Kazinga Channel Queen Elizabeth National Park

Kazinga channel is located in Queen Elizabeth national park in Western Uganda. It is 40kilometers long and connects Lake George in the East and Lake Edward in the West. Queen Elizabeth national park is considered the second-largest national park in Uganda and one of the most visited tourist destinations in the region.

The Kazinga channel lies within the Mweya peninsular and the Kasenyi plains. This is the best destination in Queen Elizabeth national park where tourists can spot tree-climbing lions. Wild animals and birds can be seen here and Kazinga channel is also known to be the great concentration of numerous Nile crocodiles and hippopotami.

The Kazinga channel is mostly fed by streams coming from the Rwenzori mountains. The area was recognized as a RAMSAR site and the best place for seeing large populations of elephants, the rare sitatunga, antelopes, oribis, bushbucks, and African cape buffalos as well as zebras among others.

Wildlife Adventure in Uganda

Activities on the Kazinga channel

Boat cruise

This is one of the major activities carried out on the Kazinga channel. During the 2 hour boat cruise, tourists are provided with opportunities of viewing a lot of wildlife grazing on the shores of the channel as well as the water animals like the hippopotamus and crocodiles. Elephants can be seen taking water as well as other animals resting on the shores. Boat cruises are operated twice a day, morning as well as afternoon.

The morning boat cruise begins at 9 am, and 11 am, and the afternoon session begins at exactly 1 pm, 3 pm, and 5 pm. Two boat rides are operated at the channel, one is under the Uganda Wildlife Authority, and another is by Mweya safari lodge. Both the morning and afternoon cruise provides one opportunity of getting closer to nature at their convenience hence providing the best opportunities for photography because of the scenic views.

These cruises are operated by well-experienced staff alongside professional ranger guides from the Uganda Wildlife Authority(UWA). Tourists should take note that this is an arranged activity that needs reservation so can be done with the help of Pamba Tours Uganda Ltd on time to avoid inconveniences.

Queen Elizabeth National Park

Game viewing

A lot of wildlife is found along the Kazinga channel and including water animals like hippos and crocodiles. Other animals include elephants, oribis, antelopes, bushbucks, and African cape buffalos. During your visit to the Kazinga channel, take time off to see these animals in the park to make your trip more adventurous.

Bird watching

There is a wetland on the Kazinga channel and this is a favorite place for spotting different birds for example the Fish Eagle, Pied kingfisher, Yellow-billed stork, African skimmer, black bee-eater, Long-tailed cormorant, African spoonbills, Martial eagle, and papyrus gonolek among others. Bird lovers are therefore encouraged to carry with their binoculars and good cameras with enough storage to take as many photos as they can as well as notebooks for recording down important information.

Fishing

Tourists to the Kazinga channel get an opportunity to visit a fishing village nearby as they spend the day with local fishermen carrying out the activity as well as interacting with them and learning different methods used in fishing. You can also participate in the fishing and at the end of the day enjoy a delicious meal prepared by the locals of the area.

Cultural connection

This helps the tourists to freely connect to the local people of the area as it involves visiting the local community, learning about how they go about their daily activities, and how they manage to live in this particular region for so many years.

Uganda Wildlife Safaris Tour

Lake George

Tourists can opt to visit Lake George on the Kazinga channel and from here they can engage in boat launches, and game drives where they can see many animals like buffalos, hyenas, monkeys, warthogs, baboons, and antelopes among others

Best Time to Visit Kazinga Channel

Kazinga channel time to be visited is during the dry months that is from January to March and again from May to September. During this dry season of the year, the park is too hot and this forces most of the animals to push close to the waters of the Kazinga channel as most of them be looking for enough water. Tourists are therefore given the chance to see as many animals as they can.

Where to Stay Around Kazinga Channel?

Different accommodation facilities can be chosen for the client depending on his budget for example ranging from either luxury, midrange, and best budget. This can be done with the help of your tour operator. Examples of accommodation facilities include Mweya safari lodge, Katara lodge, Kyambura gorge lodge, The Bush lodge, Marafiki safari lodge, and Kasenyi safari camp among others.

Kazinga Wilderness Camp

How to Get to Kazinga Channel?

By Road

Kazinga channel is located in the Northern part of Queen Elizabeth national park and is an 8hours drive from Uganda’s capital city Kampala. This route passes via Masaka Mbarara Bushenyi arriving at Queen Elizabeth national park.

Tourists can also opt to use the Mityana, Mubende, Fort Portal, and Kasese routes which also take approximately 6hours to arrive at the park. A 4×4 wheel drive vehicle is highly recommended for this journey to make it a more successful and comfortable one.

By Air

Chartered or scheduled flights can be arranged and booked with the help of the tour operator from either Entebbe International airport or Kajjansi airfield to any of the airstrips within and near the park for example Kasese airstrip or Mweya as well as Kasenyi airstrip. This helps to save the tourist much time which may be spent on a long drive on the road.