Murchison Falls National Park

About Murchison Falls National Park

Murchison Falls National Park in western Uganda covers some 3,840km2 (384,000 hectares) of savannah-woodland dotted with borassus palms, tracts of tropical forests, swathes of grassland, and wetland habitats.

Murchison Falls straddles both sides of the (Victoria) Nile River, which squeezes through an 8m (26ft) wide gorge and plunges with a thunderous roar into the 'Devil's Cauldron', creating a trademark rainbow beneath Murchison Falls. The mighty cascade drains the last of the river's energy, transforming it into a broad, placid stream that flows quietly across the rift valley floor into Lake Albert.

The national park forms part of the greater Murchison Falls Conservation Area, which includes Bugungu Wildlife Reserve, Budongo Forest Reserve and Karuma Falls Wildlife Reserve - a combined area of some 620,000 hectares.

The national park hosts elephant, giraffe, buffalo, hippo, Nile crocodile, lion, hyena, leopard and various antelope and other species.

No rhinos occur in the park, but visitors can spend a day tracking rhinos on foot in the neighbouring Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary. Chimpanzee trekking is another major highlight for many visitors in Budongo Forest, home to 600–700 chimpanzees.

The national park and greater Murchison Falls Conservation Area offer spectacular birding opportunities. Visitors flock to the delta area of the Nile River to see shoebills and a considerable variety of waterbird species. Other delights include black-headed gonolek, rock pratincole, brown twinspot, red-throated bee-eater, northern carmine bee-eater, blue swallow, Abyssinian ground hornbill, Beaudouin’s snake-eagle and great blue turaco.

The mythical Royal Mile area of Budongo offers white-thighed hornbill, Nahan’s francolin, Cassin’s and Savine’s spinetail, blue-throated roller, Ugandan woodland-warbler and chocolate-backed kingfisher.