Queen Elizabeth national park is one of the most bio diverse reserves in the world with a wide range of habitats of savannah grasslands, crater lakes, dense papyrus swamps, forests, mammals, birds and so much more. The park derives its name from former Queen Elizabeth of England.
Katara safari lodge
Katara safari lodge is situated at the edge of the Great Rift Valley overlooking the mountains of the moon ranges, savannah plans of Queen Elizabeth national park and the magnificent Lake Edward and just 16 kilometres from Katunguru gate of the park.
Accommodation at Katara safari lodge is offered in 8 luxurious grass thatched cottages with wooden floors and canvas that can be folded for uninterrupted spectacular views. The cottages have a double bed and a four poster star bed that can be pushed to the outside veranda if you want to sleep directly looking up to the amazing African stars.
The family cottage has got two bedrooms with shared bathroom facilities and a living room. One bedroom has a double bed and the other has two twin beds. It also comes with two hummocks and a couch on its private sitting area.
The lodge is well furnished with local materials got from renewable resources; they heat water using solar heaters, use ultra low flush toilets, extensive rain water harvesting and so much more.
Bird watching
Queen Elizabeth national park is home to over 600 species of birds recorded some of which are endemic to this area, Katara lodge is locate in approximate location for birding and some birdlife such as large brown eagles, long tailed mouse birds, barbets, fire finches and fly catchers are often seen within the lodge premises.
Other activities within the park
Game drives
The common activity done at Queen Elizabeth national park is Wildlife viewing and this can be done by taking a game drive or using a balloon safari. The best time for wildlife viewing is early morning or late evening so that you can see nocturnal animals like hyenas and hippos going to hunt and graze.
Chimpanzee trekking
The stunning Kyambura gorge is a section of Queen Elizabeth national park also known as “valley of apes”. The underground forest with a very impressing landscape is home to chimpanzees, red tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, olive baboons, vervet monkeys and so much more. it also harbours various species of forest birds like blue headed bee eater, African fin foot, bar tailed Godwit, Martial eagle, African skimmer and lesser plus greater flamingo among the rest. Chimpanzee trekking can be done at the gorge early morning or afternoon hours.
How to get there
Queen Elizabeth national park can be accessed within 5-6 hours drive from Kampala or Entebbe, for those not interested in long journeys, they can fly to Mweya airstrip from Entebbe international airport or Kajjansi airfield.
Best time to visit
Queen Elizabeth national park can be visited all year round but some months are better than other months that is from June to August and December to February when the animals are concentrated on water catchment points and vegetation is not thick making it easy to spot wildlife.
