One of the hopes that we had in coming to Uganda was to see a little bit more of the countryside on this our third visit to the country.

On the two previous trips we had spent the majority of our time in the capital city, enjoying many varied experiences of ministry opportunity, but all while remaining within the confines of Uganda’s biggest metropolis.

With everyone on break still at the start of the year, we jumped at the chance offered us to get a three-day trip to Murchison Falls National Park this past weekend.

Some of the photos I managed to capture on my iPhone are here. The one above is of a man sitting contemplating the thunderous falls where the Victoria Nile presses through a narrow gorge and spills 43 metres (141 feet) into the river below.

First stop on our trip to Murchison Falls was at the Ziwa White Rhino Sanctuary, which is a big park where they have been saving the white rhinos from extinction. Below is a Kori, a twenty-three year old female with her latest baby hiding beside her.

Next we headed to the “top of the falls” where we experienced the mighty waters with its typical rainbows.

We also took some drives seeing all “The Big Five”, except the lions who were on holiday somewhere during our visit to their park. We did have three leopard sightings, elephants, giraffe, water buffalo, all sorts of animals from the antelope family, the hilarious warthogs (“pumba” as they are known locally!), mischievous baboons, and a multitude of birds of varying sizes and colours.

Then there was a visit to the “bottom of the falls” in an unexpected wee boat-for-two trip with our personal guide/captain. Hippos, magnificent birds and Nile crocodiles aplenty.

Our final excursion within Murchison was a three-hour trek inside the 325 square kilometres of Budongo Forest, looking for chimpanzees. We were warned frequently we might see none, but, with the LORD’s kindness, we hit a bonanza of chimp activity in the trees, as well as on the ground, and the sound of their chatter and screeching was everywhere. A marvellous finale to our journey to the National Park.

We totally recommend the professional and entirely trustworthy guide services of Ancient Africa Safaris for any of your wildlife and cultural experiences in Uganda (and beyond).