Initially, two brothers Kigarama and Mburo settled on the surface coverage that is currently occupied by Lake Mburo National Park.

One night, one of the brothers Kigarama dreamt of floods that would fill the whole area and in the morning he warned his brother Mburo to consider relocating from the area.

However, Mburo despised the warning and remained in place whereas his brother left the place for the nearby hill.

In return the floods became a reality and the valley which Mburo had remained in was filed by water and Mburo drowned as a result leading to the formation of a lake that took up the name Lake Mburo.

Kigarama had settled in the adjacent hill which also took up his name as Kigarama hill. This legendary tale characterized the land and local people would offer sacrifices to Mburo if they wanted to fish or use the water resources.

This area was later gazetted as Lake Mburo National Park but before the gazettion the open savannah landscapes provided a grazing ground for the Omugabe of Ankole alongside the Bahima who cherished the land for its openness and its lucrativeness to their long horned cattle that were bestowed upon them by the god-like ancestors, the Bachwezi people. They regarded the land as Kaaro Karungyi literally meaning the beautiful land.

Lake Mburo National Park Uganda – Lake Mburo Safari in Uganda Wildlife Tour Attractions

Being a savannah Park, Lake Mburo National Park is a home of various wildlife species especially of the Antelope family.

The park supports the populations of Impala in the whole of Uganda and it is the first of the three protected areas in Uganda that have counts of Burchell’s Zebra with Kidepo and Pian Upe far below.

Besides that, Lake Mburo National Park also offers sights of bushbuck, topi, defassa waterbuck and bohor reedbuck.

Roan Antelope that used to be common in the park got extinct but large herds of majestic eland still move seasonally through parts of the park.

The Sitatunga Antelope in confined to the swamp interiors and the Klipspringer is occasionally observed in rocky areas.

The lake and lush fringing vegetation support healthy populations of warthog, buffalo, hippopotamus and bush pig. Two diurnal primates including; the vervet monkey and the olive baboon occur in Lake Mburo National Park.

Lake Mburo National Park is a home to 315 bird species and is considered the best place in Uganda to see acacia associated bird species.

The Rwonyo camp offers sights of mosque swallow, black bellied bustard, bare-faced go-away bird and Ruppell’s long tailed starling.

Most of the birds noted in Lake Mburo are southern birds at the very northern limit of their range including; southern ground hornbill, black collared and black throated barbets and green capped eremomella.

Lake Mburo National Park is situated in traditional rangelands of the Bahima pastoralists who cherished the land for grazing their long horned Ankole cattle their own unique breed.

The physical landscapes ranging from valleys to ancient Precambrian rocks, unique hills like Kazuma lakes like Mburo have got rich cultural attachment to the local people that surround the park especially the Bahima.

Lake Mburo is entirely situated within the park boundary and its fresh calm waters provide a good ground for rewarding boat cruise.

The two (2) hour boat cruise on Lake Mburo offers you an opportunity to encounter numerous Hippos and water dwelling birds including the African fish eagle, colorful Kingfishers and Hammerkops.

The wild game drinking on the Lake shore may not be missed including; Antelope species, zebra and buffaloes. The boat starts at the Rwonyo jetty and is accompanied by an experienced captain and a guide. It is best done in the afternoon.

Lake Mburo National Park together with Murchison Falls National park is the only National Parks in Uganda that offer sport fishing.

Sport fishing in Lake Mburo is done at Mazinga where the Uganda safari undertakers get the opportunity to actively engage in catching Tilapia species alongside other six (6) species of fish.

The activity requires carrying own fishing equipment and authorization from Uganda Wildlife Authority.

Getting There