Lake Mburo National Park is located in the Kiruhura district in the western region of Uganda, approximately 240 kilometres (150 miles) west of Kampala, Uganda’s capital and largest city.
Lake Mburo National Park, being 370 km2 in size, is a compact gem of a park, located conveniently close to the highway that connects Kampala to the parks of western Uganda. It is the smallest of Uganda’s savannah-habitat national parks and underlain by ancient Precambrian metamorphic rocks which date back more than 500 million years.
Together with 13 other lakes in the area, Lake Mburo forms part of a 50km-long wetland system linked by a swamp. Five of these lakes lie within the park’s borders. Once covered by open savannah, the park now contains much woodland as there are no African Elephants to tame the vegetation. In the western part of the park, the savannah is interspersed with rocky ridges and forested gorges while patches of papyrus swamp and narrow bands of lush riparian woodland line many lakes. Lake Mburo is a very special place; every part of it is alive with variety, interest and colour supporting a wealth of wildlife and birds.
It is home to 350 bird species as well as Plains Zebra, Impala (the only park in Uganda with this antelope species), Common Eland, African Buffalo, Oribi, Defassa subspecies of Waterbuck, Leopard, Hippopotamus, Spotted Hyaena, Topi subspecies of Tsessebe, and Southern Reedbuck. Rumour has it that there might be one Lion left in the park.
Some of the avian gems of the park include the endemic Red-faced Barbet, Rufous-bellied Heron, Bateleur, Coqui Francolin, Grey Crowned Crane, Black-bellied Bustard, Red-headed Lovebird, Ross’s Turaco, Bare-faced Go-away-bird, Green Wood Hoopoe, Common Scimitarbill, White-headed Barbet, Nubian Woodpecker, Red-shouldered Cuckooshrike, Long-tailed Cisticola, Yellow-breasted Apalis, White-winged Tit and African Finfoot.
An absolute highlight of any visit to the park is a boat cruise on the beautiful and tranquil lake itself; a fantastic experience that guarantees great memories and awesome photographs.
The park is situated only 4 hours’ drive from Uganda’s capital, Kampala, and is most frequently visited by clients driving to Bwindi to see the Mountain Gorillas and acts as a great halfway stop.
Join one of our Uganda Safaris and Tours to experience this wonderful safari destination with us.
