16-day cycling trip in Uganda: mountain biking through the west

The moment you set foot on Ugandan soil you meet the good humour of the country. The customs officer takes the time to welcome you warmly, and you feel more than welcome straight away. It is a fine start to this trip through Uganda. Depending on your arrival time, you can spend the afternoon recovering from the flight. Relax on the nearby beach or by the pool at the 2 Friends Beach Hotel in Entebbe. This easy-going town is the former capital of Uganda and a good place to settle in.

Bringing your own mountain bike? You have this afternoon or the following morning to assemble it. The Ugandan team is glad to help. If you are hiring a mountain bike, it will be ready for you the next morning and set up to your own preference first.

Meals: not included
Accommodation: 2 Friends Beach Hotel

Today is a long transfer and a chance to test the bikes. The Ugandan team, your guide and driver are ready for you. There are several stops along the way. If you see something you would like to stop for, tell the driver and he will happily pull over. After a warm welcome at the accommodation there is time to test your mountain bike, so that you are well prepared for the riding that begins tomorrow.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: The Coffee Lodge at Clarke Farm

After a quiet start to the day with a cup of freshly made local coffee, you get on the bike for the first time in Uganda and leave the lodge behind. Before long you are in a landscape that keeps changing: wide tea fields, coffee bushes and dense forest follow one another. The route takes quiet roads and tracks through deep green country. You pass small settlements where life largely takes place outdoors. People look at you with curiosity, greet you, and children often run alongside you for a stretch, laughing.

There is fresh fruit to try along the route: ripe mangoes and sweet bananas, straight from the land and full of flavour. At the end of the day you arrive at Kyaninga Lodge, set on a hill above a crater lake.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Kyaninga Royal Cottages or Rwenzori Guesthouse

Fort Portal lies at the foot of the Rwenzori Mountains, also known as the Mountains of the Moon. This range lies in one of the greenest and most fertile regions of Uganda. The route passes a series of crater lakes and runs through varied country with banana plantations, wide tea fields and small farms. Around midday you have lunch out in the green landscape.

After lunch you descend towards Kibale Forest National Park. This tropical rainforest is known for its biodiversity and is home to chimpanzees, colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, olive baboons and many other primates. The day ends with a Banana Experience. What exactly that involves we will keep as a surprise. One thing is certain: it makes an enjoyable end to the day.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Bweza Lodge or Kibale Forest Lodge

You decide how to spend this rest day. Take it easy at the lodge and in the green surroundings, or choose one of the optional excursions this region offers.

Bigodi Community and Wetland Walk: if you would like to combine nature and culture, you can visit Bigodi. The local community protects the four-square-kilometre Magombe swamp here, which has become one of the finest wetlands in Uganda. On a walk through the swamp and the village you see the range of plants and animals in the area. Birdwatchers can spot the papyrus gonolek, the great blue turaco and the white-winged warbler, among others. Several species of monkey are also seen regularly. You also meet daily life in the village. With a local guide you visit small farms, meet a traditional herbalist and see how baskets are woven using age-old techniques. The proceeds of this excursion go directly to the local community and to conservation.

Semuliki National Park and the Sempaya hot springs: another excursion takes you to Semuliki National Park on the border with Congo. This relatively little-known park is part of the wider Ituri rainforest and is among the most biodiverse areas in Uganda. You walk through lowland rainforest with hundreds of tree species and an exceptional range of birds. More than a hundred bird species found here occur nowhere else in Uganda. The high point of the visit is the Sempaya Hot Springs, where boiling water rises from deep underground and steam drifts up among the trees. The active “female” spring sometimes throws water up to two metres high, while the quieter “male” spring forms a natural geothermal pool. These hot springs are a result of the geological activity of the East African Rift and have an important cultural meaning for the Bamba and Bakonjo communities.

Chimpanzee trekking in Kibale Forest National Park: for many travellers a chimpanzee trek is the high point of a visit to Kibale Forest National Park. With experienced rangers you head into the rainforest in search of one of the largest populations of wild chimpanzees in Africa. You often hear their loud calls and the cracking of branches before you see them. Once you meet the chimpanzees in their natural habitat, you see how they communicate, play and move through the treetops. Their social behaviour and strikingly human expressions make this an encounter that stays with you.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Bweza Lodge or Kibale Forest Lodge
Optional activities: not included

• Bigodi Community and Wetland Walk: EUR 50.00 pp
• Semuliki National Park and hot springs: EUR 100.00 pp
• Chimpanzee trek in Kibale Forest: EUR 250.00 pp

After breakfast you get on the bike for a varied ride towards Queen Elizabeth National Park. The first kilometres follow a surfaced road through Kibale Forest National Park. With luck you will still see baboons at the roadside as you gradually leave the rainforest behind. Before long the forest gives way to rolling country with wide tea plantations, small farms and views over the green hills. After about 20 kilometres you leave the surfaced road and continue on the region’s characteristic red unsurfaced roads.

Depending on the route chosen, you ride past some of the crater lakes for which this region is known. You pass small villages where daily life largely takes place outdoors. Children run alongside you and greet you with a cheerful “Mzungu!”, while residents wave. In Rwimi it is time for a well-earned break. Over a drink in a local café you wait for the transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park.

Late in the afternoon you arrive at your lodge in the middle of the national park. This is one of the richest wildlife areas in Uganda and home to elephant, buffalo, hippo, Uganda kob, a great many bird species and the tree-climbing lions.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Irungu or Tembo Lodge

In the morning you can join an optional chimpanzee trek in the Kyambura Gorge. This gorge, more than 100 metres deep, forms a striking green fissure in the open savannah of Queen Elizabeth National Park. The tropical rainforest that fills it is a complete contrast to the savannah around it. With experienced rangers you look for the chimpanzees that live here in the wild. Alongside them you may come across red-tailed monkeys, colobus monkeys and many bird species. Around the crater lakes hidden in the rainforest, with luck, flamingos can be seen.

In the afternoon there is a game drive through Queen Elizabeth National Park. This park is among the richest wildlife areas in Uganda and offers a good chance of seeing elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard and many other species. Rhino do not occur here, but you can come across four of the Big Five.

During the safari you also visit the salt lakes and meet a local community living within the boundaries of the national park. That gives you a sense not only of the landscape but also of the lives of the people who call this area home.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Irungu or Tembo Lodge
Optional activities: not included

• Extra game drive (in our bus; the roof cannot be opened because of the bike rack), only possible if no chimpanzee trek is made: EUR 75.00 pp
• Chimpanzee trek, Kyambura Gorge or Kalinzu Forest: EUR 200.00 pp
• Game drive in an open vehicle:
  • 1 person EUR 275.00
  • 2 people EUR 175.00 pp
  • 3 people EUR 145.00 pp
  • 4 people EUR 125.00 pp

After an early breakfast you get on the bike for a short ride to the departure point of the boat safari on the Kazinga Channel. There is a good chance you will come face to face with elephant or other wildlife along the way. The Kazinga Channel is the natural link between Lake George and Lake Edward and is among the richest waters for wildlife in Africa. During the boat safari you pass banks where hippo, crocodile, buffalo and elephant gather to drink or cool off. Watch the surface of the water: if you see small bubbles rising, there is a good chance a hippo is lying just below. Hundreds of bird species live here too, so there is a great deal for birdwatchers.

After the boat safari you get back on the mountain bike for perhaps the most remarkable riding of the trip. You ride straight across the savannah of Queen Elizabeth National Park, something few people will experience. Along the way you may come face to face with elephant, buffalo, Uganda kob, warthog and, with luck, the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha. Safety comes first, of course. You are accompanied by experienced guides and park rangers, and the support vehicle is always close by, so you can take in this ride with peace of mind. Cycling among African wildlife gives an adrenaline rush like no other and is without doubt one of the high points of the trip.

Does the idea of riding through the national park feel like too much? That is no problem. You can also cover this section in the support vehicle, so that you still take in the landscape and have the same chance of seeing wildlife along the way.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Enjojo Lodge or Embogo Lodge

The landscape slowly changes from flat to mountainous. You leave the steppe behind and by the end of the day you are riding through rainforest. First you ride through several villages and past wide tea plantations. The number of shades of green will take you by surprise. The cheerful people you meet along the way give you a real lift for the rest of the day, and you will need it, because the climbing begins after that on a series of unsurfaced roads. Over the misty hills of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park you ride to Buhoma. This impenetrable forest, with its wealth of plant species, is the habitat of the mountain gorillas.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Ride 4 a Woman Lodge or Buhoma Community Camp

You leave Buhoma and head deeper into the hill country of south-western Uganda, where endless green slopes, dense forest and wide views follow one another. The route runs on quiet unsurfaced tracks and roads. You ride past wide tea plantations and through small communities. On this stage you also ride part of the Batwa Trail, a route through the former home area of the Batwa, the original inhabitants of the Bwindi region. Because every group is different, the guides match the route to the level and wishes of the participants, so that everyone gets the most out of the day without missing anything of the landscape or the character of the Bwindi area.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Gorilla Mist Camp or Bakiga Lodge

After breakfast you get back on the mountain bike for a fine stage through southern Uganda. The first kilometres take you through Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Once you leave Bwindi you continue on quiet unsurfaced roads through varied country of green hills, fields and small villages. The last part of the route becomes more adventurous. You follow narrow paths and quiet trails along a stream, with short climbs and descents.

Because the support vehicle cannot reach this section, you have the landscape entirely to yourself and it feels as though you are riding through it alone. The support vehicle meets you at an agreed point, where lunch is served. After lunch there is a transfer to Lake Mulehe, one of the finest lakes in south-western Uganda. If the technical section appeals to you less, or you would like to take it more gently, you can cover this part in the support vehicle. You then rejoin the group for lunch and continue towards Lake Mulehe.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Lake Mulehe Gorilla Lodge or Lake Mutanda Resort

You are free to spend this day as you wish. You might choose to stay at the lodge, looking out over the landscape with nothing to do.

If you are after something exceptional, you can join an optional gorilla trek today. What you experience here is hard to put into words. “A unique and unforgettable experience” does not cover half of it. It is certainly not cheap, but as far as we are concerned it is worth every euro.

The mountain gorilla is an endangered species and now lives in the wild in only three countries. Uganda is one of them. On the gorilla trek you head into the rainforest accompanied by five armed rangers. That is for good reason, because other wildlife lives here alongside the gorillas, and animals can react unpredictably where young or food are concerned. You are in good hands, though. Up steep slopes and through thick undergrowth you follow the rangers, who cut a path with machetes where needed. The trek is hard work: steep, demanding, exciting and warm because of the long clothing you wear.

After a time of climbing and descending you come across all sorts of things along the way: small monkeys, elephant footprints and much more. Then, at last, the first gorilla. You stand just five metres away, face to face with a remarkable and peaceable animal. You feel the adrenaline, but no fear. Once you have put on your face mask, you spend an hour with the gorillas. You watch young gorillas play while a silverback keeps a calm eye on everything. Now and then another gorilla makes itself heard. Before you know it the hour is over. Full of impressions you make your way back down. Back at the lodge, the experience slowly finds its place.

Would you rather fill the day differently? Then pay an optional visit to the Batwa. These original inhabitants of the forest share their knowledge and stories on a guided walk. You learn how they lived in harmony with the forest for centuries, how they hunted, gathered food and used plants and herbs. It gives a deeper insight into the relationship between people and nature. Since the rainforest became a protected area, the Batwa have lived outside their original home. By taking visitors through their traditions they keep their culture alive.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Lake Mulehe Gorilla Lodge or Lake Mutanda Resort
Optional activities: not included

• Gorilla trek EUR 800.00 pp
• Batwa excursion EUR 50.00 pp

You ride from one fine lake to another. Along the way you have views of the volcanic Virunga Mountains, which straddle the borders of Uganda, Rwanda and Congo. The route starts on quiet unsurfaced roads. You then ride a few kilometres on a quiet tarmac road, before returning to unsurfaced tracks for the last part of the stage towards Lake Bunyonyi.

Lake Bunyonyi is the second deepest lake in Africa and is known for its clear water, its 29 green islands and the hills that surround it. Depending on your energy, you can choose to ride a further stretch along the lake before boarding the boat. From the shore you sail to Habuharo Island. As you glide over the still water you are surrounded by steep green hills and the many islands that make Lake Bunyonyi what it is.

On Habuharo Island time seems to stand still for a moment. This quiet, wooded island is the place to unwind after a good day’s riding and to take in the silence, the surroundings and the view over the lake.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Heritage Lodge, Habuharo Island

Your legs have earned some rest today. After breakfast your bike is loaded onto the vehicle and you set off for Lake Mburo National Park. On the way you stop at Igongo, a cultural centre. Have a look at the traditional Bariisa and Abahiingi homesteads, used for cattle keeping and arable farming. It has something of an open-air museum about it. You can also visit the cultural museum, with its collection of crafts and historical photographs.

Once you arrive at your accommodation it is good to stretch your legs after the drive, and exploring the surroundings is certainly an option. Would you rather take in the panoramic view over Lake Mburo National Park? That is possible too. Your accommodation sits on top of a hill, with a view over the national park for kilometres.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Hyena Hill or Kigarama Wilderness Lodge
Optional activities: not included

• Visit to the Igongo cultural museum: EUR 30.00 pp

You finish the last riding day of your trip through Uganda in a particular way. With an experienced ranger you take a cycling safari through Lake Mburo National Park, the only national park in Uganda where you can ride among the wildlife like this. Riding quiet sandy roads and savannah tracks, there is a good chance you will come face to face with zebra, giraffe, impala, eland, warthog and many other antelope species. Without the sound of an engine you take in the landscape differently and see the park at surprisingly close range.

Along the way you ride to the Kazuma Viewpoint, with its view over the wide savannah and the lakes of Lake Mburo National Park. It is a fine place to take in everything the trip has brought one more time.

After the ride you take a relaxed boat safari on Lake Mburo. From the water you see hippo, crocodile and a great many water birds in their natural habitat. It is a quiet close to a trip full of encounters with the landscapes and wildlife of Uganda.

Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner
Accommodation: Hyena Hill or Kigarama Wilderness Lodge

After breakfast you set off for Entebbe. Along the way the landscape slowly changes and, as you get closer to the city, the traffic builds. That can mean some delay, but it gives you one more chance to watch Uganda go by. If you have a late evening flight home, you will be taken straight to the airport.

Meals: breakfast