Ugandan Road Trip and an Expensive Waterfall

Once again I continue my early morning rises to depart for my flight from Entebbe to Kihihi. Departur Lucky for me the weigh machine was not working properly and my bag was passed through. The plane only seated about 12 people plus the pilots and we were once again accompanied to the plane by airline officials. Carryon bags were left at the back of the aircraft so make sure you have your cameras and whatever you need whilst the flight is in progress. The airline offers you bottled water as you board and some mint candies. Most hotels will offer you a packed meal to take with you on the plane to eat. There isn't really any opportunity to buy any food from the airport except for duty free inside or one overpriced coffee shop, which is not in the same area as the departure area and means you must enter and have your luggage scanned and then again to enter the departure check-in although the doors are about 5m apart and both security guards can see each other.

Once on board we had an 80 minute flight with a drop-off after 1 hour. You will travel over Lake Victoria, grasslands/woodlands and then over Queen Elizabeth NP. We arrived at Kihihi Airport, which is a small grass/dirt runway with actually a permanent building that house toilets and a waiting area for guests. I got off the plane in a little bit of a daze and was met by my driver who collected my bag and off we went to the 4WD. I was driven alone to Bwindi which is a 90 minute drive from Kihihi. The road at times is very "African" and you will soon learn the African catchphrase that their roads provide you with an “African massage”. I sat in the front seat and kept up a constant stream of conversation with my driver as I enjoyed the scenery and took photos and videos.

I thought the drive was a great way for fly-in tourists to see that Bwindi and the gorilla trekking is not the only part of Uganda that they should encounter.  It is only too often travel industry tries to “protect” tourists and especially people staying in more upscale, high-end lodges/hotels from what is the reality in most parts of Africa. This includes inadequate infrastructure, lack of public services and poverty. It is obviously nice to stay in lovely accommodations but it doesn’t reflect the reality right outside the doorstep of these properties. One of the reasons I wanted to stay at the Sanctuary lodge was because it was inside the Bwindi National Park which could also potentially offer me the opportunity to see gorillas within the lodge's grounds. The reality is that this rarely happens and that the lodge is about 500m from the entrance to the national park so don't let this be a deciding factor. The location is handy when it comes to walking to the morning gorilla trek and also if you want to do the waterfall walk (more about that later).

I arrived at the Sanctuary’s Gorilla Forest Lodge and was warmly welcomed by the manager and assistant manager who sat me down and went through my program for the next three days. I was then shown to my room, which was one of the furthest away from the communal parts of the lodge. I was in The Warbler Room, which had two double size beds, wardrobe, seat, a large bathroom with a shower made out of stone and a separate large room with a bath that had candles for light. I was hoping to test out the bath after one of my treks as a great way to relax and unwind after a long walk. After unpacking I made my way down to the communal area.

I was welcomed back to the dining area to enjoy a 3 course lunch that was all inclusive of house wines (cask wine and some bottles), local beers and soft drinks. The lodge was not busy at all with only 5 guests for the evening, which was a little bit surprising seeing that January/February offered a small window of opportunity to see the gorillas after the rainy season and before it started again in March. Lunch was a simple affair. The food was plentiful and the view over the front lawns and over the valley of the Bwindi National Park were lovely. The staff were very accommodating and attentive. After finishing my meal I was reminded that I had organized an afternoon activity to see the local waterfall.

Unbeknownst to myself these activities cost extra and I was charged US$70 to do this. I was a little perplexed that there was such a large charge for a 4 hour return walk to see a waterfall. I was told that there is a $40 to cover the cost of the ranger/guide and the two tourist police that accompany anyone going into the forest and there is a $30 fee charged by the lodge. I told the manager that I hope the waterfall is better than Victoria Falls, which only charges $25 for entry. Not sure if that went down too well but I was pissed off that the cost wasn’t discussed before I choose to go on the walk (thinking that a walk wouldn’t cost anything) and that the price was so high.

The walk was a hot and humid affair. I was accompanied by a ranger/guide and by two armed tourist police (I believe more for ceremonial/employment value than safety). The walk was pretty easy with some gradual inclines that were quite long. We managed to get to the first waterfall in about an hour. There is the opportunity to swim at the first pool at the base of the waterfall. Seeing that I was with three guys I wasn’t really comfortable to jump in by myself. I was hoping to sample the water which is classed as the cleanest water by the Ugandan water board but my ranger strongly suggested against it. Seeing I was walking tomorrow and for an unknown time I thought it was best I follow his suggestion. By the time we reached the third waterfall it was about 30 minutes later after the prerequisite photo/videos were taken. We spent about 10 minutes in the cool of the waterfall’s spray before returning back to the lodge.

On the walk back I was able to speak to the guide about different topics and of course about the gorillas who I would see the following day. It was a great way to understand how things work and to get an idea of the different types of gorilla families that are available to see. Unfortunately, I had done not a lot of research about the gorilla trekking and didn’t know there was such a difference with the families that you can trek and also that you can ask to see a specific family. Very soon we were back on the main national park road and I was asked if I wanted to “show my appreciation” to the tourist police. I was a little shocked to be asked this because I was under the impression that tipping was something done voluntarily and not something that was asked about. I replied without thinking that “in Australia we don’t tip and that to show your appreciation is to say thank you”. Not sure if that one was actually understood let alone appreciated ;-) Considering that I just spent $70 to walk to a waterfall that was pretty lame (nice walk though) I wasn’t thrilled to have to shell out another $10/20 to tip the three people who accompanied on a walk that I could have easily have done myself (although you are not allowed to do any walks alone in the national park – I was told this so not sure if it is true).

I stomped up to the lodge and was welcomed immediately by the assistant manager who asked how was the trip. I told him that the cost doesn’t justify the trip and to never offer a waterfall walk to an Aussie who can see this stuff for free in most national parks in our own country. I then told him how I was asked if I wanted to show my appreciation. Not even thinking I would need money (seeing I already paid and didn’t expect to see a shop on the way had my water with me) I didn’t have any cash on me. I explained to the assistant manager that I felt the tip was expected and went to my tent to get some money. I told the assistant manager that I didn’t think it was appropriate to give a tip for a trip that I had already paid for and felt a little pressured by being asked at the end of the walk. I actually gave the money to the assistant manager and asked him to pass the money onto the guides/tourist police.

This put a dampener on the afternoon and I returned back to the common area with my iPad and cameras to download the photos and to make a video of the trip. The common area at Sanctuary offers a wonderful view and along with a nice cold beer it is the best way to enjoy a few hours of downtime before dinner. A local singer arrived around 6pm to sing to us as we sat around the fire that was started out on the grassed area.I was a little surprised that there were no snacks offered by the lodge whilst waiting for dinner. From my previous experiences at other lodges I was always offered an afternoon tea and an aperitivo snack such as peanuts, olives, chips etc whilst having a drink. I thought because most guests are back in the lodge during the afternoon/early evening and enjoying drinks before dinner because we don’t do game drives I expected a little more.

Dinner was announced at 7pm and people made their way to their tables. There were three groups, which included two couples and myself as a single.  The dinner followed the same lunchtime pattern, which offered a 3 course meal with two options for each of the courses. The meal was nice and after I made my way to the lounge area to continue to work on my photos before hitting the sack to try and be ready for my first gorilla trek the following morning.

Where I Stayed: Sanctuary's Gorilla Forest Lodge

Beautiful camp but for the price and company it is associated with I did expect more with things being a little basic for a "upscale/luxury" property. It is not 5 stars so as long as people know this before arriving then you won't have a problem. Great location and views over the national park, friendly staff although they all seemed a little "lost" and a lazy but that could be because there were only 5 guests staying and they felt they didn't need to really be pro-active. If I went again to Bwindi I would check out other options in the area to see if you can cut costs and enjoy an extra day trekking because the license costs $600.