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Size: 3,840km2
Murchison Falls National Park lies at the northern end of the Albertine Rift Valley, where the sweeping Bunyoro escarpment tumbles into vast, palm-dotted savanna. First gazetted as a game reserve in 1926, it is Uganda’s largest and oldest conservation area, hosting 76 species of mammals and 451 birds.
The park is bisected by the Victoria Nile, which plunges 45m over the remnant rift valley wall, creating the dramatic Murchison Falls, the centerpiece of the park and the final event in an 80km stretch of rapids. The mighty cascade drains the last of the river’s energy, transforming it into a broad, placid stream that flows quietly across the rift valley floor into Lake Albert. This stretch of river provides one of Uganda’s most remarkable wildlife spectacles. Regular visitors to the riverbanks include elephants, giraffes and buffaloes; while hippos, Nile crocodiles and aquatic birds are permanent residents.
Notable visitors to the park include Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt, Ernest Hemingway and several British royals.
Murchison Falls National Park gives one of Uganda’s most breathtaking attractions. Here experience the river Nile squeezes through an 8m wide gorge and plunges with a thunderous roar into the “Devil’s Cauldron”, creating a trademark rainbow.
Murchison Falls National Park also known as Kabarega Falls is one of Uganda’s first national parks gazetted in 1927 and today is the largest park in Uganda covering an area of 3840 sq km / 1483 sq miles. This national park covers 3,893 kilometres, making it Uganda’s largest overall protected area. The safe-guarded savannah is blessed with over 144 mammals,556 bird species,51 reptiles, and 51 Amphibians. The park is bisected by the Victoria Nile, which plunges 45m over the remnant rift valley wall, creating the dramatic Murchison Falls, the centerpiece of the park and the final event in an 80km stretch of rapids. The mighty cascade drains the last of the river’s energy, transforming it into a broad, placid stream that flows quietly across the rift valley floor into Lake Albert. This stretch of river provides one of Uganda’s most remarkable wildlife spectacles.
Why the name?: the falls are named after Sir Roderick Murchison who was the president of the British Geographical Society in 1864.
- Gorilla Tracking
- Gorilla Habituation
- Community Visits
- Birding
- Forests/Nature Walk
