Murchison Falls (July11-15, 2008)

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This past weekend I was able to make my way across the country of Uganda to see Murchison Falls. It borders Lake Albert and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Murhcison Falls National park is an amazing place. Besides the natural layout of the land, the animals species that exist within the park is susbstantial. You can find, Rothchild's Giraffes, elephans, hippos, lions, leopards, oreebis, water bucks, bush bucks, umpalas and many diverse primate and bird species. Murchison Falls is also home to some of the worlds
largest crocodiles.

A little bit about the history of the park...

Murchison Falls was first noted on the maps when an outbreak of Africa Sleeping Sickness hit western Uganda. This disease is spread by the large and painful biting flies called TseTse flies. Tourism in the falls has slowly begun to acquire world attention as a travel destination hot spot. However, as early as 2004 the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) was still seen in and around the park. During Idi Amin's reign, Pakwach lodge that lies within the main park itself, was heavily shelled during his campaign. The lodge suffered heavy causualites both in terms of the loss of lives and the amount of damage done to the actual building. It now stands as a concrete reminder of the devistation that occurred here in Uganda during the 1980s. In 2004 at the park,a British UN member, was shot in the leg by the LRA. After this attack, there was a public outcry from the people of Uganda. The man who was shot was a favourite of the people. As a consequence, Musevini, who is the current president of Uganda, beefed up security at the park.Now, hordes of tourists are flocking to this national park because of the ample tourist oppurtunities to be had in and around the park, such as fishing, chimp tracking, hiking, river rafting, game viewing,and bird watching.

Though the park cannot compete with the national parks in both Kenya and Tanzania, Murchison Falls has many admirable points that sets it apart from many other tourist attractions. Murchison Falls itself, is made up of two large waterfalls that are supplied from the Nile River from Jinja,Uganda (which is the source of the Nile). The park is home to the Rothchild's Giraffe. These giraffes are said to be the most beautiful of any giraffe species because of the distinct square patterns on their bodies. Under constant supervision by the armed forces here in Uganda, the animals in the park are able to live in considerable peace from poaching.The cleanliness and upkeep of the park make game viewing enjoyable and a nice break from the dirt, pollution and garbage in most Ugandan cities.

My trip....

July 11 - On Friday, Olivia and I were picked up at our home in Mbale at 6am. Our tour group consisted of 5 people: Myself, Olivia, two guys (Robert and Hart) and Joyanne. We are all at the moment working for NGOs in Mbale. Olivia and I were able to tag along with Robert, Hart and Joyanne for the trip. The start of out trip had us driving the five hours to Kampala where we made a quick stop for a bite to eat at Garden City (the biggest Mzungo mall in Kampala). At breakfast I had the best cup of coffee I think I have ever had. It was a latte macchiatto. I was in a permanent state of bliss for the rest of the day. Half way to Murchison Falls we stopped at a Rhino sanctuary. During Amin's era, the abundant Rhino population was desimated for their ivory tusks. The sanctuary is now home to the only Rhino's in all of Uganda. There are 8 in total. Each Rhino was imported from different parts of the world for rehabilitation into the wild. The rhinos are under constant 24hr supervision. We had to trek for about half an hour to find these beautiful beasts. Though they were lazing in the shade, there were no holds barred between us and them. If they had wanted to charge us, there would have been nothing we could have done to stop them.

July 12 - On Saturday, our morning started off with a chimp trek at a primate conservatory park just within the national park. However, we were unable to see any of the chimpanzees that Jane Goodall has worked closely with. Nonetheless, the 4 hour hike through the jungle showed us many interesting things. We were glad that we went. That afternoon, we were taken to the top of Murchison Falls. Unlike many waterfalls in Canada that are ropped off with barrriers to prevent unsuspecting individuals from being swept into the falls, Murchison is completely open to the public. You can walk right up to the water at the very cusp of the
falls and run your hands through it. . It was a very beautiful sight. Another interesting fact is that the rocks surrounding the falls is almost completely made out of quarts and other minerals that shine like gold and silver. From the air, the falls look almost to bright for the eyes to see.

Back at the Red Chillis Hostel, a huge mzungu hang out, Olivia and I were able to relax with a good beer. For dinner, I HAD A BACON CHEESE BURGER! Not as good as at home but it filled the crave gap just a little. But during that evening, I discovered that, my coloring and looks attract alot of attention from East Idian, Nepalese and other Asian men; well, at least here in Uganda.Oliva is also half asian. She and I were seriously being hit on my a group of Nepalese men from the UN....?! One of the guys tried for an entire evening to get my undivided attention. His persistence was frankly amusing. He kept trying to complement me on my looks (thanks mom and dad!). He also would not stop trying to buy be a drink. But thanks to the really cool guys attending the bar/restaurant of the hostel, I was saved repeatedly by having the drink in my hand constantly refilled. I was drinking african tea all evening, I was a happy camper. By the way, african tea is just ugandan tea, which is a very light and flowery tea, mixed with ginger and spiced milk. It is my favourite drink right now.

July 13 - On Sunday morning for breakfast, I HAD TONS OF BACON AND FRENCH TOAST! As for our tour, we went out on two game drives. One in the morining and one in the evening. This day led me to take almost 400 photos.Ya I admit, I was a little trigger happy. I was a little disappointed when I was unable to see any lions or leopards. However, I saw alot of other animals.That evening at the hostel, the Nepal UN guy tried his second attempt to hit on me. Abject failure met his last and final attempt.

Jul 14 - Monday morning we were taken on a boat cruise up Murchison river to see the falls up close. Well it was not really up close because of the currents but it was close enough to feel power of the rapids. Monday afternoon was supposed to open day for us to just relax at the hostel. Unhappy with this plan, Oliva, myself and Joyanne decided to go fishing. Andie Ault, a man from Zimbabwe, is currently setting up a guided fishing tour of the falls and river. He took us out for an afternoon of fishing. The first spot he took us was almost right up too the falls in a spot called the "Gorge". Here, we started fishing for bait fish. They look like westcoast mackerel but are a fresh water fish. I do not remember what they are exactly called but its something that starts with an A....These fish were then tied on to a line, alive, and cast out. We had two lines going, both with 50 lbs tess, one floating at the top of the water and one at the bottom. Once the lines were out, we just sat there and waited for a bite. Nothing happened. After 45minutes of waiting, Andy moved us to another spot. This was where the magic happened. I was tired with sitting and waiting, so I began to cast and jigg with the live bait on the line. After two separate casts, I hit gold. Unfortuneatly, I did something really bad, I forgot to flip the switch that allows the fish to run with the line. Ya, I know, stupid eh. But I was able to hold on to the reel while the fish was doing its up most best to pull me into the water. The fish took out the entire line on the reel twice. After about 30 minutes, we were able to get a
good look at the fish. It was a white nile perch. Andy's reply to seeing the fish was " Holy S$*T!" I was able to get the fish right up to the boat and near the sand bank that the boat was landed in. I handed over the rod to Andy and hopped out of the boat. He handed the rod back to me and went to crab the line so he could grab the perch. But as he was about to make the attempt to grab it, out of the corner of our eyes, we saw the biggest croc we have ever seen at the park come out of the water no less than 4 feet away from us. Andy had a gaff that he used to beat at the croc...?!!!!!!!!! I guess it was enough to deter it away from us and the boat. Once we saw him swim away we quickly grabbed the fish and harnessed
into a net to be weighed. The perch weigh roughly 40 kilos. But I cannot be certain how much he weighed because Andy could barely lift the fish out of the water enough for the scale to steady itself out. It was exhilarating. The sky was thundering, the fear of the crocodile and the roaring sound the falls together was amazing. After we released the fish, I had to sit down and rest. My body was shaking from the fight with the fish and from my close encounter with the croc. It was bloody amazing.

July 15- On our last day at the park, I got see a pride of lion cubs. It was a short lived thrill that lasted no more than a mintue. It was just long enough to pull off to quick shots of them. Also, we were able to the Pakwach lodge. It must have been an amazing place in its hayday. But as it stands right now, you can still see the reminants of the bullets holes in the brick that still stands.


I am really glad that I went on this trip. I was begining to feel the full affects of homesickness. I have been in Mbale a month and half now and finally got to go somewhere new. Mbale is great but it was getting a little boring.

Up next, Sippi Falls and a trip to Kampala.....stay tuned. Also, check out the new photos.

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