Queen Elizabeth National Park

The park sits between lakes Edward and George, and fishing villages such as Kasenyi and Katunguru operate inside its boundaries under long-standing agreements, an arrangement that keeps people and wildlife in constant and sometimes uneasy proximity.

The Bakonzo of the Rwenzori foothills to the north have a distinct mountain culture built around the ranges they consider sacred, while the Banyaruguru occupy the crater lakes area and the Basongora herd cattle on the plains. Each offers cultural walks arranged through community groups.

The Kikorongo Women's Community and the Leopard Village project near Katunguru channel visitor fees into local schooling and into reducing human-wildlife conflict, which is a genuine issue here given how closely settlements and game ranges overlap.

The park was gazetted in 1952 as Kazinga National Park and renamed two years later after a visit by Queen Elizabeth II. Its wildlife populations were devastated during the Amin years and the instability that followed, and the recovery since the 1990s is one of the more encouraging conservation stories in East Africa.

Queen Elizabeth is Uganda's most visited park, and the Kazinga Channel linking lakes Edward and George is its centrepiece. Elephant, buffalo and hippo gather along its banks in numbers that make the boat trip the most productive two hours in the park.

The Ishasha sector in the south is famous for tree-climbing lions, which rest in fig trees through the heat of the day. Uganda kob, waterbuck, warthog and topi cover the grassland, chimpanzees live in the forested Kyambura Gorge, and leopard are present but seldom seen.

With more than 600 recorded species, Queen Elizabeth has the longest bird list of any Ugandan park and one of the longest of any protected area in Africa.

The Kazinga Channel produces African skimmer, pink-backed pelican, saddle-billed stork and vast numbers of waders. Papyrus gonolek and shoebill occur in the swampier margins, and the crater lakes hold flamingo in fluctuating numbers.

By Car

The park lies roughly 400 kilometres south-west of Kampala, a drive of six to seven hours on largely surfaced road via Mbarara. It combines naturally with Bwindi to the south and the Rwenzoris to the north.

By Air

Light aircraft serve Mweya and Kasese airstrips from Entebbe, taking about an hour and a half and removing a long day of driving from either end of a trip.

Rainfall, rather than temperature, defines the seasons. There are two wet periods, March to May and September to November, and two drier spells, December to February and June to August. Annual rainfall is around 1,000 millimetres, spread evenly enough that the park never fully dries out.

Rain rarely stops a game drive outright, arriving as heavy afternoon storms that clear within an hour or two, but the murram tracks soften quickly and the Ishasha sector becomes difficult after sustained rain.

Because the park lies on the equator, day length barely varies, so game drive timings stay much the same whatever month you visit. Binoculars matter more here than in most parks given the bird list.

Light, quick-drying clothing works far better here than heavier safari gear given the humidity.

June to August and December to February are the drier windows and the best for general game viewing. Tracks stay firm, animals concentrate near permanent water, and the Kazinga Channel cruise is at its most productive as game comes down to drink.

March to May and September to November bring the rains. Birding is at its absolute peak as migrants arrive, the landscape is green against the Rwenzoris, and rates fall noticeably.

The trade-off in the wet months is the Ishasha sector, where tracks become difficult and tree-climbing lion sightings grow less predictable.

Whichever window you choose, take the Kazinga Channel cruise in the afternoon rather than the morning, when the light is better and more game comes down to the water.

Whichever window you choose, take the Kazinga Channel cruise in the afternoon rather than the morning. The light is better, and considerably more game comes down to the water to drink through the second half of the day.

Hippo are the principal hazard, particularly around Mweya and the fishing villages, where they come ashore at night to graze. Do not walk between accommodation and the water after dark.

Elephant and buffalo are frequently on the roads. Stay in the vehicle away from designated points, and take a guide for the Kyambura Gorge descent, which is steep and slippery. Petty theft is rare but keep valuables secured in the busier lodges.

This is a malaria zone at moderate altitude, so prophylaxis is advised along with repellent at dawn and dusk. Uganda requires proof of yellow fever vaccination on entry.

Consult a travel clinic about typhoid, hepatitis A and B and tetanus. Do not swim in the lakes or channel: bilharzia is present and hippo and crocodile are numerous. The nearest referral hospital is at Kasese.