time in Uganda I had a flashback to the coffee ceremonies in Ethiopia (however, they are still more vivid).
Then our guide Mary lead us to the medicine man. He showed us what different plants he uses to heal the sick. Mary confirmed that she still uses him in the case she hasn’t enough money for the local hospital. For me it was a very interesting part because it reaches deep into the local culture.
From there we went to a man that makes juice, beer and gin out of bananas. I didn’t think the juice and beer were that great. I remember the beer tasting quite sour and nothing compared to the beer I know of. But the gin! The gin! That one was really good. I would say, even without being a gin expert, it was like the ones you can buy in shops (probably even better) 😀 Same as with the medicine man, he learned his trade from his father when he was 10 years old.
Last stop was a group of ladies that weave baskets etc. out of papyrus. I tried as well and got a lot of praise telling me I can stay here. But I understand that it can take up to 3 weeks to make a basket. I certainly took a long time for my tiny part. I bought a basket from them for roughly 4 USD. Let’s hope it survives till the end of the trip.
After supposedly 2 – 3 hours we were back only after 4 😉

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In the Rwenzori mountains we had to say goodbye to our driver Chris. He was not only a driver but a really good guide and knew what to do wherever we were. And as a saying in German goes: Nothing better will come afterwards (terrible translation).
Anyway, in order to give Chris the time to get back to Kampala and the new driver back, we decided to do a 3 days trek in the mountains. We paid around 400 USD per person (incl. park entrance fee of 70 USD), which includes guides and porters. The porters do an amazing job carrying not only our extra luggage but also the food uphill. They can carry up to 25kgs. Given that, and the layout of the trek, the route was way too easy. We pushed the guides to do the 4 days trek in 3 but they couldn’t according to company policies.
The first day we skipped the first camp since we reached that one already after 2 hours. We went to another one and it was a good choice because the view was amazing…if there wouldn’t have been the clouds and mist in the way 😉 The next day we pushed up towards a Liberia garden and even beyond, which isn’t included in the 3 day itinerary. I am glad we did because the vegetation up there is amazing. I cannot help but this is how I imagine the Congo to be. But we had to come back in order to reach our home for the night. I was a bit disappointed but I am also proud of myself that I didn’t lingered in that feeling for long.
During the night and next morning I was glad that we didn’t had such a long way back anymore because it rained like crazy. The tin sheets roof doubles the noise and I felt like hell broke loose. The small stream from the previous day now carried lots and lots of water. I am glad I listened to my intuition and we waited until exactly 11:11am before starting down. We came back without a drop of rain 😀

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With our new driver Simon we headed to Fort Portal yesterday evening. Initially, we wanted to reach Simliki Wildlife Resort but we understood that we won’t reach it in time. During the lockdown period a curfew between 7pm and 5:30am exists in Uganda.
Today we decided to extend a day here in order to relax. My thigh muscles are very appreciate of this. I have a strong sense of where they are thanks to the downhill walk yesterday.

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Half of our time in Uganda is behind us and I have the feeling we have seen a lot. There is still a lot to see and I am looking forward to the next parts. My mood is more stable and I appreciate this tremendously 😀

Not sure if I have mentioned it before but the fruits are fenomenal here. They taste so fresh and delicious. One can recognize the difference between ripening on the tree and during transport. Peter’s favorite, avocados, are huge here.

I hope you guys are enjoying the summer wherever you are!

Love,
Matthias